Sarson Ka Saag & Sweet Corn

Sarson Ka Saag & Sweet Corn is a special Winter Recipe. It has been specially prepared to help people in places with more severe winter conditions to understand that food choices are very important and personal choices for adults. In fact, not just for adults- nowadays it is so for children as well.

This is a dish made from Mustard Leaves – called Sarson ka Saag and very popular in North India- especially Punjab, Haryana, Jammu, Himachal, Delhi, Uttarakhand and thereabouts.

I have spent a fair bit of time cooking this in a nostalgic memory of having Sarson ka Saag with Makke ki Roti at a friend’s wedding. Also, at various dhabas during my brief but rather eventful life as an independent consultant in Delhi.

Perhaps it was a very stressful life because when I left Delhi, I had to go through severe rehab sessions, Vipassana, yoga, therapy and what have you.

Many rounds of eating outside Dhaba food, drinking and eating in various restaurants, canteens or malls with friends and other colleagues in my 20s has taught me something special.

Sarson Ka Saag & Sweet Corn Indulgence

Occasional Indulgence is good- especially when done with friends or family. A lot of fun, laughter and camaraderie is built during those meals which give you special memories. But when you do that with people who are actually giving you more stress in life- it’s not digested very well.

From my time in Delhi, I found, end of the day, nobody remained by my side. What remained was a lot of healthcare bills. They left me to do the work and went back home to eat fresh home-cooked food. They would enjoy the comfort from their circle of friends and family members. Some of them complained that they went back to more troubles and worries actually.

But, hey, what do I know. I was dumped with a lot of work, irrespective- since I was the available person to bitch to during the day and do their work during the night. And also blamed later for not being attractive, friendly or comforting to any of the people around after working incessantly through the night. Wow!

Sarson Ka Saag & Sweet Corn with a twist

Was I a fool? Sure. I still am sometimes. But not always.

So here I am now in my late 40s suggesting that same indulgent Sarson ka Saag but with Sweet Corn – prepared at home. I can control the quantity, quality and share it with a few others who may not have tasted it before.

I didn’t prepare an excel sheet with the ingredients, the quantity, the costing, the timing- you know the usual drill for large events where I would normally do this in excited anticipation, days in advance.

Why? 🙂

Well, it was a small quantity and a bit of a kitchen experiment as I was trying to adjust the standard recipe. Care was taken to keep it healthy, light and with minimum intake of extra ingredients to be ordered. I’m not that much of a control freak either.

Why? 🙂

Waste not, want not- that was at the back of my mind.

Sometimes, less is more. Getting a healthy tasty meal on the table has a lot to do with the freshness of the ingredients. Another important point- whether it is eaten hot- just as it is prepared and whether you are really hungry when you are eating it. And another learning over the years- whether you are focusing on the food while you are eating it or your mind is actually elsewhere.

Why? 🙂

Sarson Ka Saag & Sweet Corn- 5 Min Intermission

Tall order for just enjoying a simple dish. So- for most people- just go outside and find your favourite place to enjoy this dish. (I don’t have a particular restaurant or dhaba in mind anymore). Or you may have a favourite version cooked by a friend/family member.

Most people swear that so-and-so in their family makes this dish the best! Nostalgia, a special occasion or perhaps a trigger of a childhood memory when they enjoyed it for the first time. What do I know- none of my family members made this dish for me.

Why? 🙂

Look, you want this recipe or not? I’m giving a positive outlook here. I do know of people who may have very bad memories associated with this dish as well. See how I started on a bad note on this post but shared how there still remains a whiff of the good with the bad.

Hmmm….are you putting too much of butter, ghee or cream here? Or are you putting too little- skimping on the good stuff? :-/

Sarson Ka Saag & Makke ki Roti in Delhi Haat

Did you visit Delhi Haat with team members or friends during the project duration and try this dish there?

No- I don’t remember that at all. I had some stuffed parathas I think and lots of Momos there. I was so distracted thinking about why I didn’t bargain harder with the shawl guys. Anyhow- it’s all a passing memory. I don’t have the shawls anymore either.

Why? 🙁

Like, you remember when you would have those shawls hanging and nobody could make out whether you have any hands. Then there was a need for water heaters for the kitchen as well and heaters for your room. Distant memories. I think I may have a monkey cap somewhere in the trunk. But the moth-eaten woolen gloves need to be washed first.

