Ridge gourd/Peerkangai Thuvaiyal

This dish is my all time favorite South Indian recipe. I learned this dish from my mother. The preparation cuts down my time in the kitchen, whenever I am bored to cook. This dish can be mixed with plain rice dotted with ghee or eaten along with Idli/Dosa/Chappathi.

Ingredients:

Ridge Gourd, peeled, sliced roughly – 2 medium-large
(If the gourd is fresh, peel only the ridges. the dish tastes good this way than peeling completely)

Red chillies 3 or 4

Mustard seeds 1 tsp

Urad dal 2 tsp

Refined oil 1tsp

Tamarind, small lemon-sized, soaked in water for a minute

Asafoetida a pinch

Salt to taste

Method:

1. Cook the ridge gourd in as little water as possible.

2. Heat the oil in a pan and sauté the mustard seeds, urad dal, dry red chillies and asafoetida for a few seconds.

3. Remove and allow the mixture to cool and grind all the ingredients together.

          
Tips:

It is always good to add the cooked gourd and the fried urad dal at the end when you are grinding.