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Malathi Chandur’s Kakarakaya Podi
Smt.Malathi Chandur is a prolific writer of cookery books and many good novels in telugu literature. A name to reckon with, her novels have potrayed social transformation and her cookery book “vantalu pindi vantalu” has been the cookery bible for many telugu women. She now resides in Chennai with her husband Shri. N.R. Chandur , who is also one of the famous writers of telugu literature.
The latest publication has the trio of her cookery books rolled into one and has clear instructions for measurements and how an ingredient is useful for our body. This the most valuable book I have and its written in telugu, A must keep for all those who can read telugu and enjoy vegetarian andhra cuisine.
Plump, luscious, happy looking bitter gourds are a rarity in my city and hence I make do with whatever I get!
The medicinal effects of this vegetable are said to be stomachic and carminative. They are supposed to be a good remedy for liver and spleen illnesses. Also , great for diabetes, It is normally sliced, dried , made into a coarse powder and eaten in our household.
There are two kinds of Bitter melons that are commonly grown in India , one is of the dark green and the other is the white variety. This is grown commonly in East Asian countries too.
Click here for the white bitter gourd Picture.
This is a common recipe in my home and this is my entry to VoW-Bittergourd , hosted by the lovely Pooja of CreativePooja
Thank you for hosting such a wonderful event Pooja!
Ingredients:
12 bitter gourd / bitter melon
1 tablespoon chana dal
1 table spoon coriander seeds
4-5 whole red chillies
1 tablespoon dry coconut flakes
1 tablespoon tamarind paste
1 small onion or shallot chopped .
Salt, turmeric and Oil to taste
Method:
In a wide bottomed skillet, add oil and brown the chopped onions and keep aside.
In the same skillet, wipe off the oil and take the chana dal, coriander seeds and red chillies and roast them until golden , cool and make a coarse powder.
Again, take the onions, tamarind and dessicated coconut and grind and keep aside.
The reason for grinding the ingredients seperately is we dont want the masala to be a paste , instead be a dry coarse powder as this is a dry curry.
Chop the bitter melon in bite sized pieces and add salt to it, keep aside for 10 minutes and squeeze the water out. I do this , as I dont want the bitterness to go away completely. Alternatively, you can also soak in salt water for an hour , drain and pat dry the bitter gourd pieces.
Heat Oil again, add turmeric and saute the bitter melon pieces, adjust the salt. Once done coat the pieces with the masala powder and onion paste and serve hot with rice.
Comments
Yeah, your entry is also somewhat similar to mine. but there are some differences though. Your recipe look so appealing. Love the pictures and the use of onion and tamarind. Nice entry.
Uma
April 9th, 2008
Nice different way to use the bittergourd..Nice entry dee
DIvya Vikram
April 9th, 2008
my mom use to make this once a while ,I totally forgot about this recipe ,thanks for reminding
sagari
April 9th, 2008
wow!good way to eat bitter gourd..love these
dhivya
April 9th, 2008
Ahh.. another delicious looking bitter gourd recipe. i never dared to make bitter gourd recipe
i fear no one will eat my dish.hehehehe
Anjali J.
April 9th, 2008
Malathi Chandur is one cookbook author most Andhras can count on. My mother has this book. Dee, bittergourd vepudu and is happens to be one my favorites. This recipe sounds good and will give it a try. So, you didnt scrap the skin off the bittergourd, even slightly?
sailaja
April 9th, 2008
this is a new recipe for me.. must be tasting good
sushma
April 10th, 2008
Dear Dee,
.
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this is such a lovely pic. I never tried bitter gourd w/o removing its skin. Shall try it your way now. I have something with white bitter gourd, you will see soon on my blog
thank for participating Dee. the first pic of chopped bitter gourd is enough to tempt anyone to try this recipe
Pooja
April 10th, 2008
Uma, Divya and Dhivya thanks for the nice comments
Sagari, Its all my pleasure!!
Oh Come on now , anjali, Im sure everyone will be drooling over your dish!!!
Sailugaru, It really pains me when I have to scrape or even if one seed goes missing, thanks to my mother thats how we are used to eating it. I dont like to soak it in salt or salt water, It really bothers me :)!
Pooja, Thanks you for hosting this lovely event! Ah!! White bitter gourds are less bitter ,I wish I get some here!! Thankyou for the kind compliments!
Dee
April 10th, 2008
Wow….the pic looks great. I am sure it tasted great too.
Homecooked
April 10th, 2008
Actually i hate to eat bittergourd, but this recipe looks different and will definitely try it..
prajusha
April 11th, 2008
Hey Dee,
What a Wonderful recipe,i just bought some Bittergourd yesterday and will surely try this recipe over the weekend.
I Hope K must have had a wonderful time enjoying this Dish.
Thanks for posting.Have a wonderful weekend!!!
Yamuna
April 11th, 2008