Why? 🙁

I’m going eco-friendly (not echo friendly) and have discarded that leather jacket that I bought from Dharavi or Khar many years ago.

Shall, we get to the Sarson Ka Saag & Sweet Corn Recipe now?

Suggestions for Improving Sarson ka Saag & Sweet Corn

There are a lot of chicken leftovers and some paneer languishing on the side.

I say, hey- this is a basic recipe.

Go wild with your choice of proteins to add to it. But traditionalists will balk at it. Because Mamma made it different.

Somehow, they want 2 separate dishes now- Sarson ka Saag AND Butter Chicken OR Matar Paneer. Well, dear- count how many dishes for a simple Sunday meal. See my point?

Because Radha likes to party and we were left to do the dirty dishes by Arty Aunty. We end up ordering multiple dishes from outside and never enter the kitchen again in our lives.

(And they lived unhappily ever after. Diabolical twins you said- yes, I agree!)

Bad Days need Good Sarson Ka Saag & Sweet Corn

Washing the Greens multiple times- because I have memories of being pulled up for a few gritty grains of sand. Have I said enough or have I not said enough? Washed once, twice and then once again. Twice with hot water and once with cold water.

The salt seasoning is to your taste and hence keeping it on the lower side helps. Seasoning it slowly as you cook and keep adding ingredients. That’s the key point- because as ingredients reduce after releasing the water, you may find the taste changes.

Adjusting with a bit of milk and cream is optional- but that along with the sweet corn helps. It gives this spicy, tangy and slightly pungent mustard leaves dish a little boost of sweetness to balance out the mix.

Does that make sense?

Now if you really have a dairy allergy or sensitivity- skip the milk and cream. You can try coconut cream instead as a substitute- I have never done that myself. But that might work?

I’m saying- if you are making it once in like forever (Psst! trust me- people don’t make this every day)- you can risk a bit of milk and cream.

Perfect accompaniments to the Dish

I recommend phulka chapatis or tandoori rotis– your choice of flatbreads here. Adding some more butter or ghee on top is highly optional.

But then are you also allergic to gluten? Perhaps another side effect of your stressful life as a consultant that has messed up your digestive system?

Ummm- ok.

Like I said, let’s not worry too much about it right now. Cook this happily with positivity and happy thoughts. And eat this peacefully when you are healthy and well enough to do so. I’m leaving this recipe here because, it’s a seasonal produce- available every year. You can do this later also- next month, next year- whenever.

So, there’s no hurry to get to making this particular dish pronto in 7-8 minutes delivery cycle here.

This is one of the reasons I started this blog and website- to leave this for others to read, try, enjoy- in their own time.

Sarson ka Saag bought -has an expiry date

Have you thrown it into the dustbin yet? No?

Ok. Was this grown by you carefully, painfully in your own kitchen garden and gifted to someone? And that someone threw it in the garbage bin? (I feel you then).

But was it picked up from a heap of half rotten greens/vegetables from a huge pile displayed in front of a shop and you bought while out on a morning walk on a whim? (It’s ok- you can throw it).

Are you sulking after I threw that vegetable in the garbage bin and biting back the angry cuss words? (I’m going out- I don’t care about Sarson Ka Saag).

You see the dilemma, my friend. What do you recycle or upcycle in a world full of “objects” discarded by “people”. Here’s my point- where are the people? And where are the objects?

Seems to be a wide gap between the two. AI doesn’t help bridge that gap so easily. In fact, it helps to widen that gap. But who’s listening.

Illusion of Equality by Unequal providers

Here’s my little attempt to share with others who are looking beyond their laptop or mobile screens. I repeat- I’m in the middle. Part of a group of people stuck between the hunters and the farmers. So, we call ourselves what exactly?

We call ourselves collaborators who tried to share- taking a little from the past, making something out of the present and leaving behind a few things for the future.

Individuals are not important here for the moment, but their personal experiences and stories enrich, question and expand. Innovation helps- but not without the benefit of context. If your context is overcrowded and shackled- you will not be able to create something original anyways.

Doesn’t mean that it’s not good, unworthy or not serving the purpose at hand.

