Authentic Bottle Gourd Kootu

Bottle Gourd Stew/ South-Indian Sorrakkai Kootu

Sorrakkai or Bottle gourd Kootu is a Stew originally from South of India and commonly prepared in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. It is a mixed vegetable dish with Bottle gourd being the hero ingredient, cooked with lentil, spices and herbs. It is lastly seasoned with tadka of coconut oil and a paste prepared by grinding red chilies, cumin seeds and fresh coconut.

In South India almost all homes have a coconut tree and a banana tree in their compound, so fresh coconut is easily accessible there. Being a South Indian girl  living in North India, I try to come up with some tricks and shortcuts to traditional recipes. Like I have done here today. I was out of fresh coconut as well desiccated coconut and for some reason I bought this newly introduced product thing called coconut milk powder and substituted the good old coconut with it.

This stew or kootu is served as a side dish with steamed rice, rasam, stir fried curry and papadams. But being a South-Indian girl by heart living in North-India by choice, I like to enjoy it with parathas at breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Try this naturally low fat/ weight loss recipe which is filled with richness of mixed vegetables, cooked in less oil i.e. coconut oil, which is again wholesome and known for its health benefis. 

Recipe:

Servings: 4-6 people

Prep time: 5-10 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Tools Needed:

Pressure Cooker, Mixer grinder, Kadai.

Ingredients list :

1. Bottle gourd 1 medium size. 

2. Potatoes 2 medium sized.

3. Green Peas ½ cup (Frozen or fresh) 

4. Tomato medium size 1 nos. 

5. Split green lentil ½ cup. 

6. Salt as per taste. 

7. Sambar powder 2 tsp. 

8. Turmeric powder ¼ tsp. 

9. Coconut milk powder /fresh coconut shreds 2 tbsp. 

10. Dry red chillies 2-3 nos. 

11. Cumin seeds 2 tsp. 

12. Split black lentil 1 tbsp. 

13. Asafoetida 1/8 tsp. 

14. Edible Coconut oil 2 tbsp. 

15. Raw Rice 2 tsp. 

16. Black pepper corns 5 or 6. 

17. Curry leaves 4-5.

Method :

1. Wash, Peel and chop bottle gourd and potatoes into small pieces also chop tomatoes and keep ready, thaw frozen green peas, if using. 

2. Wash green lentil and put in the pressure cooker directly. 

3. Add all chopped vegetables and peas. 

4. Add 1 cup water. 

5. Add turmeric powder and sambar powder.

6. Cover the lid of the pressure cooker and wait for 2-3 whistles or until cooked. while the vegetables are cooking, prepare the spice and coconut paste, take a chutney grinder jar, put raw rice, ½ tsp cumin seeds, black pepper corns, 2 red chillies and 2 tbsp water and soak for few minutes. 

7.After 5-7 minutes, grind the paste finely.

8. Switch off flame when 3 whistles are over, once pressure has released naturally from the cooker, open the lid. 

9. Take a kadai, keep it on low heat. Add coconut oil. 

10. Add cumin seeds, curry leaves 2 red chillies, black lentils and fry till lentil turns golden. Do this on low flame. 

11. Pour the cooked vegetable to the kadai. Let it come to a boil. 

12. Add the prepared paste and salt. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Our wholesome and delicious stew is ready.