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.
Just fry some potato chips with rice and easy meal is ready.
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.
Commonly known as bottle gourd or in Hindi - 'lauki' , 'dudhi'or 'ghia', a great diuretic.
The only thing you need to be sure before cooking calabash is tasting a piece before cooking it, to ensure it is not bitter. Dudhi curry is an easy one.
Nutrition facts of Bottle gourd/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 new borns).
It is also a moderate source of vitamin B,C and folates.
This lauki sabzi recipe is great if you need to lose weight.
You can serve this ghiya sabji with flat bread or 'roti'. Add some mungodi if you like. Goes great with brown rice for main course too. Pair it with raita yogurt dip and some fried poppadums.
Yum!
Ingredients for the curry
Step-by-step pictures for the curry
Read the recipe of Lauki chana dal below
Lauki chana -Bottle gourd curry cooked with lentils
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 tbsp oil
- ½ tsp 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 tsp red chilli powder/lal mirch
- ½ tsp cumin powder/jeera
- ¼ tsp Garam masala
- Garnish: Cilantro leaves finely chopped
- Salt as per taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a saucepan.
- Add the cumin seeds and let it crackle.Add asafoetida and green chilies. Stir for a few seconds.
- Add ginger, turmeric, and chili powder and stir for a few seconds.
- Add the soaked bengal gram, bottle gourd, salt, 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.
- Turn off the heat and add the dried mango powder, garam masala, and cilantro.
- Stir and cover the pan for a few minutes before serving with flat bread or brown rice.
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