Borbotir Chorchori

I don’t know how to cook Borboti any other way, except for the traditional Bengali Chorchori.

Borboti/ Barbarti is a summer vegetable, the rest of the world calls it Yard Long Bean or Runner Bean and sometimes even Asparagus Beans.

A Borbotir Chorchori is a great side which opens up a lunch paired with a bowl of daal and rice. I found my bunch of Borboti in a Chinese grocery store. Lesson# 437: Borboti is NOT just a Bengali vegetable. The Chinese call it cheung kong tau or dau gok.

Ingredients for Borbotir Chorchori are:

250 grams long yard beans, ends chopped off and cut into roughly two inch pieces
2 medium size potatoes, cut in cubes
A cup of diced pumpkin/ buttercup squash
A cup of diced eggplant
3-4 green chilies, broken from the middle
Mustard oil
1 tablespoon paanch phoron
Half tablespoon yellow mustard powder
Half tablespoon turmeric powder
Half tablespoon red chili powder
Sugar
Salt

Heat oil in a wok and sauté each type of vegetable separately. Keep aside.

In the same oil, add paanch phoron and the green chilies. Let them splutter for a few seconds, then add the already sautéed vegetables. Add all the spices, season with salt and sugar and mix well. Sauté for another couple of minutes.
Pour enough water to drench the vegetables, cover and cook. It should take about 15 minutes on medium heat to cook the vegetables. If water remains, cook uncovered for a few more minutes till there is hardly any water. In Bengali, we call this consistency makho-makho where only the extra moisture is made to evaporate. Yet it does not leave the dish parched.

How do you cook your Borboti?