Bitter-Gourd with Ripe Mango- an Ayurvedic curry

Weekend Breakfast Blogging Update

1. WBB is on its 4th Fortnight. I shall be travelling from 30th August and Pavani from Cook's Hideout has very kindly volunteered to take over hosting for WBB # 4.
2. Please send her your entries by 30th August at cookshideout AT gmail DOT com with the title WBB# 4. The entries that I have already received, shall be forwarded to her. I request you to please spread the word in your post, that this time, it's Pavani who is doing the hosting.
3. I've also got this feedback, that the fortnightly event is getting a bit confusing for people to time their entries. I'm thinking about making it a monthly event. Probably next time onwards, we shall have themes to work on breakfast For eg: Baked goodies, Cooking with fruit, From other cultures and so on. I can already think of so many! More on this after the WBB # 4 round up, when I'm back from my trip...

Blogger postcards of the world update

I'm so happy that Alison of Someone's in the Kitchen, AR, USA, finally received my postcard. This has reinstated part of my faith in the postal system. And I received a surprise post-card from Meeta, one of my dear blog-buddies. But she is not my BPW partner, so I am still awaiting my postcard from whoever-is-my-partner.

Apples from Weimar

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Aurvedic Bitter-gourd Mango curry

From an Ayurvedic standpoint, food can be categorised into the following six basic flavours. Sweet, sour, salty, bitter, punget and astringent. It is also recommended that our daily diet be a mix of all six flavours, for that perfect physical as well as psychological balance. This curry is my attempt to blend as many of the six flavours into one dish.

Also, I recently read this article on how curry can prevent cancer published in the LA times. Turmeric and onions have long been known for their anti-inflammatory properties. So here's to curry power!

Ingredients

2 large bitter-gourds (Washed thoroughly, sliced)
2 medium sized tomatoes
1 large onion-sliced
1 large ripe mango-roughly chopped

4 large garlic cloves- finely chopped
1/2 tsp ginger-finely chopped
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp curry powder / garam masala
1 sprig of curry leaves

1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 Tbsp oil

Salt to taste

Ayurvedic Curry

Method

1. Place the sliced onions and bitter gourds with 1/4 cup of water, a pinch of salt and turmeric powder in a microwave safe bowl with a lid (with small vent for steam). Nuke for 5-6 minutes at HIGH. Check if it is tender at the end of 6 minutes. If not, microwave for some more time until bitter gourd slices are soft.

2. Heat the oil in a pan. Once the oil is hot enough, pop the cumin seeds, mustard seeds and curry leaves. Add the ginger and garlic, saute for 30 seconds.

3. Add the microwave cooked bitter gourds-onions to the pan. Put in the chopped tomatoes, chopped ripe mango, curry powder, salt, red chilli powder. Saute them together well and cover the pan. Let this simmer for 5-7 minutes for all the flavours to come together.

4. Check for salt and take the curry off the flame. Squeeze some fresh lemon juice on the top and serve hot with Phulkas or a simple khichdi.

Ayurvedic flavours

Sweet is mainly carbohydrates, dairy products. Here, it is from the chapatis and ripe-mango

Sour is from tomatoes and lemon juice

Salty is from salt

Pungent is from the onions, ginger, garlic, red chilli powder and curry powder

Bitter is from Bitter Gourd

Except for the 'Astringent' flavour which is imparted by tart fruits, beans and legumes, this curry contains all the basic flavours in it.

Taste-wise

The amalgamation of 5 different flavours to form one is something that one must experience to understand. After all the birthday partying the previous day, this curry with Phulkas as a simple dinner felt totally divine.

Note

• This bitter-gourd recipe is perfect for diabetics and low-carb dieters.
• If you don't have a microwave, then you may pressure cook the gourd and onions for one whistle.
• I sometimes soak the sliced bitter-gourds in sour buttermilk overnight to remove the extra bitterness. But since, this was a conscious effort to make a healthy curry, I haven't taken that extra effort.

Check out Vaishali's recipe using bitter gourds and raw mangoes here.

Tags:

WBB, Bitter gourd, Indian curry, diabetic recipes, mango, ayurvedic food, cooking with fruits