Sarson ka saag is one of the best-known dishes of Punjab’s winter cuisine: mustard greens, spinach, and Swiss chard are simmered over low heat for a long time and mashed, then thickened with a handful of corn flour. Only long cooking softens mustard greens’ sharp bitterness; it remains in the dish if they are cooked briefly. The mash is finished with a tempering of onion, tomato, and garlic sautéed in ghee. The tempering is not simmered with the mash; it is added at the end. It is served with makai ki roti, a thick flatbread made from corn flour.
Remove the thick center ribs from all three greens and wash the leaves in three separate batches of water; mustard greens hold sand at the bottom and will not come clean in a single wash. Drain and cut into wide strips.
Add the greens, sliced ginger, crushed garlic, halved hot peppers, water, and salt to a pot. Cover and simmer over low heat for 50 minutes, stirring 2 times along the way. They are ready when a leaf mashes without resistance against the side of a spoon and the sharp mustard aroma has given way to a mild green aroma.
Uncover the pot and raise the heat slightly. Wait until most of the liquid at the bottom has evaporated. Sprinkle in the corn flour and cook for 12 more minutes, stirring continuously; the raw flour aroma will disappear and the mash will begin to cling to the spoon.
Mash the mixture briefly with a potato masher or an immersion blender. Aim for a coarse mash with visible pieces of leaves, not a smooth puree; overblending makes the saag sticky.
In a separate pan, melt the ghee and sauté the finely chopped onion for 7 minutes, until golden. Add the diced tomato and red chili powder and cook for 4 more minutes, until the tomato breaks down and the oil separates at the edges. Stir half the tempering into the mash and heat for 1 minute; drizzle the rest over the serving dish. Serve hot with corn flatbread.
Do not discard the cooking liquid from the greens; it stays in the mash, while the corn flour provides the thickness. Most of the liquid should evaporate before you add the flour, or the mash will taste floury.
Yaprakları kısık ateşte uzun pişirmek şart, hızlandırmaya çalıştım ve hardal yaprağının acılığı kalmadı ama otsu tadı da gitmedi.
Sadeyağ yerine tereyağı kullandım, tadka yaparken yandı. Sadeyağın dumanlanma noktası yüksekmiş.
Doğru fark etmişsiniz. Tereyağı kullanacaksanız ateşi orta tutun ya da köpüğünü alıp durulanmış hâlde kullanın.
Mısır ununu azar azar ekleyin, bir seferde dökünce topaklanıyor ve ezme granül kalıyor. Unu eklerken de karıştırmayı bırakmayın, bir elle serpip diğer elle çevirmek gerekiyor; iki kişilik bir iş aslında.
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