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Dudhi nu shaak
Bottle gourd curry
દૂધીનું શાક: Jain Gujarati bottle gourd cooked in its own juices with tomato, cumin, hing and a pinch of jaggery
When someone in a Gujarati house is unwell, or it's simply too hot to eat anything heavy, this is the shaak that appears with khichdi or thin rotli. Pale green bottle gourd cubes are cooked in a vaghar of cumin, mustard seed and hing with green chilli, a little tomato and a pinch of jaggery, and they release so much juice that almost no water is needed. With no onion, garlic or fresh ginger, it's everyday Jain food too. It ends up soft, light and gently sweet-sour, with a little thin gravy to soak into rice. The common mistake is adding water; dudhi is mostly water itself, and the shaak goes soupy and bland. Cover and let it stew in its own juice. Chef's tip: always taste a tiny raw piece first; a bottle gourd that tastes bitter can make you ill and must be thrown away.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the shaak
- 1 ⅛ lb bottle gourd (dudhi)peeled, seeds removed if large, cut in 1.5 cm cubes
- 1 ½ tbsp groundnut oil
- ¾ tsp cumin seeds
- 1 green chillifinely chopped
- 1 tomatofinely chopped
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- ¾ tsp red chilli powder
- ¾ tsp salt
To finish
- 1 tsp jaggerygrated
- ⅓ oz fresh corianderchopped
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Taste a tiny raw piece of 1 ⅛ lb bottle gourd (dudhi). If it is bitter, discard the whole gourd.
1 minStep 2: Heat 1 ½ tbsp groundnut oil in a pan over medium heat. Add ½ tsp black mustard seeds (rai) and, when it splutters, ¾ tsp cumin seeds, ¼ tsp gluten-free asafoetida (hing) and 1 green chilli.
1 minStep 3: Add the dudhi, ½ tsp ground turmeric and ¾ tsp salt and stir. Cover and cook on low heat for 8 minutes, until the cubes release their juice and start to turn translucent.
8 minStep 4: Add 1 tomato, ¾ tsp red chilli powder, 1 tsp dhana-jiru (ground coriander-cumin) and ¼ tsp dry ginger powder (sonth), cover again and cook for 6–8 minutes until the dudhi is soft and translucent right through and the tomato has melted.
8 minStep 5: Stir in 1 tsp jaggery and cook uncovered for 1 minute. Finish with ⅓ oz fresh coriander.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 80 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 9 g
- Fat
- 5 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does dudhi nu shaak take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of black mustard seeds (rai)?
- Cumin seeds, same amount (different flavour, same crackle).
- What can I use instead of cumin seeds?
- Ground cumin, three quarters of the amount (add it with the other ground spices, not to hot oil first).
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