బీరకాయ మిరియాల పచà±à°šà°¡à°¿
Shallot, Turai and Black Peppercorn
If there is a turai fan club, I would be a card-carrying member. I would go to farmers markets to demonstrate turai dishes and to dispense turai seeds to the interested. I enjoy this vegetable that much.:) Recently I came across a new chutney recipe with turai, and I tried it today for our meal. Sweet turai and fiery peppercorn, it’s a good combination. A must try for fellow turai fans, I recommend.
Black Pepper ~Turai Chutney:
(makes about a cup and half)
1 Turai (ridge gourd, బీరకాయ)
2 shallots (erra gadda)
½ teaspoon black peppercorn (*Hot*)
1-tablespoon tamarind pulp
½ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon salt
1-teaspoon oil
1. Add tamarind pulp to two tablespoons of water. This will soften the tamarind and helps to blend well. Peel the ridges, wash turai, and cut to big chunks (about two cups). Peel the skin and chop shallots to big pieces (about half cup).
2. Heat a cast iron skillet. Add and heat oil to smoking point. Add black pepper and cumin. Fry for few seconds. Add the shallots and ridge gourd pieces. Sauté to tender for about five minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the contents to reach room temperature.
3. Take them all in a mixer or mortar. Add salt, tamarind pulp and the water it was soaked in. Mix once. Blend to coarse consistency. Remove to a cup and serve. Good to mix with rice, or as a spread on chapati/roti/bread.
Turai Pepper Chutney ~ for Meal Today
Recipe adapted from:
Paajaka. Thanks Mythreyee for this tasty turai recipe idea.
Reduce peppercorn to quarter teaspoon if you prefer mild hot level.
Pictures look awesome…nice looking chutney!..
Comment by Srivalli — May 7, 2008 @ 6:46 pm
Wow! That ridge gourd crown was perfect for the shallot. You are too creative Indira! And as myself too have joined the club would try this out and let u know!
Comment by Nirmala — May 7, 2008 @ 11:01 pm
Hi Indira,I am a wanderer in ur blog since long time but sorry I have never commented on ur talent and ur recipes. Honestly It is so great all the time that I fail to find words to express my feelings.
Got the guts to say u hello.!1111111
Love the beautiful picture,I was speechless for a min.
Comment by shibani — May 7, 2008 @ 11:37 pm
I simply adore ridge gourd as it blends well with any other ingredients it cooked with. have you tried the chutney made using ridge gourd peel?
Comment by sia — May 8, 2008 @ 12:10 am
That picture is beautiful, at first glance it looked like a vase! I am a fan of turia too,and turia-patra is another Gujarati recipe which is a hit in my home. Have you tried it?
Comment by Trupti — May 8, 2008 @ 3:42 am
Hi Indira, you had asked a few days ago about how best to name the recipes, soup, chaaru, or a hindi name. As a request from the Telugu diaspora, please use telugu or english in addition to Hindi. For many of us, knowing Telugu is hard enough, and we don’t read it well. I saw the picture and recognized turai as beerakaya. Thanks for this recipe, post and an opportunity to comment on your blog. I realize it is a privilege and not a right.
Best wishes.
Comment by Padmaja — May 8, 2008 @ 6:09 am
Oh ! I loved the picture Indira !!!
Very very creative ! And I will try the recipe the next time I get ridge gourd. Thanks !
Comment by Leena — May 8, 2008 @ 6:36 am
The picture is so lovely!
I adore bhajjis made from ridge gourd. I have heard that they make chutney from the outer layer of the ridge gourd.
The chutney looks so tasty. Thanks again for so many delicious recipes.
Comment by Kumudha — May 8, 2008 @ 6:49 am
My mother used to make this pachadi with the beerakaya peel. She would gently peel the ridges and then use the green part to make the pachadi. Rest of the beerakaya was used to make dal with pesarapappu (moong dal) or simply saute-ed with salt and pepper. The picture looks awesome!! Its amazing how you can draw inspiration from very simple looking everyday stuff.
Aside: I have a subscription to you blog and used to follow it mostly through G reader. Now that only part of the post appears on my reader, I have to visit your blog and cant help commenting 🙂
Comment by Never Mind — May 8, 2008 @ 7:02 am
Wonderful ingredients picture Indira. So creative. This pachadi is also new to me, we prepare it another way.
Comment by Madhuram — May 8, 2008 @ 8:09 am
I too love ridge gourd. I make it often when it’s in season. I usually do mine Thai style in a stir-fry with garlic and fish sauce, but I like it any way at all. I will try this chutney next time I pick some up at the market.
Comment by Diane — May 8, 2008 @ 8:11 am
My grandmother used to make this chutney and she called it as Beerapottu pacchaddi.She used to peel the skin and dry it on a plate for 1/2 day and made this pacchaddi.
Comment by Radhi — May 8, 2008 @ 11:16 am
I thought I was crazy for liking this vegetable so much. Glad to know there is someone else like me. The Chutney looks so good. Thanks for sharing. My mom makes chutney with the roasted peel, adding hing, roasted red chillies, tamarind, salt and roasted urad dhal. I tried variations by adding some mint leaves. If you add the urad dhal towards the end of the grinding process, and leave it coarse, heavenly, you can never stop eating rice with this chutney.
Comment by Sudha Rajagopalan — May 8, 2008 @ 2:28 pm
Indira, thanks for trying out the recipe. I am glad you liked it. The picture is awesome. This recipe is my husband’s creation.
