Recipe by Rosy Pinto
Ingredients:
250 gms bitter gourd
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp salt
Other Ingredients:
4 tbsp jaggery powder or cubes
1 lemon size ball of tamarind (soaked and juice extracted)
2 tbsp cooking oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp split urad dal
a pinch of asafoetida/hing
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 - 2 red chillies (optional) break into 2
1 sprig curry leaves
2 1/2 - 3 tsp bafat powder
4 tbsp fresh grated coconut
salt to taste
Steps:
- Wash the bitter gourd well, trim the ends and cut them vertically. Scoop out all the seeds and chop into small pieces or thin slices. If the bitter gourd is large, quarter them vertically and then slice it.
- Add turmeric powder, salt and little water. Mix well and set it aside for 15 minutes. Squeeze the water and take out the sliced bitter gourd, discard the water.
- In a vessel, heat oil.
- Add mustard seeds, urad dal and red chillis.
- Once mustard seeds splutter and urad dal turns brown, add curry leaves, turmeric, asafoetida followed by bitter gourd and fry until it turns slightly brown.
- Add salt, tamarind juice, jaggery and 1 cup of water. Mix well and when it starts boiling, reduce the flame, stir occasionally until bitter gourd is soft and cooked.
- Add bafat powder and coconut, mix well and cook for 1 minute. Mix and switch off the flame.
- ENJOY!
Notes:
- Adjust jaggery and bafat powder as per your taste. I used Savitha bafat powder which is less spicy