OORP- vegetables cooked and simmered in milk

Gosh..........it's been over a month since I posted my last recipe. I have gotten so lazy these days, the weather being the main culprit I guess. Well, here's a different kind of recipe that was given by Prateesha, one of my friends. It's called as OORP and can be made with vegetables like Drumsticks, Brinjal, Chow-chow, Knol-kohl, Potatoes or Carrots. I have never come across this recipe anywhere, but it's a simple dish which tastes great with rice. On my recent trip to the grocery store, I found fresh drumsticks that i couldn't resist. So today, I am making Murungakkai or Drumstick Oorp.

Ingredients:

Fresh Drumsticks- 2 or 3 cut into 1" pieces and boiled
Onion finely sliced- 1 small
Tomato finely diced- 1 cup
Milk- 1/2 cup
Any kind of Sambhar powder or Chilly powder and Dhania powder mix- 2 Tbs
Cashewnuts- a handful boiled and drained
Salt to taste
Oil for seasoning
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Urad dal- 1 tsp
Channa dal- 1 tsp

Take some oil in a kadai. Add mustard seeds. When it splutters, add urad dal and channa dal. When the dals turn golden brown, add onions and fry till pinkish in color. To this add tomatoes. Fry for a while with a little water. Add the sambhar powder or chilly powder-dhania powder mix and salt. When the tomatoes are cooked, add boiled drumsticks and milk. Bring to a boil and mix in the boiled cashewnuts. Garnish with fresh coriander and curry leaves. Serve hot with rice.

PS: The original recipe calls for cooking of vegetables in milk primarily. But some of us are skeptical about the curdling of milk. So boil the vegetable in water first and then add cold milk to the dish.

Hey folks, my cousin Preethi in New Jersey tried this recipe and gave me a tip which is great. You can boil the vegetables directly in milk with a pinch of baking soda or baking powder. This prevents the milk from curdling. You can also use this tip when making payasams and other sweets where milk is involved.