Turkey berry or pea eggplant (Solanum torvum), is a bushy, erect and spiny perennial plant used in horticulture as a rootstock for eggplant since they are very vigorous and tolerate diseases affecting the root system. Turkey berries grow in clusters of tiny green spheres (about 1 cm in diameter) that look like green peas. These berries are believed to be full of iron and are consumed when one is low in iron.
They are called chundakkai in Malayalam and in my childhood my mother had told that they are edible but its processing is time consuming. Since she was a working woman, it was never cooked at home. While doing my Siddha Medicine course I learned that extract of this berry is used to improve digestion.
When we saw a Turkey berry plant loaded with berries in the backyard, I decided to try cooking it. Searched the net to find how to clean it because it contains lots of tiny seeds, which need to be removed. For this, the berries are gently crushed in a mortar with pestle, and then washed 3 or 4 times, when the seeds get washed off.
1. Turkey berry curry
Ingredients
2 cups of cleaned, deseeded and washed Turkey berry
1 green chilli
2 tbsps oil
¼ tsp mustard seeds
A pinch of asafoetida
¼ tsp fenugreek seeds
1 red chilli broken to pieces
6 flakes of garlic
A few curry leaves
A small ball of tamarind, soak in water and take out the pulp
1 tsp sambar powder
Salt to taste
½ tbsp jaggery
1 ½ cups water
Instruction
- Heat oil in a pressure cooker; add mustard, fenugreek seeds and red chilli pieces.
- When mustard splutters, add garlic, curry leaves, asafoetida and fry well.
- Put in the cleaned Turkey berries, green chilli, and salt.
- Stir well on low flame for a couple of minutes. Then add tamarind pulp, sambar powder, jaggery, and water.
- Pressure cook for 5 minutes. Cool and open, simmer for two minutes.
- Serve with hot steamed rice.
2. Turkey Berry Dry Sabzi
Ingredients
2 cups of cleaned, deseeded and washed Turkey berry
½ cup water
Salt to taste
2 tbsps oil
½ tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
6 flakes of garlic cut fine
1/3 tsp turmeric powder
1/3 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp coriander powder
½ tsp dry mango powder
1/3 tsp garam masala powder
Instructions
- Pressure cook the cleaned, deseeded Turkey berries with water and salt for 5 minutes. Cool and open.
- Heat oil in a pan, when it is hot, add jeera, cut garlic and sauté it.
- Add the cooked Turkey berries (along with any water if it remains), all the masala powders. Reduce the flame and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally., till any remaining water evaporates.
- Serve with steamed rice or chapatis
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