Lauki Ke Gatte/ Steamed lauki kofta curry

Lauki ke gatte with layered paranthas

I buy groceries for 3 days at a time and on Friday the only thing left in my refrigerator was Lauki (Bottle Gourd). I didn’t want to make the usual lauki ki sabzi (bottle gourd gravy) or lauki soup. Stuffed bottle gourd was a bit too tedious for Friday evening. For some reason I really wanted to do lauki ke kofte curry (Bottle guard dumplings in tomato based gravy), but traditionally the koftas need deep frying which is one thing I’ve nearly brought down to zero in my kitchen and I didn’t want to start it. So I turned to the one place I know will definitely bring me something new – Google God! I didn’t need to go any further than Tarla Dalal’s website this time. I found two low oil recipes particularly interesting one was kadhi. The end result was a very light and and flavourful dish. Not heavy on spices or any vegetable other than the humble lauki/ bottle guard! 🙂

Lauki Ke Gatte

Preparation: 10 mins| Cooking: 15 minutes| Serves 3-4

For the Koftas/ dumplings

½ kg lauki/ bottle guard

2 tbsp besan/ Bengal gram flour

Salt to taste

2 tsp coriander powder

¼ tsp red chilli powder

For the Yoghurt based gravy

2 cups yoghurt

3 cups water

1 tbsp besan/ Bengal gram flour

Salt to taste

2 green chillies, chopped (optional)

½ inch ginger, chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp fenugreek seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

A pinch of asafoetida

¼ tsp turmeric powder

2 dried red chillies

2 bay leaves

½ cup chopped coriander

• Peel and grate the bottle gourd
• Squeeze out all the excess water from the grated bottle guard. Add besan and all the spices for the koftas.
• Mix all the ingredients well and divide into ~16 equal portions. Shape them into small round koftas and steam in a steamer for about 5-6 minutes. Keep aside
• In a deep bowl, beat the curd with water, 1 tbsp besan, water, turmeric and salt.
• In a non-stick wok, heat oil
• Add asafoetida, cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds. When the seeds start to crackle, add dried red chillies, bayleaf, chopped green chillies and ginger. Sauté for a minute and reduce the flame to low.
• Slowly add the yoghurt mixture on low flame. Be careful as there would be some sputtering.
• Now increase the flame to medium high and bring the yoghurt gravy to a boil while constantly stirring.

Lauki ke Gatte – step by step

• Once the gravy boils, reduce the flame and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
• Add the steamed bottle guard dumplings and cook for another 5 minutes.
• Add the chopped coriander, remove on a serving platter and serve with paranthas.

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