Ooti Asangba ( Green Ooti)

Ooti Asangba (Green Uti) Recipe

Ingredients:

1 Small cup of rice( Preferably Meitei chang).

Pangkhokla- mana 10-12 ( Aarbi leaves)

 Maroi-nakuppi.(250 gms)

 Mairen Mana ( Pumpkin leaves).

 Khamen-asinba mana anouba ( Tender Tomato Leaves)

Green chillies (7-8)

Cooking soda.

 Mustard oil.

Salt to taste.

Steps:

•  Mix the rice with some mustard oil and keep it aside.
•  Wash  some extra rice (which can be used for cooking later) and collect the water in a separate container, keep the water aside. ( Cing-he in Meiteilon) ( Using Cing-he is not recommended as it has high starch content but it makes the gravy thicker and the tastes better).
•   Wash all the green leaves and chop it into medium size pieces.
•   In a sauce pan or pressure cooker  put the Chinghe and add  chopped green chilles and all the chopped green leaves including the maroi nakuppi. ( Keep some chopped Nakuppi aside to be used later)
• Once it comes to a boil add the marinated rice and cook on low flame, add a pinch of cooking soda and continue cooking on low flame, till the rice is cooked. ( Try not to stir much as the Pangkhokla Mana may cause irritating in the throat later)
• Once the rice is cooked and the gravy is thick, shut the gas and let it cool for few mins.

The Final process:

• The final step is tempering  or Tadka lagana ( 'Shock touba' in Meiteilon).
• Take another pan and add about 2 tbsp of mustard oil, once it’s smoking hot add chopped Maroi-Nakupppi and Slit green chillies, fry it for 2 mins and add the cooked Ooti in the pan.
• Bring it to a boil and add 2/3 pinch of cooking soda.
•  Let it simmer on low flame and add salt to taste ( Remember that adding cooking soda makes food a bit salty so go easy while adding salt).
• Check the thickness of the gravy and once you feel the consistency is right, switch off the induction/gas and keep it covered.
•   Serve hot with white rice and Soibum Iromba.

Making Uti-Asangba for the first time in my Kitchen

The most important ingredient for Ooti-Asangba are the green leaves, while it’s easy to find the ingredients in Manipur. I had to go to three different places to buy the ingredients ( Pangkhokla & Mairen Mana  from the open market, Maroi-nakuppi from the Oriental supermarket and Khamen-asinba mana from the ornamental tomato plant I bought from Albert Heijn......yeah yeah Hum ‘Ooti- Asangba ke liyeh Kahi bhi ja saktey hai lol ) .  For those who live out of India and are dying to eat Ooti-Asangba, most of the ingredients  are available in the Oriental Stores  or check at stores selling South-East Asian and Chinese food items. The  ingredients I think will be a bit expensive but the taste is rewarding. Happy Cooking.