Amrood ki Subzi/ Guava curry/ Seebe gravy

Yes, you read it right! It is guava curry or seebe hannina side dish for roti. Guava or amrood is one of the healthiest fruits having low GI, is nutritionally rich. It is rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber… This fruit can be consumed by diabetics too without any guilt.

I made Guava halwa, Guava chutney, guava salad when we had plenty of guava from backyard!

This season we are having wonderful harvest of guavas in our home garden. Recently we shared few gauvas to a person from U. P. who stays close by. I learnt from them that it can be used in subzi and he said they made delicious curry from the guavas that we shared. Got the recipe and tried at home. I made curds/ yogurt based gravy. This Rajasthani dish makes a great combination to chapathi or other Indian breads.

Here is the recipe which I have tried.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:

Guava/ Amrood/ Seebe – 3 large/ 4-5 medium, neither tender nor over riped

Tomato – 2 medium, pureed

Green chillis - 2 (cut lengthwise)

Oil – 2 tsp

Cumin seeds – ¼ tsp

Fennel seeds – a pinch (for flavour)/ I used whole seeds, one can use powder too

Coriander powder – ½ tsp

Cumin powder – ¼ tsp

Turmeric powder – 1 generous pinch

Red chilli powder – ½ tsp

Salt – to taste

Curds – ½ cup, churned

Sugar/ jaggery – 1 tsp

Fresh coriander leaves - 4-5 sprigs/ chopped (for garnishing)

 

Method:

• Wash tomato, chop them roughly. Puree using a mixer, keep aside.
• Wash guava, remove the core (seeds) with the help of a knife. Do not peel the skin. Now cut flesh with skin into thin slices (lengthwise). Seeds should not be added in curry.
• Cut green chillis lengthwise.
• Take a pan, add and heat oil. Add cumin seeds & saunf (fennel seeds).
• On spluttering, add cut chillis and pureed tomato. Saute it for a minute.
• Add chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder and salt. Continue to saute and cook until they are done and raw smell goes off (about 4 minutes).
• Meanwhile beat (blend) curds just to get smooth texture, don’t overdo it, butter should not be separated. Add whisked curds to the tomato & spice mix.
• Now add cut guavas, 1 tsp sugar or jaggery. Add water to adjust the required consistency. About 1/2 - 1 cup of water is required to this.
• Cover with the lid and cook for 5 more minutes or until guava is tender. It should not be mushy. The texture should remain intact.
• Switch off the stove.
• Garnish with finely chopped fresh coriander leaves.
• Serve this gravy with chapathi/ roti.

Notes:

• Select guavas which are slightly soft and just ripe ones. Over ripe or tender hard guavas are not recommended for this recipe.
• For me, sourness of tomato and curds was just fine. If you wish tangier version, then at the end you can add 1tsp lemon juice to the gravy. Or addition of dry mango powder while cooking is also good.
• Sugar is not used in the original recipe, we prefer to balance the taste with added   sweetness.
• If gravy looks watery while boiling, then dissolve 1 tsp of corn flour in little water and add it to the gravy. Boil well.
• If you don't like fennel (saunf) flavor in curry, then you can avoid it.