Instant Pot Undhiyu recipe (easy cooker method )

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Undihyu or Oondhiyu is a traditional mixed vegetable curry from India. Authentic recipe requires hours of cooking. Pressure cooking will save your time and energywithout compromising on the taste. Today I am sharing an easy way to make this Undhiyu recipe with a combination of seasonal & frozen vegetables that requires less oil too.

I love loads of vegetables on my plate everyday. Be it a salad like thiseasy greek salad with vegan cashew tzatziki or a simple subzi likehealthy mix vegetable subzi with beetroot boost or hidden vegetable soup like this easy garden vegetable soup . Vegetables form an essential part of our everyday meal. Today’s recipe is very close to my heart. It is a classic and authentic mixed veg curry I grew up eating for years. I can never get bored of Undhiyu. It’s nourishing as well as a comfort food for me.

Undhiyu is made during winter time when the recipe ingredients are freshly available in abundance. Every Gujarati home makes Undhiyu on special occasions like Diwali and Uttarayan. My favorite way to enjoy Undhiyu is with hot puris, chilled chaas and shrikhand.

My mother in law makes the best Undhiyu and I feel lucky to have learnt from her. Her tips and tricks just makes this Undhiyu even better and enjoyable all year long.

If you are not familiar with this amazing Indian curry . Let me quickly brief it up for you below –

What is Undhiyu?

Undhiyu is a full of flavor mixed vegetable curry from the State of Gujarat mainly from Surat region of India. Undhiyu got it’s name from the Gujarati word “undhu”, which means upside down . This dish is traditionally cooked upside down underground in earthen pots, termed “matlu”, which are fired from above. Its a very slow and time consuming process. Now a days the process is quickened by cooking Undhiyu in a pressure cooker while still preserving the flavor.

Undhiyu is made mainly during winter season in India as the vegetables like Surti papdi , lilva and methi are only available during this season.

But thanks to the convenience of frozen vegetables you can enjoy Undhiyu all year long.

Though Undhiyu is a Surat specialty, many regions of Gujarat have it’s own version of Undhiyu. Today I am sharing an easy version of Undhiyu i.e Kathiyawadi Undhiyu.

Undhiyu Recipe Ingredient list –

As I have mentioned earlier, Undhiyu is made with winter season specific vegetables. But there are always substitutes that you can work with. I tend to lean towards fresh vegetables. My last resort is using frozen vegetables. As Surti Papdi was not freshly available I have used snow peas available in grocery store here in America. And it works great.

Root vegetables used are baby brinjals, sweet potatoes and baby potatoes. I have even used raw banana ( plantain).

A blend of fresh fenugreek leaves ( methi) and cilantro makes this curry so good!

I did not find fresh peas and lilva beans at the store so used frozen peas and edamame instead.

Some Frequently asked questions and solutions –

I can’t find all the ingredients ( Are they seasonal only?)

In India Undhiyu is made in winter when flat beans like tuvar lilva and Surti papdi are freshly available. But nowadays frozen Undhiyu vegetable mix as well as other root vegetables are easily available in leading Indian grocery stores even in USA. If you still don’t have luck finding them substitute it with snow peas and edamame as suggested.

Can I skip making the dumplings/ muthiya?

Muthiya is the heart of this authentic Indian curry. But skip it if desired. You may just make shortcut undhiyu recipe like mixed vegetable curry.

Muthiyas turned out hard ?

Prepare a soft and sticky dough. Too much flour makes muthiyas tough. Adding baking soda will make muthiyas soft and melt in mouth too.

How to make Undhiyu recipe using less oil?

Traditional Undhiyu is slow cooked in oil alone so lot of oil goes in making it. My recipe uses a combination of oil and water. Making it in a pressure cooker helps to cook Undhiyu in it’s own steam. The muthiyas are not deep fried in this recipe, instead cooked with a brush of oil in a paniyaram pan.

How to make Surti Undhiyu?

For Making Surti Undhiyu, do not cut the potatoes and brinjals into cubes instead slit and stuff them with the prepared green masala.

How to make Vegan Undhiyu ?

Simply substitute ghee with peanut oil or oil of your choice. I have used oil only.

Is Undhiyu Gluten- free?

