An Agathipoo Feast

Agathipoo fritters | Coconut rice with Agathi Flowers | Beans & Agathipoo poriyal

अगस्त्यम् कुसुमं तथा मृदुफलं केनहृतं जन्तुना
धन्यं चाद्य दिनं मिलितं कस्यास्यमालोकितम् ।
स्वित्रं तक्रयुतं सुहिङगुलुलितं तप्ते घृते पाचितं
भोक्‍ त्रा सत्वरभषितं प्रियतमे निद्यापि संपाचितं ॥ १७०॥

Whoever plucks the flower of Agasti and its soft fruit for cooking must have surely glanced on something lucky that day. The flower of Agasti is boiled in buttermilk, asafoetida is added to it and it is cooked in ghee. Waiting eagerly to relish it, the eater asks his beloved, why have you not yet prepared this delicacy?
–Verse 170, 8th Utsava of Kṣemaśarma’s Kṣemakutūhalam, 16th century

Agathipoo, the vegetable hummingbird or Sesbania grandiflora flowers make their entrance right about now in my part of the world. I missed last year’s season so was more alert this time and the good folks at AuroOrchard next door helped me to get a whole bag of the flowers from trees planted as barriers and windbreakers on the farm.

Year-round we know the keerai [greens] well—like the Chakramuni [Sauropus androgynus] greens, they’re not to be consumed copiously, but once every few weeks as a preventive for worms (rather needed in the tropics) and as a kind of detoxing tonic to keep GI tract linings in good health as they have potent anti-ulcerative and anti-microbial functions. The plant is interestingly called “Kathurumurunga” in Sri Lanka, adding it to the many plants that carry the “murungai” descriptor (“like fingers from a hand”: Kalyana Murungai and Murungakkai), each one potently medicinal.

Most will remember agathi only for two reasons: the greens are fed to cows and goats, and they appear in meals only on dwadashi–that being, of course, the 12th day of the bi-monthly lunar cycles, the one that follows ekadashi (the 11th day of the same cycle) when Hindus (women, mostly) observe a cleansing fast. So, no beans or grains; only fruits and milk for a day and that followed up with a meal that includes agathi keerai in some form, and is a bit like also making sure that these are consumed on something of an empty stomach. The old Christian watchman who would sometimes bring these greens for us always warned: only twice a month. That corresponds rather well with the bi-monthly dwadashi inclusions of agathi greens. As with most of these old practices, some memory tricks built in to make sure the greens aren’t completely forgotten.

The flowers are I think medicinally gentler than the greens and not particularly mindful of lunar cycles of consumption as they bloom really only once a year in these parts, so we take them as they come and don’t wait for dwadashi particularly. They pack a nutritional punch: high in Calcium, protein, vitamins A and C plus a range of trace minerals the body needs to stay in good overall health. They come in four colors: sita (white), peetha (yellow), lohita (red), and neela (blue)—though I’ve only ever seen the white, I gather the red grows more in the Kongu regions, only sita and lohita are used culinarily, with sita being less bitter than lohita. These colors are listed in the Raja Nighantu, though it’s possible the peetha/yellow refers to Sesbania bispinosa [which is used culinarily in Vietnam].

“Agastyi” flowers appear in several Nighantus, those explications of the 8-17th centuries by various authors, on drugs, tastes, plants and so on: an Ayurvedic materia medica and then more. They are also mentioned in Kṣemaśarma’s 16^th century Kṣemakutūhalam, ‘curiosity about well-being,’ on dietectics and well-being. Kṣemaśarma was a poet-physician in the court of King Vikramasena of Ujjaini in central India, and he lists six edible plant products in the work’s 8th utsava or section: patram, pushpam, phalam, naalam, kandam, mulam [leaves, flowers, fruits, stalks, bulbs, roots], each succeeding one being heavier than the one preceding. Going by this, leaves are always easiest on the body, flowers are next in line. Kṣemaśarma tells us they alleviate pitta and kapha, treat tertian fever [as with malaria], and are cooling. The fruit cures respiratory tract illnesses, he says, though the flower is mentioned in other Nighantus as having similar curative properties.

Trouble is of course that the flowers come all in a go, bloom and fall and spoil all in a hot minute, so it’s like you must be there to catch them or you’ll miss their goodness entirely and there’s not much question of regulated eating. That’s probably why they’re not regularly in markets and more of a home garden or farm/forage find. We’ve been having just a few a day, loving their soft, delicate bitterness; their papiloneaceaus form, even the way they appear in pairs and hang together like couples content in just their own quiet togetherness in their (too short) lifetimes. The way the flowers bloom calls to mind a hovering hummingbird at times, a heron for the Bengalis who know this as bok-phul, the white heron, and then there is of course the name “agasti” itself which some say is a sign of the star when the flower blooms (but that’s August, not now), some say refers to Agastya himself, the great Siddha sage.

And how did we have these flowers? In one of four ways, three of which are coconut-centric because the astringency and bitterness of agathi flowers is said to be best balanced by additions of fresh coconut. But then there is fourth–the one dish perhaps most in harmony with Kṣemaśarma’s directives on using buttermilk, hing and ghee: the tambuli. That one comes in a separate post, following this one.

A note on cleaning Agathi flowers

Like all other flowers used culinarily, agathi, too, needs cleaning and that means removing the calyx and all reproductive parts. Very tender flowers can perhaps be used as they are, but the point of cleaning is never only about the unpalatability of stamens, it’s also about separating the petals and consuming only those.

