Bottle Gourd on the Menu Again

Yesterday I wrote about discovering Bottle Gourd, aka Lauki in Hindi, Sorekkai in Tamil and lots of other names in other Indian languages. The dry curry (Lauki Sabzi / Sorekkai Poriyal) was absolutely excellent in flavor, and meanwhile, I had another bottle gourd to use, so I went recipe searching again. After reading three recipes out there (here, here and here) for recipes using bottle gourd mixed in with dal, I came up with a compromise between them and made myself a stupendously flavored lunch! 

Lauki Toor Dal or Sorekkai Kootu

The new recipe I was composing was a combination of bottle gourd and "dal," or one of the split, peeled lentils or grams commonly used in Indian recipes. Two of the recipes called for chana dal (split, peeled "Bengal Gram," which actually starts out as a small brown chickpea) and another one called for moong dal (split, peeled mung beans), while one of the first two also mentioned the possibility of using toor dal (split, peeled pigeon peas). I have loved all the dal recipes I have made and eaten to date, and yet one of my favorites is toor dal / pigeon peas. I opted then to use these for the dal part of my recipe.

Another thing that came up was a new term. As it happens, I have spent some days trying to compose a table of Indian foods with their corresponding names in Hindi, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. I have run out of paper width in my table, so if I plunge into any more languages, it will need to be a new document. Once I began looking at recipes for this bottle gourd and dal style of recipe, it turned out that it seems pretty common, having found a northern, Punjabi recipe and a couple of more in southern style. Only some few ingredients would indicate region, such as coconut or Sambar Powder. One southern style from Tamil introduced the word "Kootu," which simply means an Indian stew of lentils and vegetables. 

Bottle Gourd or Lauki or Sorekkai

As there are really very few differences in these recipes, whether northern or southern Indian, I used the ingredients I liked most or had on hand, such as the Sambar Powder. Some recipes called for Garam Masala instead, and I had that also, but to date, the only use I've made of my Sambar Powder is to make Sambar. And I love it. But to find a new use for Sambar Powder was great - just as my use of Idli Powder/Idli Podi in the bottle gourd recipe I posted yesterday.

How to Pick and Use Bottle Gourd / Lauki / Sorekkai

If you have not read my post of yesterday, on the topic of Bottle Gourd, when buying, look for firmness. Too soft means the seeds are too developed. In any case, if the seed portions are soft, even with small seeds, the seed portion should be scooped out, as with cucumbers, though the texture is more like overgrown zucchini. The outer flesh should be peeled. In these two recipes of yesterday and today, small cubes of about ½-inch square are called for.

Sorakkai Kootu or Lauki Toor Dal

(Bottle Gourd and Toor Dal Stew)

Serves 2

Lauki Toor Dal or Sorekkai Kootu

½ cup toor / arhar dal (split, peeled pigeon peas)
1½ - 2 cups water, for cooking
¼ teaspoon turmeric powder OR 1 teaspoon grated fresh turmeric root
4 cups bottle gourd, peeled, cubed
2 teaspoons Sambar Powder (here)
1 teaspoon salt
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1 tablespoon cooking oil
½ teaspoon brown mustard seeds
1 dry red chili, whole
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
½ cup chopped onion
10 - 12 curry leaves
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
1 teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
1 hot green chili, minced (seeds removed for less heat)
½ teaspoon coriander seeds, crushed
½ teaspoon red chili powder (ground chilis, not the mixture used for Chili con Carne)
1 medium tomato, chopped
½ cup chopped cilantro leaves

Wash the toor dal repeatedly in fresh water, until the water runs off mostly clear. Place the dal into a large saucepan and cover with the water, starting with 1½ cups, adding more if needed to keep the mixture soupy towards the end of cooking. Bring to boil, removing foam as it forms, then add in the turmeric. Cook time should be 30 to 40 minutes. Once the lentils are mostly cooked through but still a little al dente, add in the bottle gourd cubes (first photo in series below) and soak 8 to 12 minutes more, until the bottle gourd is tender (photo 2 in series below). Add in the sambar powder and salt and stir. 

While the dal and bottle gourd are cooking, heat a skillet over medium to medium high heat and add in the mustard seeds. Once the seeds begin to crackle and sputter, quickly add in the whole dry red chili and cumin seeds, toss quickly, lower heat to medium low, then add in the onion, curry leaves, garlic, ginger and green chili (photo 1 in series below), stirring and cooking until the onions are soft and beginning to turn golden. Add in the coriander seeds and red chili powder with the chopped tomato (photo 2 in series below) and cook, stirring often, until the tomato has completely broken down, about 5 minutes (photo 3 in series below). 

Once the lentils and bottle gourd are cooked through, add in this mixture (photo 4 in series above) along with the cilantro and stir well. Serve with chapatis or other Indian flat bread.


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.