Stir fried ivy gourd with spices, coconut and curry leaves. This is eaten with hot rice and ghee or with chapati.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 10 minutes
  • Cook time: 10 minutes
  • Total time: 20 minutes
  • Yield: 3
  • Category: Main Course
  • Cuisine: Andhra

Ingredients

  • 250 grams tindora ((ivy gourd/ dondakayalu))
  • 1 dried red chili (broken)
  • 1 sprig curry leaves ((pat dry))
  • ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds
  • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1 teaspoon channa dal ((bengal gram))
  • 1 teaspoon urad dal ((skinned black gram))
  • 2 tablespoons Oil
  • 1 to 2 garlic cloves (crushed)
  • 1 pinch hing ((asafetida, optional))
  • ⅛ teaspoon turmeric
  • ⅓ teaspoon sea salt ((more to adjust))
  • ¼ to ½ teaspoon red chili powder ((cut down for kids))
  • 2 tablespoons peanuts (roasted, skinned (optional))
  • ¾ tablespoon chana dal
  • ¾ tablespoon urad dal
  • ¾ tablespoon dried coconut (or endu kobbari)
  • ¾ tablespoon sesame seeds (nuvvulu (optional))
  • 1 dried red chili
  • 1 small garlic (clove)
  • ¾ teaspoon cumin seeds

Method

  1. Prep up the gourd: Rinse ivy gourd under running water and pat dry with a clean cloth. Chop off both the ends and discard. Either slice them to thin round slices or lengthwise to long slices. Or Alternately add to a food processor and pulse a few times (do not process). Check pics in the post.
  2. Make vepudu karam: (Omit to use coconut.) Dry roast red chili, urad dal and chana dal until golden & aromatic. Add cumin, coconut, sesame seeds and garlic. When the sesame begin to splutter, remove to a plate and cool completely. Powder this finely. Set aside. Use this only as needed and store the rest for later use.
  3. Temper: Heat a pan with oil. Add mustard, cumin, urad dal, chana dal, garlic, red chili and curry leaves. When the lentils turn golden, add hing.
  4. Make the stir fry: Add chopped dondakaya, salt and turmeric. Stir fry on a medium high heat for 3 minutes. Cover and cook on a low flame until the gourd is tender, to your liking. Keep stirring in between.
  5. Stir in the coconut or the vepudu karam & saute for 2 mins until aromatic. Add the red chili powder and roasted peanuts and stir fry for another 2 mins.
  6. Serve dondakaya fry with hot rice and ghee. It goes well as a side with rice-rasam or rice-sambar.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.