Kadhoo(lauki) Jha Kofta

Health Zeal says that “The bottle gourd is low in saturated fat and cholesterol yet high in dietary fibre, vitamin C, riboflavin, zinc, thiamin, iron, magnesium and manganese. It also contains moderate amount of vitamin-B complex. Its high water content makes it very cooling. Medicinally, it is used as a purgative, an antidote for certain poisons and a cure for cough. An infusion of the seeds can be drunk to cure chills and headaches ”

Yet this humble vegetable is neglected  and people consider it as a vegetable for elder generation or have a notion that this vegetable is eaten only during illness

I do agree that when kadhoo is cooked simply ,like chopped and cooked in tomato gravy,or stir fried with dry masalas,kids make faces and youngsters run away (yes u can be strict with kids to eat kadhoo, but youngsters wud definitely flee)coz, the dish don’t look appetizing to the people who are not used to the flavour of this sweetish veggie

So in these circumstances i always stick to my tried and tested method of camouflaging veggies,so that kids can’t recognise what they are eating(cheating…….yes…..but necessary to develop liking in kids for such healthy veggies)

So here is one recipe which is bit high on calorie content ,but wise ladies …you can trim off calories by baking koftas in microwave(if u have one) or shallow fry with minimum oil

This is again a recipe for dual entries …One is for dear Pooja of  My Creative ideas who is hosting an event of Bottle gourd as Vegetable of week

And another one is for sweet Sia of Monsoon spice hosting a lovely event called WBB-Summer Feast.

Sia this would not be a recipe for breakfast,but for brunch, it’s a sure relish

Ingredients:

For kofta(dumplings)

• Lauki(kadhoo)  1 medium sized
• Gramflour  2 tbspn
• Oil 2 tspn
• Salt
• A pinch of baking soda
• Turmeric powder 1/4 tspn
• Coriander powder 1 tspn
• Garam masala powder 1/2 tspn
• Cumin seeds 1 tspn
• Annardana or dried pomegranate seeds(optional) a spoon ful
• Green chillies 3-4
• Coriander leaves
• Ginger as much preffered
• Garlic 3-4 cloves(or if available use 2 tspn of chopped saayi thoom or spring onions)
• Oil for frying

For Gravy:

• Onions 2
• Tomato 1 large sized
• Green chillies 2-3
• Ginger about an inch
• Turmeric powder 1/4 tspn
• Coriander powder 1 tspn
• Garam masala powder 1/4 tspn
• Salt
• Oil 1-2 tspn
• Kitchen king powder and kasuri methi powder(strictly optional) 1/4 tspn and 1 tspn respectively

Method:

• Peel and grate lauki,rinse with water and boil in salted water for 2 minutes
• Let it cool,then squeeze out water,(you can use this water as vegetable stock for gravy) add very little salt,turmeric powder,chopped greenchillies,garlic,coriander leaves,and garam masala powder. Taste and adjust the seasoning
• Then add two heaped tablespoons of gram flour(besan),one spoon of oil,a pinch of baking soda ,cumin seeds and mix properly
• Grease palms of your hands and take a small portion of this mixture and make a round or oval shape
• Fry it properly on medium flame in hot oil,till crisp brown.Repeat the procedure for rest of mixture(If koftas tend to break,then either oil is not properly hot or you need to add some  more amount of besan)
• For gravy,fry chopped onions in little amount of oil, till brown
• Add grinded tomato,green chillies,ginger and turmeric powder,coriander powder ,garam masala powder,kitchen king and kasuri methi  and fry till thick paste is obtained .Alternatively one can fry the onions ,then grind them to attain a smooth gravy
• Add salt and little water to achieve gravy like consistency .Let it boil for few minutes and simmer it till the rawness of masalas is gone(if using pressure cooker wait for 4 whistles)
• While serving ,place few koftas in bowl,pour  hot gravy over it and garnish it with coriander leaves Never boil the koftas in gravy,as they are very soft and would crumble and get mashed easily
• Tastes best with phulkas or Rotis