Pavakkai Masala / Bittergourd Curry

One of the veggies that I've always avoided since my early days is this bitter gourd ... I totally hated them for their bitterness... Amma used to love these and she tried all her means to put this into my tummy... she even tried out deep frying them into chips...  but still I averted them all together.... I think I was in a pre-conceived notion that they could never taste pleasant... and moreover in those days, I hardly gave any thought to 'Eat Healthy, Live Healthy' .....

Even after  marriage, I hardly picked up these in the market. But he loved this veggie and when I was assigned the responsibility of his health, I started thinking on good food. It was only then I started to cook them.... This curry was adapted from Solai's Kitchen.... a wonderful blog of chettinad recipes.... I've skipped the addition of jaggery, but its highly recommended for even more tastier curry.

If you have not touched bittergourd, its time you start..... as it is not at all as biitter as it is named, and it can be made in ways to make it tasty and extract all the benefits from it...

You will need..........

Bitter gourd - 1/4 kg (chopped into roundlets)
Onion - 2 (finely chopped)
Tomato - 2 (finely chopped)
Garlic - 10 (finely chopped)
Tamarind - gooseberry size (soaked in warm water and juice extracted)
Sambhar powder - 2 tsp
Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp (chopped finely)
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Urad dhal - 1/2 tsp
Jeera - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Oil - 3 tsp

Get going..........

Heat a kadai with oil. Temper it with mustard seeds, jeera and urad dhal. Add the finely chopped onions and garlic. Saute until the onions turn transparent. Now add the bittergourd pieces. Saute in medium heat without adding water until all the pieces are almost cooked. Then add the minced tomatoes, tamarind juice, sambhar powder along with the required salt. Mix them well. Lower the fire and let it cook until everything is blended well and the oil separates. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Enjoy it warm with rice !!!!!!!!!!!!!