Masala-coated tindora stir-fry is a popular Indian vegetable dish. Despite its popularity in Indian homes, you probably won’t find these tiny cucumber-like veggies served in restaurants. Tindora stir-fry is a homely dish, a comforting one, perfect alongside a bowl of dal and rice or roti.
“Thanks for the wonderful recipe! I’m getting super recipe after super recipe off of this site, and it makes me look forward to cooking every day. I am too the point where I seriously doubt that I will find a recipe I don’t like here. You have a real talent for knowing which things work well together.”
MD
What is Tindora?
This ivy gord vegetable goes by a long list of names: tindora, kundru, kovakkai – just to name a few. This Indian vegetable is bright green and resembles a small cucumber. It’s mildly flavored and crunchy. It’s my husband’s favorite vegetable (and while I still need to learn how to make it the South Indian way from my MIL), for today – I’m sharing the North Indian version made with Onion Masala and spices.
Tindora Ingredients
- Tindora: I halve them if the tindora are small/medium in size and quarter them if they’re larger. You can find this popular vegetable at your local Indian grocery store.
- Avocado Oil
- Cumin Seeds
- Black Mustard Seeds
- Indian Green Chili
- Onion Masala
- Spices: salt, amchur, coriander powder, fennel powder, paprika, turmeric, cayenne, black pepper
- Lemon Juice
How to Make Tindora Sabzi
Press sauté, add oil, and when it heats up, add cumin seeds, mustard seeds, and green chili.
When the cumin seeds turn brown, add the tindora slices, water, and lemon juice. Put the onion masala on top, then sprinkle spices. Do not mix.
Pressure cook, and when it’s done, press sautĂ© and cook until the mixture is dry.
Once it’s done, enjoy the tindora with rice, roti, raita, and a bowl of Toor Dal (or whatever dal you’d like!). Check out the recipe below and let me know what you think of this veggie!
More Indian Vegetable Recipes:
Ingredients
- 16 oz fresh Tindora haved lengthwise if small/medium in size, otherwise quartered if larger in size.
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 1 small Indian chili minced
- ÂĽ cup onion masala
Spices:
- Âľ teaspoon salt adjust to taste
- ½ teaspoon amchur powder
- ½ teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon fennel powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ÂĽ teaspoon turmeric
- â…› teaspoon cayenne
- â…› teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Rinse and dry the tindora. Slice each in half.
- Press sauté, add oil, and when heats up add cumin seeds, mustard seeds, and green chili. When the cumin seeds turn brown add the tindora slices, water, and lemon juice. Put the onion masala on top then sprinkle spices. Do not mix.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook for 6 minutes at high pressure.
- Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes.
- Press sauté and stir-fry for 6 to 7 minutes, or until it dries.
- Take the steel liner out the instant pot and let everything sit in the steel pot for 5 minutes. Any masala sticking to the pot will come off by stirring it.
Neil says
I thought this was delicious. I only pressure cooked it for 5 minutes instead of six, as one of the commenters only did it for 3 minutes. But 5 minutes wasn’t enough, so I put it back to cook further. So I would recommend sticking to the instructions for 6 minutes. I left out the saunf powder, as I don’t like the taste, but otherwise did everything as per the recipe. Thanks for a great, authentic recipe.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Neil, glad you liked it 🙂 Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you!
Talee says
Hi Ashley, how would you modify this recipe for frozen tindora? Thank you!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Talee, I haven’t tried this using frozen tindora so I’m not sure how it would affect the cook time. Hopefully another reader can chime in, or if you experiment please let us know!
MommaDuck says
Made this for supper tonight and it was a big hit! We are going to plant some of these next year so that we can make lots more of it at a reduced cost. In the meantime, our local Indian grocery is going to make money selling this to me often!
Thanks for the wonderful recipe! I’m getting super recipe after super recipe off of this site, and it makes me look forward to cooking every day. I am too the point where I seriously doubt that I will find a recipe I don’t like here. You have a real talent for knowing which things work well together.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
That’s so nice to hear! Thanks for letting me know how much you like the tindora – and happy to hear that you’re enjoying the recipes from my blog 🙂 Can’t wait to hear what else you try!
Jacqueline says
Well not sure what you’ll think of this, but due to the remote area i live I substituted anise for fennel, was out of made up onion masala, so winged it for quantities of tomatoes, onion, garlic and ginger. Also i was just looking for a recipe that used amchoor cause i was all excited about finally having some. Also I didn’t have these delicious looking and sounding Tindora veggies, but i promise next time I’m in a city to try find them and actually make this as suggested lol. Call me crazy but i used paneer, zucchini, hot peppers, orange bell pepper, and (possibly sacrilegious) but about a quarter cup of diced up pork loin i needed to use up. Served on basmati rice. So while i feel like i totally butchered your recipe…. it was Absolutely delish!!!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Love that you made it work with what you had! I’m glad it turned out well!
Maneesha says
Ah this is PERFECT! I just bought some tindora! Your tindora recipe is up next, Ashley! Also, thank you for educating the Indian auntie in me – I never knew what tindora is called in English! Haha
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Maneesha, that’s awesome – I can’t wait to hear what you think of this one! 🙂
Maneesha says
Another Winner recipe, Ashley! So much easier than cooking stovetop – this is hands off cooking! I thinly sliced my tindora and pressure cooked for 3 mins instead of the full 6 mins – turned out great! Thank you so much! I’ve sent your recipe to my friends and family!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Maneesha, that’s so great to hear! Thanks for letting me know how much you like this one 🙂
Scott Huckleberry says
Where does one find tindora?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Scott, you can find tindora at your local Indian grocery store – they should have it 🙂