This Is The Best And Authentic Muskmelon Tarkari Recipe
Muskmelon Tarkari
Chennai summers are known for being very hot and very humid, with temperatures often exceeding 40°C. Despite this intolerable heat and the rogue weather, I still love my city.
It is a city of contrasts, where ancient temples stand tall amidst skyscrapers and traditional dance forms share the stage with contemporary art. One can enjoy Carnatic music, savour delicious food, and feel the serene beaches as Chennai has the 2nd longest beach in the world. It stretches for approximately 13 kms along the Bay of Bengal !! A beautiful blend of South Indian traditions and modernity, Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu is one of the important metro cities of India.
But Chennai summer is unbearable, to say the least.
The other day I bought a muskmelon, to have it as a summer fruit. As i felt it could be a bit raw, I kept it in the open so that it could ripen up. A week passed, but there were no signs of it ripening. It remained hard as rock. A few more days passed by, it still showed no signs of ripening. Running out of patience, I decided to cut it and try it out. Unfortunately, it was still raw!!!
So I put on my thinking cap and decided to make a dish out of it, to be eaten with rice and daal.
I removed the skin & the seeds and cut the melon into small cubes.
I also cut potatoes into small cubes, about the same size as the melons.
Having done this, I chopped onions and tomatoes into thin, small slices and kept all these aside.
In a small pressure cooker, I poured a couple of table spoons of mustard oil, once the oil got heated up, I added a teaspoon full of panch foran which is a five spice blend popular in bengali cuisine (mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fennel, fenugreek seeds, nigella seeds)… then I dropped the finely chopped onions, sauteed them well till they turned golden brown.
To this I added the finely chopped tomatoes and a tablespoon full of ginger and garlic paste.
When all this was well fried, I added the masala…1 tspn r.chilly powder, 1 tbspn coriander powder, 1/2 tspn turmeric powder, 1 tspn jeera powder, and salt.
When the masala started leaving oil from the sides, I dropped the chopped cubes of muskmelon and potatoes into the cooker.
Sauteed the vegetables and masala for a while, then added half a cup of water, Kasuri methi (crushed) and half a tspn garam masala.
I let the cooker give out about 3 whistles and then allowed it to cool.
Lo behold, when I opened the cooker, the veg smelled awesome.
I removed it in a dish and garnished it with finely chopped coriander leaves.
Had it with chawal (rice) and tadka dal. Nothing else was required.
The meal was divine.
My first attempt at a fruit turned vegetable dish was just too delicious.
I will keep making it as many times as the fruit doesn’t become a fruit!!!
Muskmelon can be included in the daily diet to assist in weight loss as it is low in calories and high in fiber.
Moreover, it is also beneficial for eye health due to its high vitamin A content
By Sudha Mukhopadhyay
