Published By: Rohit Chatterjee

Sabzi of the Day - The Mighty Gourd: Lauki Recipes You’ll Actually Love

One of the best weight loss foods, lauki is comprised of nearly 96 per cent water

Bottle gourd, or calabash, also known as lauki, is a versatile vegetable widely used in Indian kitchens. It can be used to produce savoury dishes as well as desserts. Not to forget, despite being filled with 96 per cent water, it still provides essential nutrients such as iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, fibre, etc. Therefore, it is often consumed throughout the year, but especially during the summer season, to help with hydration.

However, given how often it is consumed, it is also one of the most monotonous vegetables in Indian households. Therefore, to make sure you don’t hit boredom with lauki, we have compiled some unique dishes you can prepare with bottle gourd.

Lauki Kofta

Cooking time: 60 minutes

Ingredients

For kofta

  • Grated lauki
  • Gram flour (besan)
  • Garam masala
  • Red chilli powder
  • Chopped green chilli
  • Salt
  • Oil

For gravy

  • Chopped tomatoes
  • Chopped onions
  • Chopped green chillies
  • Chopped ginger
  • Chopped garlic
  • Cashews
  • Milk cream

Recipe

  • Start by mixing the grated lauki with all the masalas, besan, and salt.
  • Do not add too much water so that the knead remains tight.
  • Make balls of the lauki mix and deep fry them into pakodas.
  • For the gravy, take a blender and mix all the ingredients together to create a smooth paste.
  • Once done, heat the oil and pour the paste.
  • Let it simmer on low heat and cook well. Once cooked, add the fried lauki balls.
  • End by drizzling milk cream over the gravy to give a creamy texture.

 

(Credit- Instagram/@chefkunal)

Lauki halwa

Cooking time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

  • Grated lauki
  • Full-fat milk
  • Sugar or khaand
  • Cardamom
  • Roasted cashew
  • Roasted almond
  • Pistachio
  • Ghee

Recipe

  • Start by boiling the milk on a low flame.
  • Let it simmer for 30 minutes so that it reduces and gives a creamy consistency.
  • In a separate pan, add a dollop of ghee and let it melt.
  • Add the grated lauki and keep frying it until the excess water is released and dried up.
  • Go back to the milk and add a few cardamom pods and sugar or khaand as per your requirement.
  • Add the fried lauki and keep stirring till you get the consistency right.
  • Garnish the sweet dish by adding roasted almonds, cashews, and pistachios.

 

(Credit- Instagram/@ranveer.brar)

Lauki barfi

Cooking time: 60 minutes

Ingredients

  • Grated lauki
  • Full-fat milk
  • Khoya
  • Sugar or khaand
  • Cardamom powder
  • Crushed roasted almond
  • Crushed roasted cashew
  • Crushed roasted pistachio
  • Ghee
  • Parchment paper

Recipe

  • Begin by grating the bottle gourd. Once done, press it with hands as much as possible to get its water released. The drier the bottle gourd, the better it is.
  • In a pan, heat ghee and stir-fry the bottle on the ground till it turns golden brown.
  • Add the full-fat milk and let it simmer for five minutes on low heat.
  • Follow by adding the khoya and continue stirring till you reach an extremely tight consistency like a batter.
  • Add sugar or khaand and sprinkle cardamom powder.
  • Finally, add all the dry fruits and mix them well.
  • Turn the gas off and let the mixture cool done.
  • Take a tray, lay a parchment paper, and pour the batter in it.
  • Refrigerate until the batter turns hard.
  • Cut the hardened batter into pieces, and lauki barfi is ready.

 

(Credit- Instagram/@beautifulmindsoul05)

You see, having lauki as a vegetable in lunch with rice and dal is not always necessary. One can turn it into a gourmet dish or dessert and enjoy it with their loved ones.