The vegetable curry is GF, but need to be careful about the muthiya ingredients. Skip rawa if you are on gluten free diet. Instead you can use rice flour.

Step by Step making Undhiyu in a pressure cooker Instant Pot –

Step 1 – Making the muthiyas –

Muthiyas is the star of Undhiyu. It is generally deep fried and then added to the vegetables. But I have used a paniyaram pan to make Undhiyu healthy.

Step 2- Making the green masala for Undhiyu –

The green masala is easy to make with just 4 ingredients mainly coconut, green chilies, cilantro and peanuts. You can make this masala upto 2 days in advance. Store in the refrigerator until used.

Step 3 – Chopping and preparing vegetables for making Undhiyu

You can choose to use frozen Undhiyu vegetable mix and pre-cut frozen roots like purple yams , potatoes and sweet potatoes or go for fresh seasonal vegetables depending on your convenience. A list of possible substitutes are mentioned in the recipe notes when Undhiyu vegetables are not in season.

Step 4- Pressure cooking Undhiyu in a stove top pressure cooker or Instant Pot as shown below.

Just layer everything inside the pot as shown in the photos . Set it to cook . Once done serve it with puris or roti.

Other authentic Indian Instant Pot recipes to try-

Mumbai Pav Bhaji – A droolworthy Indian street food made super easy in a pressure cooker.

Paneer Lababdar – It’s pressure cooked for real and so so good!!!

Instant Pot Chana Masala – Made in one shot from scratch!!

Instant pot Aloo Baingan – Making this curry has never been so easy!

Add more vegetables to your diet in a yummy way –

Vegan Pasta Primavera with roasted vegetables – Pasta got more tasty with this recipe.

Healthy Nacho Cheese Sauce – It has hidden veggies , shhhhh!!! It’s our secret!!

Easy vegan coleslaw sandwich bars – Yummy way to feed veggies to kids.

Keep in Touch –

Are we friends yet? Let’s connect on-Facebook|Instagram|Pintrest|Twitter.

How to Make Undhiyu Recipe in an Instant Pot ( Pressure cooker ) –

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Undhiyu recipe ( Mixed Vegetable curry ) Instant Pot

Make Surti or Kathyawadi undhiyu recipe using less oil in a pressure cooker. Tasty and quick recipe with tips on using seasonal or frozen vegetables.

Course lunch/ dinner

Cuisine Gujarati, Indian

Ingredients

For making Muthias ( Bhajiya / dumplings)

¾ cup besan
1 tablespoon rice flour
1 tablespoon rawa i.e semolina
½ cup packed methi leaves fresh fenugreek leaves finely chopped
¼ teaspoon garam masala
Pinch of turmeric haldi
½ teaspoon grated ginger
1 green chili finely chopped
¼ teaspoon red chili powder lal mirch
¼ teaspoon baking soda see notes
1 tablespoon oil OR yogurt for oil-free muthiyas
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt to taste
Water as needed to make a soft dough

Vegetables used for Undhiyu

1 cup onion optional
2 teaspoon ginger (Freshly grated OR Paste)
1 Tablespoon garlic (Freshly grated OR Paste)
250 grams Surti Papdi OR Snow peas (Fresh OR Frozen approx. 4 cups packed )
1 plantain i.e raw banana
4 mini brinjals i.e eggplant
10 baby potatoes OR 3 medium sized potatoes
1 medium sized sweet potato
1 cup fresh or frozen Tuvar lilva (Pigeon Pea OR Edamame
1 cup Green Peas or Vaal beans fresh or frozen
1 cup tightly packed Cilantro leaves i.e coriander roughly chopped.
½ cup tightly packed Methi leaves / fresh fenugreek leaves O frozen.
½ cup water for cooking.

Additional Spices Ingredients -

4 tablespoons Cooking oil
¼ teaspoon Hing Asafetida
¼ teaspoon cumin jeera
1 tablespoon White sesame seeds i.e til
1 teaspoon Indian Red chili powder lal mirch
¼ teaspoon turmeric i.e haldi
1 teaspoon ground coriander powder i.e dhaniya powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt to taste
Freshly squeezed lemon juice as needed before serving

Green Masala Ingredients that need to be coarsely grounded –

4 Thai green chilies or adjust to your spice level
1 cup tightly packed Cilantro leaves i.e coriander
¼ cup peanuts skinless roasted preferred
½ cup desiccated coconut unsweetened OR fresh OR frozen coconut

Instructions

For making Muthiya

Mix all ingredients called to make muthiyas.
Slowly add in water to knead a soft sticky dough.
Now rub some oil on your palms and make lime size round dumplings.
Flatten dumplings a bit if cooking in in a appe pan.

