Bottlegourd or long melon, known as lauki in Hindi, sorakkai in Tamil and churakka in Malayalam, is one squash that is available most of the times in Indian shops here. If you don't get ashgourd easily , bottlegourd is a good substitute. Whenever my mom gets bottlegourd from the vegetable vendor, it goes into making kootu or lauki masala or this lauki sabzi with chana dal.
Bottlegourd is known for many health benefits in Ayurveda and when combined with lentils makes this sabzi more nutritious and healthy. This is a simple and mildly spiced sabzi with ingredients that are always available in our pantry. Soaking the chana dal helps to cook the lentils faster. Though you can cook this sabzi in a kadai, cooking in a pressure cooker reduces cooking time and the curry will be done in 30 minutes. Serve this delicious lauki chana dale sabzi hot with roti or phulka.
LAUKI CHANA DAL SABZI RECIPE
{ Bottlegourd and split bengal gram curry }Serves 3 - 4
Ingredients:
1 medium bottlegourd / lauki (about 3 ½ cups)
½ cup chana dal / split bengal gram
1 tbsp oil
½ tsp ghee
1 tsp cumin seeds / jeera
¼ tsp asafoetida / hing
1 medium onion, chopped
1-inch piece ginger, grated
2-3 green chillies, slit
1 medium tomato, chopped
¼ tsp turmeric powder
½ tsp red chilly powder
1 tsp coriander powder
½ tsp garam masala
Salt to taste
3 tbsp chopped coriander
Method:
1. Wash and soak chana dal for 30 minutes. Peel the skin of bottlegourd and remove the center spongy portion. Chop them into cubes.
2. In a pressure cooker, heat oil and ghee. Add cumin seeds, asafoetida and let it sizzle. Add onion, ginger, green chillies and saute until soft.
3. Add tomato and fry till they are soft. Then add turmeric powder, red chilly powder, coriander powder and garam masala. Fry for 1-2 minutes.
4. Add the chana dal, bottlegourd, 1 cup water, salt and mix well. Close the lid and pressure cook for 3 whistles in medium heat.
5. Once pressure subsides, open and add coriander leaves. Simmer for few minutes if there is still lot of water.
Serving Suggestion ~ Roti / phulka.
Notes and Tips
- Do not add more water. Bottlegourd will ooze out some water too.
- Chana dal should not turn mushy. It should be just soft and have little crunch.