Ingredients

• 1 cup tur dal (lentils) dry
• 3.5 ounces (100 grams) of fresh roselle (gongura) leaves plucked out
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 tbsp ghee
• pinch of asafoetida (optional)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 2 sprigs curry leaves
• 1-4 green chillies depending on your liking
• 8 cloves garlic
• 1 inch knob fresh ginger
• 1 medium onion thinly sliced
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

1. To prepare gongura pappu, wash the dal well. Soak the plucked out gongura leaves (discard stems) in a bowl of water, allowing any mud / impurities to settle. Wash, repeat the process twice. Chop roughly and keep aside.
2. In a 5 litre+ pressure cooker / pressure pan, add the tur dal, chopped gongura leaves and turmeric. Add 3.5 cups water. Pressure cook for 2 whistles and keep flame on sim (minimum) for 10-12 minutes. Once cooker is cool enough, open the lid and mash the dal along with the gongura using the back of a round ladle.
3. Peel the garlic. Smash and finely mine the garlic cloves. Grate the ginger. Slit the green chillies. Keep these ingredients ready for tempering.
4. To prepare the tempering for the gongura pappu, heat ghee in a large kadai (heavy bottomed pan).
5. Sprinkle the asafoetida, cumin and mustard seeds. As soon as the seeds splutter, strip off curry leaves from the stems and add to the ghee, along with slit green chillies, garlic and ginger.
6. Stir for a minute on low flame. Mix in the sliced onion with a pinch of salt and sweat on a medium flame for 7-8 minutes until the onions are soft. Transfer the cooked dal and gongura to this tempering, along with the salt and allow to come to a simmer. Adjust consistency with some water if needed.
7. Serve hot with rice and ghee, and any other vegetable dish dish.

Notes

Ingredients

• 2 large bunches roselle 4 pounds eggplant ¼ cup olive oil 1 onion, chopped 2-4 cubes Maggi Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Wash and dry the roselle then separate leaves from flowers and stem. Reserve leaves. Set aside flowers and stems for another dish.
2. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Blanch roselle leaves for 2 minutes, remove and rinse under cold water. The leaves will turn from green to black. Squeeze leaves dry and set aside.
3. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Peel the eggplant and cut into ½-inch cubes. Boil eggplant until very soft, about 8-10 minutes. Drain well, set aside.
4. In a large saute pan, heat oil over medium-high heat. When hot, add chopped onions and cook until translucent, 3-5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, and add the roselle and eggplant to the pan along with the crumbled Maggi cubes and ¼ cup water. Stir well to combine. Simmer lightly, uncovered, until most of the water has evaporated and the mixture is as thick as mashed potatoes, about 20-25 minutes. Before serving, season with pepper and salt to taste.

Notes

Ingredients

• 1 cup peanut oil, lard or other vegetable oil
• 1 cup flour
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning (see below)
• 1 ham hock (optional)
• 10 cups water
• 3 pounds assorted greens (i.e. kale, collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, spinach, chard, parsley, dandelion greens, beet greens), chopped (about 14 cups)
• Salt
• 1 pound smoked andouille sausage (optional)
• File powder to taste (optional)
• Cajun Spice Blend
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 Tbsp garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp sweet paprika

Instructions

1. Make the roux: Start the gumbo by making a roux, which will add a lot of flavor and thicken the gumbo. Heat the cup of peanut oil or lard (both are traditional roux ingredients) over medium heat for a minute or two and then stir in the flour. Mix so there are no lumps.
2. Cook the roux over medium-low heat until it is the color of chocolate. It is your choice how dark you let your roux go. The darker it is, the better, but once the roux gets dark it can burn easily, so you must stir constantly and keep and eye on it.
3. Heat water to a simmer: While the roux is cooking, bring the 10 cups of water to a simmer.
4. Add onions, celery, green pepper, then garlic to roux: When the roux is dark enough, mix in the chopped onions, celery and green pepper and turn the heat to medium. Let this cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften. Add the garlic and cook another 1-2 minutes.
5. Add bay leaves, spice, hot water: Add the bay leaves, the Cajun spice and slowly stir in the hot water. The roux will seize up at first, but keep stirring and it will all come together in a silky broth.
6. Add ham hock, greens, cover and simmer: Add the ham hock and all the greens. Taste for salt, but remember the ham hock will be salty, so let the broth be a little under-salted for now. If you want to add more Cajun spice, do so now. Cover the pot and simmer gently for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
7. Remove meat from ham hock bones, chop and return to pot: Check the ham hock. If the meat is falling off the bone, remove it, discard the bones, chop the meat and return it to the pot. If the hock is not ready, keep simmering the gumbo; ham hocks don't always cook at the same rate.
8. Add andouille sausage: Once the hock is ready, add the andouille sausage and cook for another 15 minutes.
9. Serve with file powder at the table.

Notes

Ingredients

• (4) 6 oz. Tilapia Filets
• ¼ Cup Wheat Flour
• ¼ tsp. Salt
• ¼ tsp. Pepper
• 4 Tbsp. Butter (divided)
• ¼ Cup White Wine
• 3 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
• 1 Tbsp. Capers, Drained.
• 1 Large Bunch Roselle Leaves.

Instructions

1. Wash roselle leaves. Remove stems and chop coarsely. Set aside.
2. Mix flour, salt, and pepper in a shallow plate.
3. Coat fish in flour mixture.
4. Melt 2 Tbsp. butter in pan over medium heat. Cook fish in butter until lightly browned and cooked through. Remove fish from pan. Add roselle leaves to pan and cook on medium-low heat until soft.
5. Add wine, lemon juice, and 2 Tbsp. of butter to the roselle and combine to make a sauce.
6. Add fish to pan and stir to coat. Add capers. Serve over rice or pasta and top fish with cooked greens.

Notes

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium white onion, chopped
• 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cut into 1/2- to 3/4-inch pieces
• 1 15 oz. can Bar Harbor All Natural Fish Stock (available at WFM)
• 1 Tbsp. Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste (available at WFM and Kroger)
• 1 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced
• 1 cup roselle leaves, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 14 oz. can light unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 tsp. curry powder
• ½ tsp. cumin seeds
• 2 big handfuls of Malabar spinach
• ½-1 lb. shrimp, cleaned and tails removed
• Juice of 1/2 a lime
• rice or noodles, cooked to package instructions
• ¼ cup chopped fresh Basil

Instructions

1. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté for a few minutes.
2. Add garlic and squash. Sauté until nice and slightly golden, about 7-10 minutes.
3. Add the curry and cumin seeds and mix to combine. Add broth, ginger and roselle. Stir in coconut milk.
4. Simmer uncovered until squash is completely tender and liquid is slightly reduced, about 8-10 minutes. While simmering, add red curry paste a little at a time, adding more to taste. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. After 10 minutes, add the spinach and shrimp. Cook 2-3 more minutes until spinach has wilted and shrimp is about done. You can choose to add the noodles or rice to the soup and combine, or keep separate.
6. Squeeze in ½ lime and add chopped basil. Serve hot.

Notes