Comment by Mythreyee — May 8, 2008 @ 2:43 pm
Oh, I love the first pic, Indira! It is simply fabulous! I did not realize that it was a shallot that the turai was sitting on. 🙂
Comment by TBC — May 8, 2008 @ 3:20 pm
Indira I have got to try this recipe, pic looks beautiful
Comment by sreelu — May 8, 2008 @ 6:19 pm
The first pic is so beautiful and very creative – it looks like a pepper shaker to me 🙂
Comment by J — May 8, 2008 @ 9:13 pm
Hi Indira,
With a very few limited receipes for this fabulous vegetable,its great to have this chutney.I aslo make a chutney out of ridgeguard skin as well as flesh, but use redchillies and roasted urad dhal instead.Will definitely try this one too.
Comment by Sumi — May 9, 2008 @ 5:13 am
This sounds simply delicious and spicy. Yum!
Natalie @ Gluten A Go Go
Comment by Sheltie Girl — May 9, 2008 @ 6:01 am
looks so beautiful, I mean the first picture! this pachadi makes me to prepare it right away! Must have tasted great.
Comment by Uma — May 9, 2008 @ 9:41 am
The turai looks too good (almost as if it were floating in air).
I like this vegetable, its naturally very tasty.
Comment by Roma — May 9, 2008 @ 10:25 am
It is pouring rain in New York, but I am smiling ear-to-ear because of this delightful post and pictures!
Comment by the chocolate lady (eve) — May 9, 2008 @ 12:26 pm
I might be even one of the card holder for Turai fan club 😀
I second Trupti. turiya patra is a big hit at my home too 🙂 .
Comment by Pooja — May 9, 2008 @ 2:17 pm
Nice picture indira….
Do see my blog…:) tried ur choley at it was awesome….thanx… do check my blog 😀
Comment by Shubha — May 9, 2008 @ 4:44 pm
Indiraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa check my blog i have a surprise for u…:D
Comment by Shubha — May 9, 2008 @ 5:48 pm
Hi Indira…Turai – a vegetable we all disliked as kids and have grown to simply love now. I just made Beerakaya pachchadi 2 days ago and all of us freaked out. But your recipe sounds so simple…I am going to try this for sure. Even when we make plain turai sabzi, pepper always enhances its flavour and lets it look green.
Comment by Pritya — May 9, 2008 @ 7:20 pm
Indira, that first photo is award-winning!! Can just imagine the tasty-peppery chutney 🙂
Comment by Linda — May 9, 2008 @ 8:58 pm
Indira, you have an amazing sense of visualization and imagination :). The photogragh is very creative.
Comment by Chitra Chaudhuri — May 10, 2008 @ 12:27 am
Thank you all for your good notes on this recipe and photos.
I think we have enough members to start a turai fan club. May be at Dining Hall?:)
Mythreyee: we loved this chutney recipe. thanks again!
Pooja and Trupti: Turai with Patra, it’s going to be my first time, I’ll try soon.
To peel chutney fans, I too like it a lot. and we also make it at home. Super tasty with dal and rice.
Comment by Indira — May 10, 2008 @ 8:42 pm
Wow Indira ! The pictures are so very elegant and mouthwatering. Many thanks to you, Mythreyee and her husband who created this chutney. Will surely try it.
Comment by Rashmi — May 11, 2008 @ 9:11 am
What a beautiful photo of the onion, ridgegourd and peppers. cute !!!!
Comment by shaila — May 12, 2008 @ 9:07 am
Dear Indira,
Yesterday I tried payasam with ridge gourd and it came out very well. I have posted it in my blog today. Since you are a big fan of ridge gourd, I wanted to let you know.
Thank You.
Comment by Madhuram — May 13, 2008 @ 6:56 am
am a new turai fan. in konkani it is called gosale. and manglorean catholics really know hoe to slaughter vegetables. (before any of them decide to slaughter me instead, i am one too, and this is purely my opinion). anyway with a not so appetising sounding name and even less apetising manner of preparation, i hated this vegetable.
until recently. of late i have come across many interesting different ways of cooking turai and now i love it and make it at least once a week. it helps hugely that really fresh tender turai is available in bangalore currently.
so i tried your recipe and its fantastic. i am a pepper fan too. and my husband likes the sour that came from the tamarind. also i love that it is a healthy chutney – not only no coconut, it even has a healthy green vegetable. definitely a keeper recipe for us.
thanks!
i have a fantastic turai recipe – easy – done in under 10 mins in the microwave. its from tarla dalal. let me know if you are interested i will send it to you.
d
Comment by d — June 2, 2008 @ 4:01 am
Aha naaku bhale site dorikindi , emaina sare evaraina sare Kritagnudini. 🙂
Comment by Vijayakrishna — April 12, 2009 @ 5:38 am
I just came across your website today – its fantastic and what a great recipe. I was searching for information on growing turai (Luffa or ridge gourd) I got some seeds from a friend and I am very excited about growing it – particularly as there are so many lovely recipes for it. Are the smooth skin and ridge skin the same for cooking or should I really be looking for the ridge variety?
Comment by Laura (France) — April 21, 2009 @ 5:01 am
I have loved your blog and been inspired by it so much! It’s beautiful and need I say yummmy! I actually one of those who has shied away from turai… but guess what, I’m loving it now! So, yes, add me to the fan club too. 🙂
Comment by Meenakshi — April 21, 2009 @ 6:57 pm