Bottlegourd Soup
This Bottlegourd Soup is a sweet-sour lentil soup (sorakaya pulusu) that goes very well with rice. This simple and easy vegetarian soup is popular in Andhra Pradesh, India. The lentils (toor dal/red gram) and bottlegourd (lauki) make this a wholesome and nutritious accompaniment for rice.
Leave out the onions if you want.
Servings: 4
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 cups bottlegourd, peeled and cut into small cubes
- 3/4 cup onion, cut into small cubes
- 3/4 cup toor dal (red gram/lentil)
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/4 tsp red chilli powder
- 1/2-3/4 tsp tamarind paste
- 1 tbsp jaggery
- 1 tbsp cilantro (coriander leaves), chopped roughly
- Salt to taste
For Seasoning
- 3 tsp vegetable oil
- Asafoetida powder (hing), a pinch
- 1 1/2 tsp urad dal (split & hulled black gram)
- 1/2 tsp mustard seeds (rai)
- 1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
- 2 red chillies, broken into a couple pieces
Preparation
- Cook the toor dal in the pressure cooker with 1 1/4 cups water and a little turmeric powder for 4-5 whistles.
- In a deep saucepan, boil the bottlegourd pieces with 1/4 cup water, salt, and a little turmeric and chilli powder powder.
- When the bottlegourd is semi-cooked, add the tamarind paste and 1/2 cup water. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Remove from heat and mash and add the cooked toor dal.
- Heat oil in a small pan for the seasoning. Add hing and urad dal and fry until the dal starts to turn golden; then, add the mustard and cumin seeds. When the seeds start to pop, add the cilantro leaves and fry for a second. Pour over the bottlegourd soup and stir.
- Let the bottlegourd soup come to a boil and remove from heat.
- Garnish the bottlegourd soup with a little more cilantro, and serve hot with hot rice, ghee, and pappadums.
Category: Dals and Soups, Vegan Dals and Soups