Hello Mamta

As a Westerner with a couple of great Indian Supermarkets near me i am keen to cook with the vegetables on display. However i have no real idea what some of them are and what they would be used for, and how they would be cooked. So i tend just to buy my Ginger, Garlic and Chillies there and would love to be more adventurous. Any ideas?

Thanks

Hello delacey68

It is difficult to say which ones you will like. How about trying them one by one? Some of the commonly sold Indian vegetables in UK are;

Lauki or dudhi=bottle gourd

Bhindi= Okra or ladies fingers

Parwal/parval= Wild Snake Gourd (Trichosanthes dioica), a small cucumber like vegetable

Arbi/arvi=Colocacia. a root vegetable like yam, but smaller

Baingan=large and small brinjals or aubergines

Mooli=white radish root and leaves

Sarson ka saag=Mustard leave

Methi saag=fenugreek leaves

Chowllii saag=amaranth leaves

Gwar ki phali=Indian flat bean

Tori or turai=Indian courgette

Tinda=little, round gourds, look like small green apples

Tindora=small, geen 'bullet' shaped vegetables

Turnip and turnip leaves

Sem=Indian flat beans, much wider and flatter

Lobia or Lobhia or Chowli=Indian cowpeas or black eyed beans. These are long and thin snake like beans, sold in bundles

Other, less common ones are;

Kamal kakari or lotus root

Zimikand or jimikand= Elephant’s ear, Indian yam

For recipes, look under 'search' section of this site.

Mamta