Posto diye Pui / Malabar spinach with Poppy seeds

Do not steal

I was pleasantly surprised to see a big bunch of Pui / Poi / the Malabar spinach at my favourite Bengali store here last weekend.
Though the stems were already very thick and the leaves were a little too big for my taste, I picked up the whole bunch nonetheless ... dreaming of a thousand ... ok ... around five to six different dishes that I'll enjoy these in.

The Pui shaak is common in Bengali meals or dishes ... usually prepared with fish or vegetables or both.
But for people like me who stay away from home and do not have an easy or no access to this leafy vegetable ... it is a delicacy. A very precious delicacy.

Unfortunately am still off fish ... ( I do have every intention of getting
Ilish at least once this season ) ... so made two dishes out of my loot.
One ... the very common and much loved Chorchori.
And the other ... this.

Do not steal

I remember my Ma made a dish with Posto paste and other vegetables ... that used to have pumpkin / kumdo leaves and jackfruit / kathal seeds in it.

So tried to recreate it.

I had some Posto paste after making a few Posto Boras... so used it with the leaves and very chewable stems of the Pui.

I do not get kathal seeds here.
Also I did not use too many vegetables in this as I used them with the Chorchori.

Kept it simple ... just threw in some Turai / ridge gourd to give the dish some body. Of course, you can use potatoes in it too ... I did not.

I had never tasted this combi of posto and pui before ...
must say that I
loved this experiment of mine.

Do not steal

Need :

Posto / Poppy seeds paste - soak the posto seeds for an hour and grind in a mixer
Chopped onion
Pui / Malabar spinach leaves and stems - cleaned and cut into smallish pieces
Chopped Turai / Ridge gourd
Broken green chillies
Oil to cook
Salt to taste
A little sugar ( optional)
A little water to cook

How to :

Heat a little oil in a wok / kadahi.

Add the chopped onions and fry till they turn pink.

Add the turai pieces and the pui leaves and the stem pieces and give a good stir for a while.

Add the green chillies and the posto paste and mix well.

Add some water, salt, sugar and cover.

Cook till the vegetables are well done. Make sure the stems are well cooked. Add water if necessary in between.

Remove cover, dry up any extra water.

Serve hot.

Do not steal

This dish will be slightly sweetish and soft textured ...
... not too watery, not too dry.

Goes great on the side with steamed rice and dal.

An update on Mr.Shalik's family ....
baby number two ... much more beautiful in its downy feathers than its sibling ... left nest,
spent two days fluttering about in my balcony and on the third
day is down on terra firma ...
amongst the plants in the garden.

The parents are with it all the while ... and all is well with them.

And my balcony is empty.

Some Other Posto Recipes

Posto Bora

Aloo Posto

Pyaaj Posto Bhaja

Dankheer