Sundakkai or turkey berry is an highly nutritious wild vegetable.

In Tamil Nadu, this vegetable is still eaten, but mainly in a dish called vathal kuzhambu.

However, this vegetable can be used in many dishes.

Here is how we make a poriyal or sabji with it.

Smash the turkey berry or sundakkai with a samsher, wash and remove the seeds. Boil it in water.

Heat oil, add mustard seeds,onion, tomato, green chillies, and ginger garlic paste and saute it for a while.

To this mixture add red chilli powder and add the boiled turkey berry and let it cook for few minutes.

Add grated coconut and enjoy.

It’s really important to learn how to use a particular ingredient in different ways. Otherwise this ingredient gets reduced to one particular dish and we forget its’ diverse values.

In the case of the turkey berry, which has wonderful medicinal values, by eating them regularly in different dishes, we truly imbibe the ancient proverb “FOOD IS MEDICINE”.