Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Teasle Gourd (Kakrol) and Carrot Subji

There are some vegetables I dislike (bitter gourd), and some that I simply love (bhindi!). There are some I don't have any feeling for; either way it doesn't matter. The teasle gourd or kakrol is one such vegetable. I was introduced to it only after I got married. I first saw it in the sabji mandi near my house in Hyderabad, years ago. R wanted to know if I knew how to make it, and I replied in the negative. Ever since that day, whenever R buys vegetables (once in a while) he gets his favorites like Arabi, Bitter Gourd, Kakrol.


He calls it Ghee Karela. It is like a smaller version of the bitter gourd, but don't know if it is supposed to have ghee-like properties, or if it is due to the ghee-like colour on one side of the vegetable. Anyway, I have never been able to make it the way R likes it. I try something of my own, or like with this dish, ask my mother what I could possibly do to make it tasty. I really liked the result, and so did R, though he did complain that it is not what he was expecting.

To make the subji in the above picture, you will need:

Teasle Gourd - cut into cubes (deseed as much as possible) - 2 cups
Carrots - cut into cubes - 1 cup
Onions - chopped - 2
Green chilly - sliced - 1
Ginger paste - 2 tbsp
Lemon juice - 2 tbsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Red chilly powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - 1 strand
Oil - 2 tsp
Salt - to taste

Method:

  • Steam cook the teasle gourd and carrots together
  • Mix the powders, ginger paste, salt, and lemon juice into the vegetables and leave for 30 minutes
  • Heat oil in pan, splutter mustard seeds, add curry leaves and green chilly
  • Saute the onions in this pan until light brown
  • Add the vegetables and stir fry well for 5 - 10 minutes

Serve with hot rice

P.S. I would really love to get more recipes with this vegetable, and especially ones with gravy.

32 comments:

Andhra Flavors said...

hey we are calling this in telugu aakakarakaya. its a wonderful vegi.
but we cant get here:(

amna said...

thats a pretty pic of the vegetable, shreya. havent ever heard of it though.. ur pics are getting really good :) keep trying!

Indian Khana said...

Now tht's a easy and fast recipe..I have seen this veggi but never eaten and the pic looks just wonderful dear (I'm still waiting for the other pics you promised me to send !)

ST said...

This is nice and tasty veggie. We make fry of this veggie .I got another version of it. AAkakarkaya subzi sounds delicious.....Will try ur version after comming back to india as we don't get here in Paris.

Indranee Batabyal said...

Hello Shreya, thanks for your comment!I am not particularly fond of kakrol, but my mom makes nice fries and curries out of them and they are not so bad either:) However, carrot is one of my favorite veggies.

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

I have never seen this vegetable before! There is a resemblance to the bitter gourd.
Thanks for dropping by my blog.

tigerfish said...

I like bittergourd.
Those gourds (kakrol) looks like porcupine!

Jan said...

Thank you for leaving a comment on my blog, which has led me to yours - which I think is great!

Lakshmi said...

Awesome color of mixed veggies. I have not heard of T.gourd. How does it taste?

A_and_N said...

Great recipe using a distinct vegetable :) For some reason, I am not able to view the pictures.

A.

Cris said...

Hi... we have this here but I never tried it. It is so good to get to know more about Indian cooking with your blog. I'm curious about the bread/pastry on top of your blog, do you have the recipe here? Thanks!

Deepthi Shankar said...

that pic looks very tempting .. kakrol is really healthy

Shreya said...

Andhra Flavors - thanks for the Telugu word. I didn't know that:-) I am sorry to hear you don't get the vegetable there! But you can use this recipe along with Dondakkaya or Kakarkaaya also:-)

Nags - thank you so much:-) I don't know what it is called in Malayalam! Did I tell you that my daughter dropped the camera, and now I click the pictures from my digital without being able to see the LCD monitor display. I just aim and click:D I can't even view them before I decide when to stop clicking! Only after I transfer the pics to the system, I can see. But one thing, it's in macro by default now:-)

Unknown said...

yes I will go with andhra flavors we will make this as a stuffed vege and with aloo also it is a very tastey vegetable

Christo Gonzales said...

is this gourd very sharp or bitter? I think I have had it before and sadly did not like it - I deemed it an acquired taste.

Shreya said...

Priti, thanks dear. Do hope you will be able to try it out soon.

Sireesha, I hope you can make this veggie soon in India, and post the recipe. I would love to have more recipes with this one!

Indranee, please post the curry recipe of the veggie asap:-)

Aparna, this veggie is not bitter at all! Infact, personally I think it is tasteless, and depending on the cook and the recipe, it can be made tastier:-)

Tigerfish - yes, they are like porcupine, but not pointed and so doesn't hurt.

Jan - Thanks:-)

PG said...

the pictures look so very tempting! Have never tried this vegetable. Wonder if i could get them in some Asian shop?

PG said...

Forgot to mention: a nice blog you have here! Will come again!

Shreya said...

LG - Thanks, I never knew the actual names before. It does not taste bitter is all I can tell! :-)

A - thank you:-) I hope you can view the pictures soon!

Cris, hope you try out the papadum recipe

Vegetable Platter - thanks

Rekha - Next time I will try with aloo, do post if you have other recipes with this:-)

DoggyBloggy - It is ot sharp at all, infact it is very soft, thought the seeds are a menace if the vegetable gets overripe. It is not bitter at all

PG - Thanks so much:-)
I hope you get to buy the vegetable there.

Heather said...

hi! thanks for the visit about my cocktail event :) You can use any alcohol you want! Whatever you think up, I want to know :)

Uj said...

Hi Thanks for dropping by my blog. you have a nice blog.. The ghee karela that ou mentioned is called Phagil in konkani.. We make a fry out of this and it is a vaery famous item in our circle too.. I am missing this veggie here in Shanghai.. my mom makes stir fry with this veggie and also coconut based curry out of this. I wll try to replace this veggie with some thing else and let you know

Illatharasi said...

Hi Shreya, thanks for stopping by my blog... I nevr heard f tis kakrol:) let me se if I get it it here :)

As you said in my blog, chicken soup is always a remedy for cold, it has pepper too in it:

Rashmi said...

This vegetable is totally new to me.. i have not seen this in any of the grocerry shops..
where did u buy this from... is there any other name for the same veggie...

Shreya said...

Thanks, Heather:-). Uj, Illatharasi, please do post your recipe soon.

Rashmi - I bought this veggie from the roadside vegetable vendor near Chembur market area. I am not sure if it is available in Oakley? I searched on Google but could not find any other name for this vegetable.

Chibog in Chief said...

this is so delicious!! i love all kinds of veggie recipe and this one is definitely a must!!

Vibaas said...

Hi Shreya, Thanks for your comment. You have a great blog here.

Susan from Food Blogga said...

Ooh, I love being introduced to new foods. This sounds wonderful.

sangeeta said...

came here searching for a proper name of this vegetable...i know ghee karela , khekhsa n kakrol n kakode....i am going to post a recipe n will give a link to this one too....
nice blog n great recipe..

Vikis Kitchen said...

Teasle gourd seems pretty nice. must to try.

Joy said...

I found frozen kakrol at my local Indian grocer - had seen it earlier at the vegetable markets in Kolkata but had never tried it. The frozen kakrol's were really tiny, about an inch to an inch an half in length with the skins on. It was quite bitter (I am not a karela fan) and so it was disapponting. Good to know the name is Teasle Gourd - did not know that.

Anonymous said...

its called "eruma paaval"; doesn't signify anything from the name though...

Anonymous said...

eruma paaval in malayalam