Anyway, ridge gourd is very commonly seen in all supermarkets and wet markets in Singapore. I used to pass by without a second glance because I had never cooked with it before and had no clue where I can fit it in. I vaguely remember amma making a bajji (not the deep fried kind, we also refer to pachadi-like curries as bajji at home) with the vegetable but I wasn’t even sure if this was the same vegetable.
I would always resolve to go home and search for ridge gourd recipes online so that next time I can buy it. Of course the search never happened and I invariably forgot about it until I came to the supermarket next.
One day, I have no idea what came over me but I walked straight to the ridge gourd tray and picked up one. TH panicked. I could read his thoughts which went ‘now what experimental dish is she going to cook up with this weird looking thing?’ He asked me a few times if I knew how to cook it and I very confidently said ‘I will figure something out’. The challenge was not to cook something with it but to cook something that he would like.
I finally ended up trying this Ridge Gourd chutney with lots of coriander leaves and it came together really quickly and easily.
And yes, TH liked it too 🙂
Ridge gourd is known as beerakai in Telugu, peerkangai in Tamil, peechanga in Malayalam and torai/dodka in Hindi/Marathi.
Other chutney recipes you may like:
Peanut mint chutney
Coconut garlic chutney
Red capsicum chutney
Tomato mint chutney
Chow chow chutney
Ridge Gourd Chutney
Ingredients:
Ridge gourd, peeled and chopped – 2 cups
Fresh coriander leaves – 1/2 cup, chopped
Green chillies – 2, or to taste
Chana dal / bengal gram / kadala paruppu – 2 tsp
Urad dal / uzhunnu parippu / ulatham paruppu – 1 tsp
Cumin seeds / jeera / jeerakam – 1/4 tsp
Hing / asafoetida / kaayam / perungayam – a generous pinch (optional)
Sesame seeds / til – 1 tbsp (I used white sesame seeds, do not avoid this ingredients as its vital for the flavour)
Tamarind paste – 1 tsp (or use 1 tbsp lemon juice)
Salt – to taste
How to Make Beerakaya Pachadi:
1. Peel and chop the ridge gourd into chunks. Cook this with 1/2 cup water until soft and mushy. Set aside to cool.
2. Dry roast the chana and urad dal in a pan. When they are about to turn golden brown, add the sesame seeds and keep roasting until all are nicely browned and smell good. Throw in the jeera and the hing when the pan is still hot and set aside to cool.
3. Once the ridge gourd and the roast
Tastes good with dosa and steamed rice. Actually not just good, but really really good! The sesame seeds are the winners in this recipe so do not avoid those. Oh I said that already? Ok then!
Ithuvare ithukondu chutney undakkiyittilla ketto..Looks very attractive Nags! 🙂
nice picture…:-) glad you bought the vegetable. I make a thuvayal out of this: http://chefatwork.blogspot.com/2008/05/peerkangai-thuvayal.html
I also substitute bottle gourd for ridge gourd in this one:
http://chefatwork.blogspot.com/2007/07/bottle-gourd-and-moong-dal.html
And yeah, this is not turai. Turai or Tori is the smooth version of this vegetable. Jhinga Tori or Kaanta Tori is what it is called in Hindi (or so it seems)
Very nice recipe! Would love to try this.. Love your picture.. perfectly taken..:)
hi,
I do make this chutney minus sesame seeds, i must tell my hubby as he loves adding sesame seeds in all the dishes he likes to cook, I make kootu, pachadi, Tovve,& chutney with the peel, I just recently posted it in my blog, next time i will this way. as usual great pictures…….
Let me know if you need help with a header Aparna 🙂
This is my hubby fav chutney. I wont add sesame seed.will try adding that next time. good picture.
i never liked this veggie till the day when my mom made dal using it. and later i fell in love with the chutney made using it’s peel. now i keep a bagful of its pulp and peel in freezer to use it when i crave for some comfort food.
and i LOVE the new header 🙂 very nice nags 🙂 i think it’s time i started looking at making new one for myself
This is a coastal andhra staple. I always love this. And coming to the bitterness, some of them are bitter especially when they are grown in summer. always pick the fresh heavy ones which are watery. Dry ones tend to be bitter. before cooking taste the corners of the gourd to check for bitterness (the way we do for cucumber).
I’ve never tried cooking with this veggie either. Oh….and I too am lazy to temper most of my dishes.
Lovely chutney, love the addition of coriander…