Simple Vegetable Stew

I'd intended to make this yesterday in the night, but I reached home, played with the cat and promptly fell asleep.
Not a very interesting thought when  you've got to chop vegetables AND cook in the morning. :(


I learnt how to make this stew from my dad. However, usually the stock is always from the boiled meat (beef or pork). In this instance, I wanted to make it with just vegetables...


I took whole cloves (lavang), cinnamon (dar chini), cardamon (elaichi), tej patta (bay leaves), and pepper. To give a little twist I added some kari patta (curry leaves) and of course crushed some ginger and garlic. Now, for those from the South of India, the curry leaves would be a normal fixture, but I have grown up consuming stews sans this... 

Next, the vegetables got chopped...

While all the spices sputtered in hot oil in the pressure cooker...

I first added the tomatoes and quartered onions since I like a bit of their juices to pick up the fragrance of the spices and take them to the other ingredients. I use very little oil, else I could just add everything in and the oil would take it everywhere.

Next everything else went in and got stirred around...

Then I just added water and pressure cooked everything for two 'whistles' of the pressure cooker while I prepared to leave for office...

I waited impatiently for the cooker to cool enough before I packed my lunch box...

And almost scaled my palate as I rushed through breakfast (of the same stew...)

Try this one... And Bon Appétit!