“Pagila- Chana Dal Fry (Kantola/ Spine Gourd- Bengal Gram Dal Fry)” … when pagila is in season all one can think of is those crisp fried podi/ fries to be relished which is one of the best dish with pagila out of all … trying out a few more dishes using pagila other than regular one’s and here is a simple one prepared with chana dal that tastes great served with rice dishes … Yummilicious ….
** Come monsoon and there are many seasonal veggies that are available like pagila (spine gourd/ kantola), keerlu (bamboo shoots), ambado (hogplum), bikkanda (jackfruit seeds) to name a few and I do try to make it a point to bring them all home to prepare and relish the traditional dishes we grew up relishing.
** Each region has their own delicacy and due to easy access via network these day we get access to many recipes and I love to try out a few that which appeals to me. Off course I do go through them and try them out in my own way giving them that amchi touch which is what we in my home love the most amongst dishes.
** I am always reluctant to try dal dishes using chana dal as it does not suit much to my health. However, ambado/ vadas are our favorite, so are sanna polo which I always prepare using chana dal which brings out best results. Today for a change decided to try out pagila with chana dal spiced the way we like at home.
** Surprisingly it turned out great and for those who do not want to use chana dal you can prepare it with tuvar/ masoor dal too which is going to be followed by me soon. I served it with ghee rice which I had already decided upon and finished preparing, however I am sure it will taste great if served with steamed rice or roti too.
** Change is the necessity of life and traditions are something that must be followed too. So while we keep up with our traditions we can definitely try to accommodate to a few others too and enjoy the same. After all who knows, while doing so we may come across something that our family will love to have, so try it and enjoy life.
** Here is my simple recipe for “Pagila- Chana Dal Fry (Kantola/ Spine Gourd- Bengal Gram Dal Fry)” … my style …
** Ingredients :
Pagila/ Spine Gourd/ Kantola : 500 gms
Chana Dal/ Bengal Gram Dal : 1 cup
Haldi/ Turmeric Powder : ½ tsp
Garlic/ Losun/ Lehsun: 6-8
Green Chillies/ Tarni Mirsanga/ Hari Mirchi : 5-6
Onion/ Piyavu/ Kanda : 1 large sized
Ginger/ Adrak/ Alle’ : ½ inch grated
Hing/ Asafoetida Powder : ½ tsp
Coriander/ Dhania/ Kothimbir Powder : 1 tsp
Cumin/ Jeera Powder : ½ tsp
Kashmiri Mirchi Powder/ Mirsange Pitti/ Mirchi Tikkat : 2-3 tsp
Dried Kokum Petals : 3-4
Salt/ Namak/ Meeta : to taste
Oil/ Tel/ Tela : 2-3 tblsp
** For Tempering/ Seasoning/ Tadka/ Pannaka :
Ghee/ Toop : 1 tblsp
Mustard Seeds/ Sasam/ Rai : 1 tsp
Curry Leaves/ Karbevu/ Kadipatta : 8-10
Dry Red Chillies/ Sukki Mirsanga/ Sukka Mirchi : 1-2
** Wash and soak chana dal in plenty of water for one hour, drain, wash properly and then add into pressure cooker pan along with haldi powder and 1.5 cups of water. Pressure cook on medium heat for 2-3 whistles/ till done. Remove, let pressure fall on its own, then churn to even texture and keep aside ready.
** Wash properly about pagila/ kantola/ spine gourd well, as sometimes there is dirt sticking to it on its rough textured skin. Then trim off the stem, both edge portions and cut into four pieces lengthwise. Add into a pan along with little water just enough to cook (about 1 cup), a pinch of salt and cook till 80% done.
** Note : There are different varieties and sizes of pagila/ spine gourd available as per the region. It is best to use tender small sized ones, though you may use any that are available in your vicinity. The size of cut pieces depends upon the size of pagila, so do so accordingly. Do check out the picture of pagila shared.
** Heat oil, add garlic finely chopped and fry till light brown, then add finely chopped green chilies, onion also finely chopped and further fry till evenly browned. Add in grated ginger, hing, fry a bit and then add dhania pd, jeera pd, kashmiri red chilly pd and fry all together for a few minutes on low heat to avoid it getting burnt.
** Add in the cooked pagila, churned and kept chana dal, kokum petals, salt to taste and mix well adding adequate amount of water required. Do not add excess water as we need to keep the dal thick like curry texture. Let the dal simmer well to cook the pagila to 100% done, then remove from fire and keep it aside covered.
** For Tempering/ Seasoning/ Tadka/ Pannaka : Heat ghee, when hot lower the heat, add sasam when it begins to splutter add curry leaves, dry red chillies cut to pieces fry for few seconds and then pour over the curry and mix well. Cover and let rest for 15- 20 minutes for the flavours to be well infused with the curry.
** “Pagila- Chana Dal Fry (Kantola/ Spine Gourd- Bengal Gram Dal Fry)” is done and ready to be served. I served it with ghee rice and it was an awesome combo and we loved it very much. However, I am sure it will taste great if served with any mildly spiced rice dishes or even plain steamed rice. I guess it will taste great served with roti/ parathas too in which see case do keep the texture of the dish thick.
** In GSB Konkani Saraswat Cuisine the most loved dish of Pagila/ Spine Gourd is podi/ fries and in curries it is often added to gajbaje a dish prepared with assorted monsoon veggies. I have tried dishes like sukke, sagle, ambat, sasam, kismuri, adgai (pickle), upkari and many more of my own versions which you find in plenty in the Blog. They all taste awesome, do try them out and enjoy with your family and friends.
** I am sharing a common link to all “Pagila/ Spine Gourd” dishes below, you may browse through and try them out in leisure ….
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