Where I have failed is to find the common ground which helps others see the benefit of doing this task for self and others. There’s still no business case available to share- which brings me back to the original point. It wasn’t started with that motivation. 🙂

Where I’ve succeeded is to still find enough people believing in the merit of doing so irrespective of the logical reasoning for it. Is there something beyond logic here? Yes, there is. That’s perhaps the point of mystery and the reason to explore and learn more.

A dollop of extra cream for Sarson Ka Saag & Sweet Corn

The extra cream was unintentional. But not the worst crime on earth.

Weirdly some youngsters are gravitating towards rebellious actions. We are still trying to help them break the umbilical cord. They see nothing wrong now- because the justification was reversed suddenly by the matriarchy and patriarchy. Sharp logical twists to enable fitting into little boxes with clear labels.

Do we try to dispose of the rest as “unnecessary garbage”? I don’t know.

Can you treat humans as objects and objects as humans interchangeably? I didn’t learn that- so I am a little non plussed. Metaphorical humour and imagery abound in this world full of people with complex interpretive skills.

If I say my ideas are now like an octopus- what does it suggest? 🙂 It suggests that I have no clue myself.

Little bits of notes here and there and sometimes it loses an arm or a leg. Scientific structuring helps but you may need to make it flexible to avoid very hard data-oriented cages that makes the octopus into a player for the squid game squad.

I did manage more than 14 tasks for my more than 4 Goals in life. (Just saying).

Leaving this thought on the table on a very difficult week of having survived through the onslaught from several loved ones accusing me of being negative.

Sometimes very simple acts are loaded with additional meaning and misinterpreted by others who may not have given it much thought.

Trying not to take it personally is tough when it impacts your personal life. I hope some of the stories in media which affected me so deeply reaches your personal life so that you are able to appreciate them better. Lived experience is different from learned or shared knowledge.

Footnote

Deep Resistance

Do not dictate our diet and food

We maybe vegetarians, non-vegetarians or whatever

What you are able to enjoy maybe different from others

There’s a basic right of every individual and family

To be able to cook and eat what they like

I did my best to cater to changing whims of my husband

In addition to many friends and family

I got loaded with others cares, likes and dislikes

Nobody heard me finally- I was trying to share a few recipes

So here I am simply cooking once in a while

What I like to eat from time to time

Without being accused or abused by all and sundry

There is no reason for so much of dirty laundry either

But there seems to be enough and more.

Hence kindly help yourselves

With sharing a bit of the load

Instead of using all means to goad

There was nobody helping me. Nobody appreciating me

Nobody even trying to hear or understand

In fact, I was almost driven to the point of asking

For a simple right to have my own space

My own home. My own kitchen

So that I could escape bullying from an uncaring spouse

Who offloaded his cares and concerns

And gave nothing in return.

Here’s me telling you repeatedly

That wasn’t love. That was extraction

Manipulation and complete extortion

It was abuse at different levels

And justifying it in the name of “self-growth”.

Every day was a chore- a pandering to a hard and disrespectful person

Who never saw me or anyone in my family as important or even human

Never bothered to look at my safety, security, my future, my career or my health

But it was all about him and his family (which excluded me- his wife surprisingly).

After 11 years of almost working like a slave girl- pandering to the ego

Of a monstrous person whose demands and petulant sulks

Kept on growing and growing- to the point that I didn’t know who was behind

Hatred he was sowing. It wasn’t me- I was simply trying

Each day to please somebody who wasn’t going to be

Happy ever. Was only finding excuses for offloading

All possible regrets, pains and vendetta on one woman

Who was readily available in near plain sight to be abused.

I am not responsible for everything wrong in your life

I am not responsible for everything you heard as a complaint

From others.

I am not responsible for the hatred unleashed by your

Family and friend’s circle. I only did my best each day

And yet heard repeatedly how I was inadequate, unworthy and unable

To meet unwritten and unspoken

Expectations of some kind of fictional and crafted character

Of a multitasking super goddess who never existed in the first place

You have created that monster through your pushing and pushing

Till there was no other way out for me- but to escape with

Simple cries and pleas. I cannot do your shit in life

You have to do it yourselves!

When you disrespected me so fully and abused me

Saying “I have no respect for you“- why on earth

Did you expect me to respect such a bully and a coward?

Melting Lemon Drop 14.12. 2025