బీరకాయ పచ్చడి- Beerakaya pacchadi (Ridge gourd chutney)

Serves: Fills a 16 fl oz bottle. Preparation time: 40 minutes including washing/chopping vegetables, assembling ingredients, cooking & grinding. 

Ingredients:
2tsp split bengal gram (Dhula chana dal, Senagapappu)

2 tsp split black gram (Dhuli urad dal, Minappappu)
1 tsp Mustard seeds (Rai, Avalu)
7 pieces Dry red chilli (Endu mirapa)
1/2 Tsp Fenugreek powder (Methi, Menti)
3/4 tsp Asafoetida (Heeng, Inguva)
1 tsp Turmeric (Haldi, Pasupu)
1.5 tsp Cumin powder (Jheera, Jilakara)
1.5 tsp Coriander powder (Dhania)
4 pieces green chillies
2 Large sized Ridge gourds (Tori, Beerakaya)
3 tsps Oil
5 stems Cilantro (Kotimeer)
2.5 tsps Salt
3 tbps boiled tamarind paste

Method:
1. Wash and peel ridge gourds. (You could use the peel to make Beera kaya thokku pacchadi.) Chop into pieces. Chop the cilantro and set aside.
2. Heat 1 tsp oil, add gourds, salt and turmeric. Cover and cook until done, approximately 10 minutes. Leave to cool.
3. Heat 2 tsp oil. Add senagapappu, minappappu, dry red chillies. When they brown & give off an aroma, add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add green chillies, add the powdered spices (Fenugreek, Asafoetida, Cumin, Coriander). Switch off flame & cover, the heat from the oil is enough to cook the spice powders & green chillies. Leave to cool.
4. Finely grind the roasted spices of step 3.
5. Add the tamarind paste, the cooked vegetables of step 2. and coarse grind with quick spurts of power on pulse/whip mode.
6. Transfer into a jar and add the chopped cilantro.
7. Refrigerate.

Serve with hot rice, with a generous topping of ghee. Can be used as a spread/dipping with savoury snacks, accompanies Idli/Dosa/Pesarattu.

Useful Tip/Trick:
Makes a delicious instant Raita/Perugu pacchadi if mixed into yogurt, the resulting raita even goes with north Indian dishes like Pulao or Alu parantha.

Variations:
1. Some recipes do not instruct to peel the ridge-gourd. It can be used whole with its skin, especially if it is young & tender. 
2. You may substitute Cumin/Coriander powders with seeds as they will get ground in the mixer. However, seeds will need more time to brown/splutter, adjust the sequence of adding into oil accordingly.
3. If using fenugreek seeds: Roast them to a black-brown, cool and powder. Add this pre-roasted powder to the cooled tempering from step (3). 
4. The ground spices resulting from step (3) and (4) can be used as a base for many other pacchadis. Instead of ridge gourd, one can add cooked red tomatoes or round yellow cucumbers (Dosakáya).
5. If you like the spices whole & crisp, do not grind them after step (3). Instead, pour the cooled tempering over the ground vegetables. 

Culture & Health:
A very good for health pacchadi, ridge gourd is low in calories, rich in vitamins & minerals. It is an excellent source of dietary fibre. This pacchadi is great taste with great health as it needs very little oil. It is best prepared fresh in small quantities, enough to last for three or four days. This is a typical Telugu preparation.

Trivia:
I learnt this recipe from my mom-in-law (Indira aunty). Krishna really adores his mother's pacchadis. I first started experimenting with pacchadis under aunty's guidance and I must say I am thoroughly addicted to her recipes, perhaps I eat even more pacchadi than Krishna!!

బీరకాయ తోక్కు పచ్చడి: Beerakaya Thokku Pacchadi- Ridge-Gourd Skin Chutney

Ridge Gourd is:
Low in Saturated Fat, and Cholesterol
High in Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Riboflavin, Zinc, Thiamin, Iron, Magnesium and Manganese.

