Ridge gourd /Peerkankai Peel Chutney

Whenever we cook recipe with ridge gourd, we simply make utilize the inside white flesh and discard the tough outer peel. Here after remember to preserve the outer thick green peels to make some delicious pachadi out of it. I mean prepare curry as well as chutney with ridge gourd. It’s so delicious that sometimes I eat along with plain white rice and little bit of curd! Its heaven!! It was such awesome chutney with a wonderful aroma... Low Cholesterol and high in dietary fiber, Vitamin C and essential minerals, excellent cooling effect to the body, Great for weight loss being low on saturated fat... Usually these edges are discarded when this vegetable is used. This chutney is made of these skins. It gets its very nice taste from the ghee and also from the cumin seeds. The ridge gourd is commonly available in the Southern parts of India through the year. Known as peerkankai, butter squash , this vegetable is known  for its  ability  to lower cholesterol , has high  content  of dietary fiber  and beta carotene  and  its juice  is an effective  cure  for jaundice.

Prep time     :15  mins              Cook time:10 mins               Serves:2

Cuisine: Indian,Konkani recipes

Ingredients	Quantity
Ridge gourd peels	1 cup
Onion	1 large(Optional)
Green chilies	2 no’s
Grated coconut	1/4 cup
Garlic	3 cloves
Ginger	1”
Channa dal	1 tbsp.
Urad dal	1 ½ tbsp.
Tamarind	Small ball size
Cilantro	Few sprigs
Salt	To taste
Oil	1 tbsp.

 To temper

Mustard seeds	1tsp
Cumin seeds	½ tsp.
Urad dal	2 tbsp.
Curry leaves	Few sprigs
Hing	¼

 Method

1. Heat oil in a fry pan. Fry chopped ridge gourd peels till turns tender and add coconut pieces along with it.Now transfer to the plate to cool.Heat the oil in a flat nonstick pan / kadhai and wait till it becomes warm enough. Fry the sliced onions, ginger, garlic and green chillies separately one by one. Fry till they become dark in color with stirring so as not to burn them.2. Now in the same pan add chana dal, urad dal Roast until golden and aromatic. Grind the ridge gourd peels along with the other roasted ingredients and pulse again until smooth.(do not add water, as if needed).3.Now transfer the ground pachadi to a serving bowl. Meanwhile heat a pan with 2 tsp of oil to prepare seasoning.Add mustard, followed by cumin, urad dal,curry leaves, asefotida. Pour this seasoning over the pachadi and mix well.4. Serve this appetizing pachadi with hot rice and dollop of ghee with papad. 5.  Enjoy the simple and yummy lunch on a busy weekdays. This chutney goes well with dosa, chapatti, idlis, and rice.

Notes

Do not add too much water while grinding the chutney. Add water as needed only when to serve with idly / dosa like any breakfast recipes. For mixing with rice, it should be solid inconsistency.

Benefites

Is is high in dietary fiber and excellent cooling agent. Thus suitable for good health and weight management. It is used for much skin treatment. And also having a glass of ridge gourd juice frequently helps to boost the immune system. The most common use of the ridge gourd fruit is to be cooked as a vegetable. It is a very nutritive plant and has a bitter taste if taken raw. Ridge gourd acts as an appetizer. The ridge gourd is a healthy diet and contains a good amount of fiber, vitamins and minerals including Vitamin B2, Vitamin C, carotene, niacin, calcium, phosphorus, iron ad small quantities of iodine and fluorine. Ridge gourd has a sweet taste, cooling in nature and easy to digest. They form a low calorie diet, which is considered good for diabetes. The soft pulp and skin of ridge gourd both are used in making various recipes, especially in South Indian cuisine. Chutneys made from the pulp and the peel of ridge gourd is known for their enormous health benefits...