Today I am going to write another improvised vegetable recipe, which is a very typical vegetable in Europe but not found in Bangladesh! The veggie is called Parsnip! It looks like white carrot, taste almost sweet like carrot with a hint of spice and a great addition to any curry or soup! However, I am going to cook it like Potato stir fry, following the exact same recipe, which means you can eat it in breakfast with hand made flat bread (ruti or porota) or eat this for lunch or dinner with rice or Khichuri!

Parsnip is a root vegetable and very close to the family of carrot and parsley. That’s why parsnip has a sweet taste which was even used as a sweetener before sugar cane become popular! However, today’s is very simple and quick, we don’t need much ingredients, some parsnips, onion and turmeric and the rest is optional.

I have started my prepping by peeling the parsnip first. It has a dull colored skin outside which is not visually appealing, so I decided to peel them first. Then I have sliced the parsnips in thin long strips, about half a centimeter thick and three centimeter long. It may take more time than usual to slice the parsnips, as they have very hard texture. So take your time and slice them uniformly. You can cut them in any shape you want, but make sure they are not too thin or thick. If parsnips are too thin, they will stick to each other and if too thick, then they won’t cook properly, as there’s no use of extra water in this recipe!

Next thing I did was slicing the onions. I like to slice onion slightly thick, as they add extra texture to parsnip stir fry. If you do not like onion, you can skip this step and just cook parsnip with cumin seed and turmeric!

After I was done with prepping, I heated vegetable oil in a deep heavy bottom pan over medium heat. Then I added whole cumin seed when oil was warm and cooked the seeds until they start popping. I added thickly sliced onion to the pan and sauteed until they were golden.

The onions are slightly golden now, so I added parsnips, turmeric powder, salt and chili. Adding salt in this step will help in release water from parsnips and aid in thorough cooking.

I gave everything a very good stir to mix all the flavors and spices. Then I stir fried parsnips for about 10 to 12 minutes on a medium heat. Make sure they don’t break or burn from bottom.

You can see in the picture how the color of parsnips look like, slightly translucent and roasted from all the stir frying. By this time, they also should give a really nice aroma of fried cumin and turmeric!

After roasting the parsnips, I covered them and cooked for about 10 more minutes under low heat. I did not add any extra water, because I was sure that they would cook in their own water content, but if you are unsure, you can add water, about 50ml! Also stirred often in between to prevent burning.

I uncovered the pot after 10 minutes. Parsnips should look translucent and thoroughly cooked by now but I also check if there’s any uncooked parsnips left. However to make sure, I stir fried them for two more minutes, also to get rid of extra moisture.

Now, its nicely and thoroughly cooked. I turned off the heat and served in a bowl. This parsnip stir fry is slightly sweet, so it would be nice to add some extra chili! However, if you like the sweetness, you can just go without chili!

This parsnip stir fry aka parsnip bhaji is a great side dish with rice, or a great addition to make a wrap or rolls with flat breads or tortillas with sauce and sliced cucumber inside! So, enjoy another Bangladeshi vegan inspired dish with local vegetable!

Recipe: 4-5 Servings Prepping time: 10 minutes, Cooking time: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients: 6-8 big parsnips (about a kilo) Spice and Condiments: 20ml Vegetable Oil (Olive/Mustard/Coconut oil, anything will do) 1 medium Onion 1tbs fine Salt 1tsp Turmeric powder 1tsp whole Cumin seeds 2-3 green chili (optional)

Instruction: 1. Wash and peel the skin of parsnip first. Then cut them in half cm thick and 3 -4 cm long stripes. Slice onion slightly thick. 2. Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat, put whole cumin seeds. When they start to pop, add sliced onion and fry them until golden brown. 3. Add sliced parsnip, turmeric, salt and chili. Stir fry them for 10- 12 minutes until parsnips are slightly roasted. 4. Cover the pan and reduce heat to low; cook them for 10 minutes until parsnips are soft. Add very little water if you want. Check salt and add more if needed. 5. Uncover pot, check if parsnips are soft and cooked through. Cook for 2 more minutes until excess moisture evaporates. 6. Turn off heat and take parsnips bhaji and garnish with coriander leaves as desire. Enjoy with rice or flat bread or tortilla!