Sindhi specialty: Seyal Maani - Rotis in a Cilantro Sauce
Sindhis are a community who originate from an area called Sindh which is now in Pakistan. Once the Hindu Sindhis migrated to India during the partition of the country in 1947, they more or less dispersed to many different regions in India and abroad.
A few facts about Sindhis; Did you know...
- Sindhi is an Indo-Aryan language which is a branch of Indo-European language family.
- Sind or Sindhu is the native name for the river known more popularly as the Indus,
- The Indus river runs from North to South through the province of Sind.
- Sindhi Hindus are unique because they have never placed emphasis on a caste system.
- The most famous Sindhi festival is Cheti Chand.
Sindhi cooking is famous for its deep fried fare. It is a rare Sindhi meal that will find itself with out any foods being fried.
“Seyel Maani” or “Seyal Fulka” is one such breakfast that does not called for anything being fried. Phew.
Seyal Maani is a typical Sindhi breakfast that is traditionally made with chapatis (phulkas) in a green cilantro chutney sauce.
The cilantro chutney was traditionally made in a mortar and pestle. The method and the ingredients call for a comparison with the Italian Pesto. (It’s most easily made in a food processor today)
Although traditionally it was a way to use up left over chapatis from the previous day, many families cook the chapatis especially to make this delightful dish.
Also, most people I know (including myself) have graduated this dish from breakfast to lunch, thanks to lack of time and desire to deal with onions and masalas in the mornings.
Ingredients:
- 2-3 small onions or 1 large onion
- 1 bunch of coriander or cilantro leaves washed and trimmed
- 1-2 green chilies
- 1 small piece of ginger
- 4-5 garlic cloves
- 2-3 tomatoes chopped or 1 cup crushed tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon dhaniya powder (coriander seed powder)
- ½ teaspoon of haldi (turmeric)
- Salt to taste
- ¼ cup of strained tamarind water/1 heaped tablespoon of amchur (mango powder)
- 3 cups of water
- 2-3 tablespoons oil
- 12 cooked chapatis/phulkas/rotis/(whole wheat tortillas will also work)
Method:
Place the first five ingredients in a food processor and process till finely minced.
Heat the oil in a deep pan. Add the processed mixture in to the pan and fry for a few minutes. Once the water has evaporated, add the tomatoes and dry masalas (spices).Cook till all the moisture has evaporated and the chutney comes together. At this point, it will be very thick.
Add the water and tamarind water and bring to a boil. Boil for a couple of minutes and then start adding the rotis one at a time.
Cover and cook on low heat for 5 minutes.
Serve with Papad and mango achaar (pickle).
Another option would be to use bread instead of rotis. It's then called "Seyel Dubroti". Instead of the rotis, use authentic Pav (Indian style buns) or sliced french bread. The bread absorbs the sauce and makes it really delicious.
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