Bottle gourd/doodhi/ghiya kofta curry

Bottle gourd/ doodhi is very good for health but my husband is not very fond of it. This is a typical north indian recipe which my mom ould make regularly when we were ypunger. I generally avoid it bcos the koftas are deep fried but it tastes great with rotis. I plan to try this recipe with steamed koftas.

 

 

Bottlegourd/doodhi Kofta curry
For the Kofta :
½ of small bottlegourd/doodhi/ghiya grated
2-3 tblsp chick pea flour/besan
1 green chili
1 tblsp coriander leaves chopped
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp coriander powder
½ tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
Oil to deep fry

For the curry:
1 tblsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 medium sized onion grated
1 tsp ginger grated
1 tsp garlic grated
2 tomatoes grated
½ tp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chili powder
2 tsp coriander powder
½ tsp garam masala powder
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves chopped

For the Koftas

Peel the bottle gourd. Grate it and squeeze it to remove the water. Add all the ingredients for the koftas and make a thick batter. Add the water that you squeezed as required. The batter should be quite thick.

Heat oil. Then add spoonfuls of batter to make koftas and deep fry on medium heat. Fry till golden in color and drain on a paper.

For the gravy
Heat 1 tblsp oil. Add cumin seeds. When they change color, add the grated onion. Fry till the onion is golden brown in color.
Add the ginger garlic and fry for a minute.
Add turmeric powder, red chili and coriander powder and fry for a min.
Add the grated tomatoes and fry till the oil separates and the masala is nicely cooked.

Add a little water and salt cook for 5 more mins. Add the fried koftas, garam masala and cook for 3-4 mins. Remove from heat and garnish with coriander leaves.

Bottle gourd/Doodhi/Sorakaya paranthas

Bottle gourd/doodhi/Sorakaya is a very nutritious vegetable. It was a regular dish in my mom's place. But my husband did not like it and so for a number of years, i did not make it. My 2 year old eats it in any form, and since its good for him, I have started incorporating bottlegourd in our food in a number of ways.

Making bottle gourd paranthas or theplas is one of them. These paranthas taste very good with some achar, yogurt and any sabji. We also had some srikhand with it.

 

 

1 cup grated doodhi/ bottle gourd
1 tblsp besan (chickpea four)
1 ½ cup aata / whole wheat flour
2 green chilies finely chopped
1 tblsp green dhania finely chopped
1 tsp red chili powder
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp sugar (optional)
Salt to taste
1 tsp oil
Oil to make paranthas.

Grate the doodhi/ bottle gourd. Add all the above ingredients and mix well. Doodhi has a lot of water content and so first make a dough with the above and then add water as needed. Knead the dough for 5 mins, add 1 tsp oil and knead again.
Then cover and keep aside for 30 mins.

Heat tava over medium heat. Take a small ball of the dough and roll it out into a thin disc, like u make a roti. For parantha roll a little thick, for thepla roll it a little thin. Put the parantha on the tava, cook for 20 sec, turn and cook 20 sec more. Then put ½ tsp oil on each side and cook till golden spots appear. Serve hot with pickles and yogurt. These taste good with any side dish of vegetables too. .