I have always been fascinated with the variety of food available across India. And also by the fact that every citizen of the country is immensely proud of the state he/she emanates from. So, when a driver from Uttarakhand joined me some years ago, I decided to ask his advice on the local food of his state. Surprisingly, he was not aware of a single dish! So, I began my research and discovered several dishes that we delightful. One that fascinated me used crushed radishes and potatoes. I have made this dish several times now and always enjoy it.

Ingredients
3-4 medium sized red radishes or 1 long white radish
2 medium sized potatoes
4-5 cloves garlic, peeled
1″ piece ginger, peeled
1 medium sized onion, chopped
4-5 green chillies
2 medium sized tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds (sabut jeera, jeeragam)
A pinch of asafoetida (hing, perunkayam)
1/2 tsp coriander powder (dhania powder, kothamalli podi)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder (haldi powder, manjal podi)
6 cups water
2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
Salt to taste
Method
Wash and crush the radish and potatoes into small pieces
Also crush the garlic and ginger
Heat a wok and add the crushed ginger and garlic
When the garlic turns light brown, add the cumin seeds, asafoetida and onion
Saute till onion is translucent
Add chopped tomatoes, green chillies, salt, turmeric powder and coriander powder
Add crushed potatoes and radishes
Cook for a couple of minutes
Add some water and boil for 2-3 minutes
Add the remaining water and cook on low flame for about 30 minutes or till the radishes are soft and gravy thickens
Remove from flame and garnish with coriander leaves
Serve hot with steamed red/brown rice or Indian breads
Enjoy!