Sarson ka saag

{{Short description|South Asian dish}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}} {{Infobox food | name = Sarson ka saag | image = Saagroti.jpg | image_size = 250px | caption = ''Makki ki roti'' with ''sarson ka saag'' | alternate_name = Sarsan da saag; sareyan da saag (Punjabi) | national_cuisine = India, Pakistan<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rai Gupta |first=Kulwant|pages=289 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ua6yqap-ti4C |title=Studies in World Affairs |volume=2 |date=2006 |publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Distributors |isbn=9788126904969 |language=en}}</ref> | country = Punjab | region = Punjab, Jammu, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Mithila | creator = | course = Main course | served = | main_ingredient = Mustard leaves | variations = | calories = | other = }}

'''''Sarson ka saag''''', also known as ''sarsa da saag'' and ''saron da saag'', is a dish of mustard greens cooked with spices. It originated in the Indian subcontinent and is well known throughout the region.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ag43AAAAIAAJ&q=%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%87%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%82+%E0%A4%A6%E0%A4%BE+%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%97 |title=Dọgarī loka-gīta |date=1964 |publisher=Kalacarala Akādamī |language=hi}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Excelsior |first=Daily |date=2018-09-29 |title=Promotion of Dogra culture |url=https://www.dailyexcelsior.com/promotion-dogra-culture/ |access-date=2022-06-16 |quote=..Dogra cuisine such as Pathores, Makki ki Roti and Sarson ka Saag, Keurs...|website=Jammu Kashmir Latest News {{!}} Tourism {{!}} Breaking News J&K |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Agrawal |first1=Chandresh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NzpyEAAAQBAJ&dq=Himachal+sarson+saag&pg=PA22 |quote="Himachali specialities include Siddu....Makki ki Roti & Sarson Ka Saag"|title=HPPSC-Himachal Pradesh Drug Inspector Exam Ebook-PDF: All Sections Covered |last2=books |first2=nandini |date=2022-06-01 |publisher=Chandresh Agrawal |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=History - Government of Himachal Pradesh, India |url=https://himachal.nic.in/contprintcont.php?lid=8798&cont=90&lang=1&dpt_id=201&level=1&sublinkid=8509 |access-date=2022-06-19 |website=himachal.nic.in}}</ref>

== Name== The dish is known as ''sarson ka saag'' in Hindi and Urdu, ''saron da saag'' (or ''sareyan da saag'') in Punjabi,<ref name="misra">{{cite book |last1=Misra |first1=Anoop |title=Dietary Considerations in Diabetes - ECAB |date=2012 |publisher=Elsevier Health Sciences |page=79 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lz7unrFubdEC&dq=sarson+saag+punjab&pg=PA79 |isbn=9788131232095}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lt1jAAAAMAAJ&q=%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8B%E0%A4%82+|title=Hamārā sāhitya|date=1995|publisher=Lalitakalā, Saṃskṛti, va Sāhitya Akādamī, Jammū-Kaśmīra.|language=hi}}</ref><ref name="bhandari">{{cite book |last1=Bhandari |first1=Laveesh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h_DGSVHYUAMC&dq=makki+punjabi&pg=PA29 |title=Indian States At A Glance 2008-09: Performance, Facts And Figures - Punjab |date=2009 |publisher=Pearson Education |isbn=9788131723456 |location=New York |page=29}}</ref> ''sarsav nu shaak'' in Gujarati,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gujarati |first=Team Recipe in |date=2022-12-21 |title=ઢાબા જેવુજ ટેસ્ટી સરસવ નું શાક - સરસો દા સાગ બનાવવાની રીત |url=https://www.recipeingujarati.com/sarso-nu-shaak-banavani-rit/ |access-date=2023-04-04 |website=Recipe in Gujarati |language=en-GB}}</ref> and ''sariso saag'' in Maithili.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Biriya Curry: A Maithil Delicacy Made with Chickpea Greens |url=https://www.goya.in/blog/biriya-curry-a-maithil-delicacy-made-with-chickpea-greens |access-date=2023-04-11 |website=GOYA |date=19 August 2021 |language=en-US|quote=No meal within the Maithil community is considered complete without the inclusion of leafy dishes known as saag. Our cuisine is an ode to saag: bathua, laal saag, patua saag, genhari, karmi, sariso saag. }}</ref>

''Sarson'', ''sarhon'', ''sareyan'', and other names are derived from the Sanskrit word {{Transliteration|sa|sarṣapa}}, 'mustard'.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McGregor |first=R. S. (Ronald Stuart) |date=1993 |title=The Oxford Hindi-English dictionary |url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/app/mcgregor_query.py?qs=%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8B%E0%A4%82&searchhws=yes&matchtype=exact |access-date=2022-06-16 |website=dsal.uchicago.edu}}</ref> ''Saag'' and ''shaak'' are derived from the Sanskrit word ''śāka'', 'greens; vegetable leaves'.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Platts |first=John T. (John Thompson) |date=1884 |title=A Dictionary of Urdu, Classical Hindi, and English |url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/app/platts_query.py?qs=%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%97&searchhws=yes&matchtype=exact |access-date=2022-06-16 |website=dsal.uchicago.edu}}</ref>

==Ingredients and preparation== Mustard is widely grown in the region for the plant's leaves, seeds and seed oil. It is harvested in winter and spring, making ''sarson ka saag'' a frequently served warming dish in the cooler months.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1088069 |title=Sarson ka saag / Makki ki roti |publisher=dawn.com |date=19 February 2014 |access-date=27 February 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-12-22 |title=Growing more mustard can make India self sufficient in edible oils |url=https://en.gaonconnection.com/mustard-india-self-sufficient-edible-oils-bees-pollination-covid19-pandemic-oilseeds-farmer-income/ |quote= Mustard is cultivated extensively in north India.|access-date=2022-06-16 |website=Gaonconnection {{!}} Your Connection with Rural India |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=obrien2>{{cite book |last1=O'Brien |first1=Charmaine |title=The Penguin Food Guide to India |date=2013 |publisher=Penguin Books Limited |page=38 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BGhBAgAAQBAJ&dq=makki+roti+punjab&pg=PT38 |quote=In the winter months in Punjab, a richly spiced puree of mustard greens is eaten, accompanied with roti made of ground maize and a knob of fresh, soft, crumbly gur. The classic combination is called ''sarson ka saag'' and ''makki ki roti''. Mustard has been grown in Punjab for millennia and its oil-rich seed is an important commercial crop. |isbn=9789351185758}}</ref>

There are many recipes for the dish, usually calling for the leaves to be cooked in oil or clarified butter (''ghee'')<ref>Jiggs Kalra, Pushpesh Pant, "Classic Cooking Of Punjab", tumhari aisi kitasi Allied Publishers, 2004, {{ISBN|81-7764-566-8}}, page 42.</ref> with spices such as garlic, ginger and chilli. Other spices may be used, varying according to region and taste.

==Accompaniments== The dish is often served with bread such as ''makki ki roti'' or ''bajra ki roti''.<ref>Laveesh Bhandari, Sumita Kale, "Indian states at a glance, 2008-09: Punjab : performance, facts and figures", Pearson Education India, 2009, {{ISBN|81-317-2345-3}}, section 4.7.2</ref>

== See also == * Palak paneer * Saag

==References== {{reflist}}

Category:Indian vegetable dishes Category:Indian cuisine Category:Pakistani curries Category:Punjabi cuisine Category:Bihari cuisine Category:Gujarati cuisine Category:Kashmiri cuisine