Raul Dias | Updated: January 27, 2021 18:37 IST
Umbadiyu is a close cousin of Gujarati dish Undhiyu.
This isn't one of those food pieces where I start off by waxing eloquent about my lifelong love for a particular dish - in this instance, the hyper-regional and winter seasonal Gujarati speciality called umbadiyu. In fact, up until a couple of months ago, I hadn't even heard of the all-vegetarian, green-hued, rustic dish also known as ubadiyu or to use a more local moniker 'Gujarati Barbeque'! It was an article on how the many stalls - dishing out the delicacy on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway at Dungri in south Gujarat - have been seeing no crowds due to the COVID-19 restrictions that introduced me to its wonders. I then promptly partook in a plate of the delicacy at a friend's home which was made lovingly for us by her grandmother.
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Over the last few weeks, I learned even more about this close cousin of the more popular matla undhiyu as I ogled at its drool-worthy images on the social media posts of an acquaintance. It was a chat with my friend, the national award-winning chef Varun Inamdar where I not only gleaned a lot more information on this rather elusive dish, but I also managed to wangle out his closely-guarded recipe for it.
Made with a mind-boggling array of vegetables and exotic-sounding vanaspatis (greens) like Indian nettle (kalhar) and black honey shrub, umbadiyu is a dish that requires a lot of preparation and time to make. It is baked in an upturned earthen pot called a 'matla' with dried dung cakes and sugarcane waste acting as the burning fuel.
Originally from Valsad in Gujarat, umbadiyu is available all across the winter season from late November to early February on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway, mainly condensed at the aforementioned village of Dungri. The delicacy has a rich, smoky aroma and taste. And though it uses fewer masalas than undhiyu, it is spicier and drier in texture. Always served with green chutney, pieces of boiled corn-on-the-cob and washed down with a glass of chaas.
Also Read: 5 Tips To Make Traditional Dal Dhokli At Home
Umbadiyo has a rich, smoky aroma and taste. (Picture credit: Shikha Desai)
Ingredients:
Marination (divided into two parts)
Ravaiyo (stuffing the brinjals)
Vegetables and beans
Vanaspati (Greens)
Method:
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About Raul DiasA Mumbai-based writer, Raul is an ardent devotee of the peripatetic way of life. When not churning out his food and travel stories at a manic pace, he can be found either hitting the road for that elusive story or in the company of his three dogs!