For cooking muthiyas in PANIYRAM PAN (appe/ aebleskiever pan) (Oil free)

Heat the appe pan on medium heat.
Lightly grease each cavity of the appe pan.
Lower the temperature and cook the muthiyas covered flipping them half way.
Cook around 3-4 minutes each side or until golden brown.

For deep-frying method -

You my choose to deep fry the muthiyas on low medium heat until evenly golden brown.
Once done place them on an absorbent paper until used.

For making Green Masala -

In a food processor/ mixer or blender, grind the ingredients that need to be coarsely grounded.
Keep aside.

Preparing vegetables for making Undhiyu

Cut baby potatoes into half or medium size potatoes into quarters.
Cut baby eggplants into half.
Wash, peel and cut plantain & sweet potatoes into approx. 1” cubes.
If using fresh Surti papdi or val papdi then wash them , remove the string from the ends and keep ready.

Pressure cooking Undhiyu in an Instant Pot-

Heat Instant Pot on Saute mode.
Add in oil.
Once warm add in hing, cumin , onion.
Sautee onions for 2 minutes.
Add in ginger garlic pate and saute for few seconds.
Now add in potatoes , sweet potatoes, plantain , green peas, lilva/ edamame
Add all the masala under “ Additional spices “ and half cup water.
Layer it with cilantro, fenugreek leaves and Surti papdi , Val papdi.
Add in coarsely grounded masala that we made.
Give it a good mix.
Now top it with muthiyas but DO NOT STIR.
Cancel Saute mode.

First option -

Press Manual LOW 5 minutes knob turned on SEALING position.
After the Instant Pot beeps, immediately perform a Quick Release by turning the knob to VENTING.
Once the silver pin drops down carefully open the pot and stir well.

Or second option you can do -

MANUAL HIGH 3 minutes. Natural Pressure release.
Check if the potatoes are done and give a taste test.
Serve hot with roti or puri.

Notes

Refer to FAQ's and solutions mentioned above in the post.

You can make Undhiyu with frozen Undhiyu Vegetable mix found in “frozen vegetables section” at Indian stores or with a combination of fresh and frozen vegetables.

For large parties and potluck you can increase the recipe with same cooking time.

Possible Substitutions -
If you do not have an Indian store around or vegetables are not in season then

Substitute Val papdi and Surti Papdi with snow peas.
Sub tuvar lilva ( Pigeon peas ) with edamame.
Substitute fenugreek leaves with 2 tablespoons dried kasoori methi in muthiyas. and skip methi leaves totally in the curry.
Add purple yam ( ratalu) to the curry if available fresh or frozen otherwise substitute it with sweet potato.

What to serve with Undhiyu?

Undhiyu is served with Pooris and a side of Srikhand on festival & special occasions.
For regular meals I prefer Undhiyu with Bajra rotla that make the complete meal Gluten-free or with simple rotis OR Methi theplas and chilled chaas ( buttermilk).

Can you freeze Undhiyu?

Yes , Undhiyu freezes well. It is a great make ahead of time dish for parties & potluck. Place it in air tight freezer friendly container and freeze up to 3 months.
Thaw overnight in the fridge or over the counter or defrost in a microwave. Once thawed do not re freeze.

Expert Tip-

As Undhiyu freezes well, it is a great make ahead of time dish for parties & potluck.
To save time you can prepare muthiyas , green masala for Undhiyu up to 2 days ahead of time. CStore it in the fridge.
Use pre-cut frozen vegetable packets and frozen muthiyas to cater a large crowd.

How to make Undhiyu in a stove top pressure cooker ?

Follow the recipe and instructions above for layering. Cook for 2 whistles on medium heat (Not high) . Let the pressure release naturally before opening the cooker lid.

Nutrition

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Instant Pot Undhiyu recipe (easy cooker method ) - Carve Your Craving (2024)