Tinda Sabji

 

Tinda sabji or tinda sabzi is an Indian dish made using the vegetable known as Indian baby pumpkin apple gourd or round gourd.  It may be prepared dry or in an onion and tomato based gravy as desired. This vegetable is available mainly during the monsoon months and resembles green tomatoes in appearance, only being more firm. Tossing the chopped vegetable in little oil with selected dry spices and powders can result in this quick and easy tinda recipe. 
 
 
Tinda sabji Recipe Variations
 
1. Tinda sabji recipe 1: Cumin seeds are crackled in a little vegetable oil heated in a wok, the sliced tinda is added with some turmeric powder and water. Once tinda is soft and cooked to tenderness, chilli, coriander, dry mango powders are added and stirred well. Another 5 minutes of cooking later, the vegetable is garnished with fresh chopped coriander leaves and served hot with chappati or roti.
2. Tinda sabji recipe 2: Finely chopped onion is fried till golden brown, chopped tomatoes are added and cooked well; Red chilli and turmeric powders are added, water is added and then the chopped tinda follows, slit green chillies may be added for extra spice, else a generous sprinkle of chopped cilantro, pepper powder and a squeeze of lime juice will finish the dish. 
 
 
Nutrition Information
 
Tinda is a low calorie vegetable with a high water and fibre content making it a good choice for inclusion in a weight loss diet as well as diabetic and cholesterol lowering diet plans. The tinda sabji can be prepared using little oil and a serving size of approximately 120 g delivers the following nutrients-
104 calories of which 36.9 calories are obtained from fat.
Total fat content of 4.1 g of which saturated fat is 0.1 g, cholesterol – 0 mg 
Sodium content is 9.9 mg 
Total carbohydrate content is about 34 g of which sugars supply 3.8 g and dietary fibre about 7.7 g. 
Protein content is ~ 1.5 g. 
Basically tinda as a vegetable is high in moisture (93 g), calcium (25 mg ) and phosphorus (24 mg) 
 
 
Nutritional Improvements
 
It may be possible to increase the protein content of this dish by adding some thick blended low-fat yoghurt into the tinda sabji towards the end to enhance texture and provide substance to the gravy.
A lot of minced ginger and garlic may be added to enhance the disease fighting properties of the dish.
Addition of some soya granules can increase not only protein but also isoflavone content which is known for osteoporosis and cancer fighting properties. 
Fenugreek seeds may be added to ‘up’ the fibre value and also to help prevent elevation in the blood sugar and cholesterol levels.