Lauki chana dal is a great way of having dudhi/bottle gourd. Especially if you have bigger households. This curry ensures everyone gets a good bowl of curry. You also are spared of making 2 veggies for meal. Cooking need not be elaborate. Learn to cook smart and save time if you do not have a penchant for cooking but do not want to compromise on nutrition. Bottle gourd curry cooked with lentils is a recipe which is common at many north Indian households. I think it is a unique way of combining the goodness of lentil proteins with calabash or Hulu. Lauki in English is known as bottle gourd or in Hindi - 'lauki' , 'dudhi'or 'ghia', a great diuretic. Dudhi curry is an easy one.
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Benefits of dudhi
Ayurveda recommends 'Lauki' or 'Ghia' for weight loss.It contains a lot of water in it. It contains only 14 calories for a 100 gm usage .It has an easy digestion. It is also given to women post pregnancy for lunches.(Sometimes without lentils as it may cause some gas in newborn baby). It is also a moderate source of vitamin B,C and folates. This lauki sabzi recipe is great if you need to lose weight. Yum!
Ingredients
- Chana dal/Bengal gram soaked for 10 minutes in hot water
- Lauki/ ghia/bottle gourd (cut into ½ inch cubes)
- Oil
- Cumin seeds
- Ginger/garlic/both
- Green chilies chopped finely
- Onions
- Pinch of Asafoetida Heeng (Optional, avoid if gluten-free)
- Tomatoes
- Water
- Turmeric powder
- Red chili powder
- Cumin powder
- Garam masala optional
- Garnish: Cilantro leaves finely chopped
- Salt as per taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a pressure cooker.Add the cumin seeds and let it crackle. Add chopped onions, ginger and green chilies. Now, add a pinch of heeng if not gluten free at this stage.Stir for a few seconds.
- Add the chopped tomatoes and salt and cook until it softens.
- Add the soaked bengal gram, bottle gourd and spices, and one cup of water (adjust as needed to desired gravy thickness; bottle guard varies in moisture content).
- Pressure cook it until soft for about fifteen minutes or unto 3 whistles.( you will need alteast 2-3 number of whistles for channa dal )
- Turn off the heat. Garnish lauki dal with chopped cilantro once pressure releases.
- Stir and cover the pan for a few minutes before serving with flat bread or brown rice.
chana dal lauki recipe
Equipment
- pressure cooker
Ingredients
For pressure cooking:
- ¼ cup Channa dal/Bengal gram soaked for 10 minutes in hot water
- 1 -½ cup Lauki ghia/bottle gourd (cut into ½ inch cubes)
- Pinch of turmeric powder
- ½ cup Water
For tomato gravy:
- 1 tablespoon oil
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- Pinch of Asafoetida Heeng(Optional, avoid if gluten-free)
- 2 Green chilies chopped finely
- ¾ cup/1 medium tomato
- Small piece finely chopped ginger/adrak
- Pinch of Turmeric powder/haldi
- 1 teaspoon red chilli powder/lal mirch
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder/jeera
- ¼ teaspoon Garam masala
- Garnish: Cilantro leaves finely chopped
- Salt as per taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a pressure cooker. Add the cumin seeds and let it crackle. Add chopped onions, ginger and green chilies. Now, add a pinch of heeng if not gluten free at this stage. Stir for a few seconds.
- Add the chopped tomatoes and salt and cook until it softens.
- Add the soaked bengal gram, bottle gourd and spices, and one cup of water (adjust as needed to desired gravy thickness; bottle guard varies in moisture content).
- Pressure cook it until soft for about fifteen minutes or unto 3 whistles.
- Turn off the heat. Garnish with chopped cilantro once pressure releases.
- Stir and cover the pan for a few minutes before serving with flat bread or brown rice.
Top tip
The only thing you need to be sure before cooking calabash is tasting a piece before cooking it, to ensure it is not bitter. Bitter ghiya can be dangerous and can cause hospitalization.
Variation
Add some mungodi if you like to the above recipe. If you do not have chana dal, you can make it with arhar or tuvar dal or masur dal as well.
Serving suggestion
You can serve this ghiya sabji with flat bread or 'roti'. Goes great with brown rice for main course too. Pair it with raita or yogurt dip and some fried poppadums.Just fry some potato chips with rice and easy meal is ready.
Want to try more ghiya/lauki recipes?
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