Vegan Zucchini curry is perfect for easy lunch. You do not even have to peel it while cooking. Just cut the head off. It is always advisable you taste it before eating.
This courgette curry recipe is my MIL's lunch idea. While there are many recipes with coconut milk, this is more of an zucchini Indian curry recipe. She made this for me when I had just had my baby and was too tired to cook. Thankfully, her food made me strong faster than I had expected. It is so interesting she came up with this substitution because there was no gourd at home and she had never cooked with courgette earlier. She was not very savvy with online recipes but her quick thinking gave us a meal which we relish every week. Earlier we had only used courgettes in noodles, vegetable loaf and stir fries. Curried zucchini is now a staple in our household.
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Top tip
Discard immediately if there is any bitter taste. This should be practiced for all squashes and gourds as they can cause severe food poisoning if eaten.
Equipment
- frying pan/ kadai
- or saucepan
Ingredients
- Courgette
- Tomatoes
- Oil or ghee
- Cumin seeds
- Heeng or asafoetida (avoid if gluten free)
- Ginger
- Green chilies
- Turmeric powder
- Salt and red chilli powder as per taste
How to make zucchini curry?
- Wash and chop courgette into small pieces. Eat a raw piece to check if it is bitter. If bitter, discard immediately. Use a new one.
- In a pan, heat oil or ghee. Add cumin seeds and let it splutter. Add ginger, chillies and pinch of asafoetida optionally.
- Now, add tomatoes and salt. Let it cook over medium heat until it softens. You may use a can of tomatoes if you like.
- Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder.
- Add the chopped zucchini pieces.Mix well. Let it cook till it softens.
- Garnish with chopped cilantro and dash of lemon juice optionally. Serve hot with flatbread or rice.
Zucchini curry recipe
Equipment
- saucepan
- or kadai/frying pan
Ingredients
- 1 zucchini large
- 2-3 tomatoes large
For tempering
- 2 tablespoon ghee / oil if vegan
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 piece ginger finely chopped
- 2 green chilli chopped
- Pinch asafoetida / heeng optional
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1-2 teaspoon red chilli powder
- Salt as per taste
Instructions
- Wash and chop courgette into small pieces. Eat a raw piece to check if it is bitter. If bitter, discard immediately. Use a new one.
- In a frying pan, heat oil or ghee.
- Add cumin seeds and let it splutter. Add ginger, chillies, and pinch of asafoetida optionally.
- Add tomatoes and let it soften.
- Now add the spices & mix well.
- Add the chopped courgette pieces.
- Cook until they are soft or pressure cook for 2-3 whistles with ½ cup of water if using a pressure cooker. Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves.
- Serve hot with flatbread or rice.
Notes
Variations
You can also make this curry without tomatoes. Let it cook and pulse it. Add tadka and serve it as Sindhi nijji turai or Andhra style beerakaya chutney. Make a vegan version by using oil instead of ghee. Avoid asafoetida or heeng to make a gluten free curry. Add onions and garlic as a variation. If you like it spicy you may add garam masala to it. You can also add curry leaves in the tempering. You can even make a potato & zucchini curry.
Substitution
You may use lauki or turai if courgette is not available for the above recipe. You can cook it in instant pot too. If you plan to make a mixed vegetable, add aubergine and carrots to it. Courgette and chickpea curry is a good meal too if you want to make a mixed veg recipe.
FAQs
Yes, courgette is the French name.
Yes you can.
Yes it is of the same family as gourds.
You can make a zucchini thai curry, courgette mushroom curry, courgette lentil curry,air fried zucchini chips.Other awesome recipes are applesauce zucchini muffins,soup,pasta and au gratin
Related links
There are many recipes you can make using courgette. Pancakes taste great on cast iron pan. They are an easy and healthier alternative to sweet plain flour pancakes. You can even air fry flowers or make a pizza, salad or soup out of it. Make other curries on lines of the curries below by replacing lauki and turai with courgette.
Please share your inputs..