“Karathe’-Keerlu ghalnu Gashi/ Bitter Gourd- Bamboo Shoots Curry” … A delicious curry from Konkani Saraswat Cuisine that tastes delicious when served with rice … Yummilicious ….
** Gashi as you all know is a simple dish from Konkani Saraswat Cusine prepared with simple masala and that is seasoned usually with karbevu /curry leves and sasam /mustard seeds. However in some parts of Karnataka some konkani’s also prepare gashi seasoned with garlic or onions. But in South Kanara district, mainly Mangalore it is usually not so. I have included a lot of gashi curries with all types of seasoning so will not repeat about the origins or details again here. I am sharing a common link to all the gashi posted in my blog at the bottom of this recipe, you can just go through the link for more information and many more lovely recipes, which I hope you will try out and relish with your family and friends. We GSB Konkani’s usually relish our dishes with rice as that is our staple diet in almost every home, though with changing times many have changed over to rice, but in my home we simply love the curry served hot with either plain rice or ukde sheetHa ie red boiled rice.
** This gashi is prepared with karathe’ / bitter gourd and keerlu/ Bamboo shoots. The same curry can be seasoned with garlic too, however I prepared it on the auspicious festive occasion of “Sutta Punnav” a yearly ritual of changing of jannavi/sacred thread worn by male members of the family. New clothes are also purchased and worn on this day after Pooja and the Naivedyam offering of full meal is offered to God which has to be No Onion-No Garlic. For this curry, I have used brined keerlu / Bamboo shoots, though fresh ones have just come in the market and are available in plenty. I wanted to finish off the brined stock before stocking up on new ones. You can use any keerlu, it does not matter, and the recipe remains same without much difference. Do try out various dishes from the Blog using the search option and enjoy with your family and friends. Do keep a keen watch on my blog for many more GSB Konkani Saraswat dishes, which I will be adding on as and when prepared.
** Here is the Recipe for “Karathe’-Keerlu ghalnu Gashi/ Bitter Gourd- Bamboo Shoots Curry”... My Style …
** Wash the Karathe’/Bitter Gourd well, I have used two large sized light green colored ones. The lighter colored bitter gourds are supposed to be less bitter in taste and whenever I find them in the market, I do make it a point to purchase the same. Slice off the edge portion of the gourd and cut them into rings of about ¼ inch thick slices. Again wash them in water, drain and Keep them aside.
** Wash and add in 8-10, 2.5 inch length x 1 inch width pieces of Brined or fresh Bamboo shoots / Keerlu in a pressure cooker add in a cup of water and pressure cook to 2-3 whistles on medium heat. Let the pressure in the cooker drop on its own. Once you are able to remove the pressure cooker lid remove and add in the sliced and kept bitter gourd on top of the gourds and cover the lid. Pressure cook all once again to just one whistle and remove from heat, let cool, and when you are able to open the lid do so, and add the contents into a stainless steel cooking vessel.
** Note : I used brined Keerlu / Bamboo shoots though fresh ones are in season now, as I wanted to finish off my brined stock so that I can store the new ones. You can use brined (mitta ghallele keerlu) or fresh one’s as per your availability. In case you are using brined ones, it is best to soak the required number of keerlu overnight in plenty of water and change the water once or twice in between so that the extra salt in it get dissolved into the water and it becomes less salty. For the new ones too soak it in water to remove the strong smell it has.
** Masala to be Ground : Add 1 heaped cup of freshly grated Coconut/ Soyi into a mixer grinder along with 8-10 Kashmiri Red chillies or Byadgi Chillies, a small marble sized ball of Tamarind/ (Chinchama/ Imly) and grind to a very fine paste. Remove and keep aside.
** Add the ground paste to the cooked karathe and keerlu in the vessel along with Salt to taste and mix well. Be careful with salt if using brined keerlu/bamboo shoots as they too contain some salt, so check before you add on more, lest it become too salty. Bring the curry to a boiling point on medium heat, stirring in between to avoid it getting burnt. Once it boil for 2-3 minutes, you can add in about 20-30 gms of grated Jaggery/Goda (Optional, I have not added) and mix well and simmer the curry for 5-10 minutes, till done.
** Note : Traditionally a little amount of jaggery/goda is added to dishes of karathe’/bitter gourd as by nature the veggie is bitter and is acidic by nature. It is believed that addition of jaggery not only cuts down the bitterness but also lower the acidic content of the same.
** Note : In many home or should I say almost all homes once the bitter gourd is sliced and done a little bit of salt is smeared on it and kept aside for 10-15 minutes and then the water is squeezed out to remove excess bitterness. In my home I do not follow that method, neither did my mother do it. My father being diabetic used to have the bitter gourds as it is and we children I guess just followed suit. You may do so if desired. But trust me following that method removes the medicinal properties from the bitter gourds and it is always better to have them as offered to us by nature as I strongly believe nature is the best judge.
** For Tempering/Seasoning : Heat 1 tblsp of Oil in a small pan, when hot add in 1 tsp of Mustard seeds (Sasam/Rai) and when they begin to splutter add in about 10-12 fresh Curry Leaves (Karbevu/Kadipatta), fry for a minute, remove and pour it over the curry, cover and keep this aside for a good 20 minutes, for the flavors to seep in.
** “Karathe’-Keerlu ghalnu Gashi/ Bitter Gourd- Bamboo Shoots Curry” is done and ready to be served. This dish is best served with rice for lunch or dinner. We Konkani's love to relish the same with Red Boiled rice / Ukde SheetHa. However, you can relish the same with roti/ paratha in which case keep the curry slightly thicker in texture. I served this with many other dishes on the festive occasion and it was simply loved by all. Do try out this recipe and enjoy with your family and friends, you can also serve it with mildly flavored rice / pulav too, tastes awesome.
** You can check out the details about preparation of “Tender Bamboo Shoots/Keerlu” in the link provided below ….
** There are many more delicious “Gashi” dishes in the blog. I am sharing a common link to the same here below, you can check out and try out those that appeal to you and your family ….
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