“Remove the stamens” is easier to figure out when you have agathi blossoms in your hands than via a naturally cumbersome description, but basically you want to break off the calyx in such a way that the stamen easily pulls out. The stamen curves along the outer edge of the flower; see the image below to understand what I mean. One petal protects it, and so it may be easier to nick the base of the flower in order to release that back petal first–or simply use the stamen’s inherent stiffness to pull through that back petal. But the stamen is not wiry like the kallan or thief who hides within banana blossoms; it’s brittle. So watch out for him snapping, really.

Do it, and you’ll see what I mean. But the point is that there’s a way to do this and still keep the blossom mostly intact, and there’s a way to do this and the blossom virtually falls apart. For fritters and to stuff the agathi blossoms (as it sometimes called for in Thai and Vietnamese recipes), you’ll want the former. For other recipes which ask for the blossoms to be chopped, loose petals, even those from slightly older flowers, are just fine.

And now, to that feast of fritters, coconut rice and poriyal …

Agathipoo Fritters

Ingredients

• 10-12 large agathi blossoms
• 3/4 cup besan or kadalai maavu
• 1/4 cup rice flour
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder
• 1/2 teaspoon omam or ajwain seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
• a pinch of baking soda (optional)
• Oil, to deep fry

Method

1. Prepare the agathi flowers by pinching off the calyces and pulling out the stamens; try to do this without breaking up the flower too much. It’s nice if the fritters stay intact, in the same shape as the bean-like flowers themselves. Rinse, pat dry with a clean tea towel and set aside.
2. Mix together all the dry ingredients (besan, rice flour, spices, salt) and add water a little at a time to make a thick paste. Dilute just enough to be able to dip the flowers in this batter with ease.
3. Heat the oil in a deep cast iron vessel.
4. When it is hot (you can test by dropping a scant drop of the besan mixture in, it should sizzle and float almost at once; if it sinks the oil isn’t hot enough yet) — gently dip a blossom in the batter, coat it well and drop into the hot oil.
5. Repeat with the remaining blossoms, but do not overcrowd the fryer.
6. Use a slotted spoon to turn the fritters over so they crisp and cook on both sides.
7. Once they’re starting to brown just a little, remove with the slotted spoon and set them on paper towels to absorb any excess oil.
8. Serve hot. (If you make these ahead, you can resuscitate the fritters by placing them in an oven on high heat just until they’re warmed and re-crisped.)

Coconut rice with Agathi Flowers

Ingredients

• 1-2 cups basmati rice [Dehraduni Basmati works best, jeeraga samba is a good short-grained substitute]
• 1/2 coconut, freshly grated (plus finely chopped coconut bits, optional)
• 2 tablespoons ghee (or oil, if you must)
• 1 teaspoon chana dal/split bengal gram
• 1 teaspoon urad dal/black gram dal
• 2 dry red chillies, broken
• 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
• a generous pinch of hing/asafoetida
• 2-3 sprigs curry leaves
• 1-2 green chillies, halved
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, smashed (optional)
• 2 tablespoons cashew nuts, halved or roughly broken
• 10-12 large agathi blossoms

Method

1. Prepare the agathi flowers by pinching off the calyces and pulling out the stamens. This is a good recipe to make use of any loose petals and older or younger blossoms, so it’s no worry if the blossoms don’t hold together while cleaning. Rinse the petals, pat dry with a clean tea towel and chop roughly. Set aside.
2. Cook the rice, either in a pressure cooker or stovetop using the absorption method (this means you add only enough water for the rice to cook, and do not drain any excess)–a 1:2 ratio, rice: water works best. Stop when the rice is barely al dente.
3. Spread the hot rice on a plate to cool and to allow the grains to firm up a little.
4. In a large kadai or wok, heat the ghee.
5. When it’s almost smoking, drop in the chana dal, urad dal, and red chillies. Allow these to brown slightly.
6. Now add the mustard seeds and hing. Once the seeds splutter, add the curry leaves and then the green chillies. Follow with the garlic (if using) and fry until that is fragrant but not browning too much.
7. Add the finely chopped coconut (if using) and the cashew pieces and fry until these brown just a shade or two. Do not allow them to darken too much.
8. Now add the chopped agathi flowers and sautee until these are just wilted–a minute or so, not more.
9. Add salt, turn down the flame, and slowly incorporate the cooked-and-cooled rice alternatingly with the fresh grated coconut, mixing gently but well after the addition of each spoonful. You may need to press the flowers with the back of a spoon to get them to separate and incorporate well enough into the rice.
10. Turn off the flame and keep the coconut rice covered until ready to serve.

Beans & Agathipoo Poriyal

Ingredients

• 1/4 kg French green beans, ends trimmed and finely chopped
• 10-12 large agathi blossoms
• 1/2 tablespoon ghee
• 1/2 teaspoon urad dal/black gram dal
• 1 dry red chilli, broken
• 1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon jeera/cumin seeds
• a generous pinch of hing/asafoetida
• 2-3 sprigs curry leaves
• salt, to taste
• 1/4 cup fresh grated coconut

Method

1. Prepare the agathi flowers by pinching off the calyces and pulling out the stamens. This is a good recipe to make use of any loose petals and older or younger blossoms, so it’s no worry if the blossoms don’t hold together while cleaning. Rinse the petals, pat dry with a clean tea towel and chop roughly. Set aside.
2. Steam the green beans or boil them until they’re crisp-tender. Do not overcook them!
3. Drain the beans (drink the cooking water) and set aside.
4. Heat the ghee in a pan large enough to accommodate the beans. When it is very hot, drop in the tempering spices: urad dal, broken red chilli, mustard seeds, jeera.
5. The spices will crackle and splutter, then add the hing and quickly follow with the curry leaves.
6. Now add the chopped agathi blossoms and sautee until they’re just barely wilted.
7. Add the cooked green beans and salt, to taste.
8. Turn off the flame, and mix in the fresh grated coconut.