Go gooseberry!

Food fix

Method: Wash the gooseberries thoroughly and dry them. Take a large vessel and add a few teaspoons of oil. Pour the ingredients, except the gooseberries, into the oil and stir well. If you like garlic, you could add 10 freshly-peeled pods to the mixture. Add the gooseberries to the thick gravy and transfer the contents into an air-tight bottle or a porcelain jar. It can be consumed in a week’s time.

Gooseberry Chitranna
Ingredients: Gooseberry — 250 gm; Coconut (grated) — 100 gm; Cooking oil — 2 tbsp; Salt — to taste; Green chillies — 25 gm, Channa dal — 1 tbsp; Groundnuts (roasted) — 50 gm; Fenugreek (roasted and powdered) — 25 gm; Turmeric — ½ tsp; Mustard —½ tsp; Asafoetida — a pinch; Curry leaves — a few.
Method: Chop the gooseberries and remove the seeds. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a pan and add the mustard and asafoetida till they splutter. Add  turmeric, green chillies, channa dal,  and groundnuts to the oil. Add the gooseberries last. Cook well. Add grated coconut and curry leaves. Transfer the mixture into an air-tight container. You can add the mixture to pre-cooked rice.

Gooseberry Rasam
Ingredients: Gooseberry — 100 gm; Moong dal — 2 tbsp; Ginger and green chilli paste — 2 tsp; Tomatoes (medium-sized) — 2; Turmeric — ½ tsp; Mustard — ½ tsp; Cooking oil — ½ tsp; Asafoetida — a pinch; Curry leaves — a few; Salt — to taste.
Method: Add half litre of water to a bowl containing turmeric, ginger and chilli paste, salt and tomatoes and bring the mixture to a boil on a low flame. Pressure cook the gooseberries and the moong dal in 2 cups of water. Mash the cooked gooseberries and moong dal. Add to the simmering rasam. Once it comes to a boil, season it with mustard and curry leaves.