Bottle gourd sesame seeds curry

We call this dish as “kaddu til ka salan” (curry). In India, bottle guard is known as lauki in Hindi and kaddu in Urdu. The fresh fruit has a light green smooth skin and a white flesh. Rounder varieties are called calabash gourds. They come in a variety of shapes, they can be huge and rounded, or small and bottle shaped, or slim and more than a meter long. Bottle gourds are one of the favorite vegetables of Indians and have numerous health benefits. Cooked Bottle gourd is anti-bilious(prevents sickness). It makes one relax after eating. But one should not eat the vegetable raw as it can harm the stomach and intestines. Bottle gourd is not only rich in essential minerals, iron, protein and trace elements; it is also rich in fiber. Many varieties of curries and sweets are made using bottle guard in India.

     Sesame seeds are known as Til in Hindi or Urdu. Sesame is grown primarily for its oil-rich seeds. The small sesame seed is used whole in cooking for its rich nutty flavor and also yields sesame oil. The seeds of the sesame are a good source of calcium. Sesame seeds are used in cooking many curries and sweets.

    

    The following recipe bottle guard sesame seed curry is a very good combination of these two main ingredients. Many times we make this dish in our home. It is not that much popular but it is a very simple dish, easy to make and very healthy.

Bottle gourd

Ingredients for making bottle gourd sesame seeds curry:

Bottle gourd medium sized ½

Sesame seeds ½ cup

Green chili pastes 2 tbsp.

Red chili powder 1 tsp.

Salt to taste

Ginger-garlic pastes ½ tsp.

Turmeric powder ¼ tsp.

Chopped coriander 2 tsp.

Oil ½ cup

Chopped onion 1

Preparation of bottle gourd sesame seeds curry:

• First peel off the bottle gourd cut it into 5-6 long-long pieces and then remove its seeds(if found).
• Cut it into 2 inch pieces and keep it aside.
• Take the sesame seeds wash it using water (use a tea strainer).
• Now heat a pan and roast sesame seeds till the seeds puffs up and starts making noises like popcorns.
•  Now immediately take out these seeds and blend it into powder while it is hot.
• Then add little water and then blend it again to make a fine paste.

Curry:

• Heat oil in a pressure cooker and fry onions till translucent.
• Add bottle gourd pieces and all other ingredients for 2 min.
• Now add sesame seeds paste which we have made earlier.
• Add ½ cup of water and cover the pressure cooker and 
• let 3 whistles.
• After 3 whistles cook till the excess water is absorbed.
• Serve this dish with chapatti, roti, phulkas, puri, rice.