Beetroot Leaves Tambli

This year I went a little crazy with my vegetable patch. When the year started, I only wanted to grow tomatoes. I thought I would have a couple of plants, that is all. It was really hard to find time to care for the garden with a busy schedule. But then Covid-19 happened. We weren’t even getting groceries on time. I got worried and I wanted to grow everything possible in my garden. V’s cousin had brought some vegetable seed packets 3 years ago. I did not have too much hope but I put them all in the ground. It took a while but some of them sprouted and grew beautifully. One of them was beetroot. I have made all kinds of things with these fresh beautiful leaves. One of them was this refreshing, cooling beetroot leaves tambli.

Tambli is usually a raw, uncooked gravy. It sometimes has yogurt, sometimes made just with coconut. We make many varieties of tamblis. Each have their unique flavor. Here’s a list you may want to explore,

1. Gooseberry tambli made with Indian gooseberry/avale,
2. Palak tambli made with spinach/palak,
3. Menthe tambli made with fenugreek/methi seeds,
4. Kande tambli made with onion,
5. Ankre tambli made with watercress/ankre,
6. Beetroot tambli made with the beetroot

This beetroot leaves version is new but it worked out so well. It was spicy, had an intense cumin flavor. The ghee seasoning increased the taste many folds. On a hot summer day, this was a perfect dish to go with some rice and side of beetroot upkari.

Ingredients:
3 cups chopped beetroot leaves and stems
2 green chillies
1/2 cup coconut
1/2 cup thick plain yogurt/curds
1 tea spn cumin seeds
1 tea spn ghee + 1/2 tea spn oil
1 tea spn mustards seeds
4-5 curry leaves
A pinch asafoetida/hing
Salt

Method:
Heat oil and add cumin seeds.
When they are fried, add slit green chillies followed by chopped leaves and stems.
Fry for few mins till the leaves are wilted.
Grind the leaves with salt and coconut to a smooth paste.
Take the ground paste in a bowl, add the beaten yogurt/curds.
Add enough water to make it a gravy consistancy.
Heat ghee and add mustard seeds.
When they start popping, add asafoetida, curry leaves.
Add the seasoning to the tambli.
Serve with rice.

Serves : 3-4
Preparation time: 20mins