The nutritional value of gourd makes it suitable for:
Maintaining optimum health
Weight loss

Avoid including gourd in your diet if you're interested in:
Weight gain

Preparation Time: 20 mts
Serves: 4-5 persons
Region: Andhra
Utensils: Wok/Pan, small seasoning Pan, Wooden Laddle, Indian Mixer-Grinder/Coffee Grinder


Ingredients:


Peel the skin of 3 large Ridge Gourds ( use the peeled gourds for a vegetable curry later )

1 tbsp split Gram Dal/Mina Pappu
5-6 dry Red Chillis/Endumerapakayalu, de-seed them and tear them
1 tsp Cumin/Jeelakarra seeds
5-6 Asian Green Chilli Peppers/Pachimerapakayalu
1 small Onion/Ullipaya peeled and sliced
1 pod Garlic/Vellullipaya peeled and crushed
1/4 cup finely chopped Coriander leaves/Kothimeera
2 tsps Til/Gingelly/Seasame Oil/Noona
Juice from small lemon sized Tamarind (soak in warm water for 15 mts)/ 1 tablespoon Tamarind paste/Chintapandu Gujju
Salt to taste/Uppu


For Tiragamutha/Popu/Tadka/Seasoning:

1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds/Avalu
1-2 dry Red Chillis/Endumerapakayalu, de-seed them and tear them
Pinch of Asafoetida/Hing/Inguva
8-10 Curry Leaves/Karivaypaku
1/2 tsp Oil/Noona

Method:

1. Heat a tsp of Oil in a cooking Pan/Wok,
2. Add split Gram Dal, Cumin seeds and Red Chillis and stir fry till the Dal turns red.
3. Remove and keep aside.

4. In the same Pan/Wok, add another 1 tsp of Oil and add the Green Chillis and saute till they are soft and a little translucent.
5. Add the Onion, Garlic and Coriander leaves to this and saute till translucent.
6. Add the Ridge Gourd chopped peels and fry on medium heat for 5-6 mts.
7. Add the Tamarind pulp to it and leave aside to cool.

8. Once cooled, grind the dry masala first ie the Dal/Cumin/Chilli coarsely, add the rest of the sauteed ingredients along with Tamarind and Salt and grind again to a rough paste.

Separately
9. Heat Oil in a pan for seasoning.
10. Once hot, add the Mustard Seeds and once they splutter,
11. Add Asafoetida, once you get the aroma
12. Add the Curry Leaves and turn off heat
13. Pour the Oil mixture over Chutney.

Accompaniments:

1.Works excellently with Adais, Rava Dosas, Appams, Idiyappams,
2.Can be eaten mixed with Rice and Ghee,
3.Spread over Bagel or for Sandwiches
4.Dip for fresh Vegetables or Crackers,
5.Side Dish for Chappatis, Rotis, Parathas, Puris

Modifications:

You can skip the Onion and Garlic if you are Jain or Vaidika/Sattvika!
Instead add a lot of fire roasted or sauteed fresh green Asian chilli peppers/Pachimerapakaayalu
Garnish with freshly cut Kothimeera/Dhaniyapatta/Cilantro instead of Curry Leaves

History:

The fruit section of L. aegyptiaca may be allowed to mature and used as a bath or kitchen sponge after being processed to remove everything but the network of xylem. Marketed as luffa or loofah, the sponge is used like a body scrub. This version is called lifah in Arabic, bholor jaal in Assamese, dhundul in Bengali, ghiya tori or nerua in Hindi. Softly-textured luffa sponges are not derived from the luffa fruit, but are manufactured by folding in several layers of soft mesh-like fabric into a cloud-like shape; commonly used in tandem with shower soaps.

Home Remedy:

Its juice is used as a natural remedy for jaundice. The juice is obtained by pounding the bitter luffa and squeezing it through a cloth. Bitter luffa seeds and dry crusts are also available and can be used for the same purpose.
In China and the Philippines, the Luffa or Patola is eaten as a green vegetable in various dishes.
In Paraguay panels are made out of luffa combined with other vegetable matter and recycled plastic. These can be used to create furniture and construct houses.


Backstory:

What can I say about this Pacchadi except that if you have never had the good fortune to eat it mixed with hot rice and ghee with your fingers you are a pitiable soul! Andhraites eat a lot of gourds, given that most vegetables that the West knows of ie Potato, Tomato, Peppers etc were 'foreign' to India before the Portugese arrived in the 15th century. A variety of gourds are popular and make for ethnic Andhra Cuisine. Many gourds are concocted into something tasty. Especially in the Brahmin families where costly ingredients were eschewed very innovative recipes evolved with simple ingredients. The SKIN that is peeled from a RidgeGourd makes for one of the finest chutneys in the country. The skin is rough and one has to wash the vegetable well before peeling and storing the skin in an airtight ziploc bag.