Simple Bitter gourd curry | Hagalkayi Palya

Simple Bitter gourd curry | Hagalkayi Palya

Bitter gourd is the one vegetable I dreaded earlier but is very dear to me now, lol. Although it tastes extremely bitter, various studies have shown that its a highly beneficial vegetable if consumed regularly.

Being on a journey of eating better every day, my husband and I try to include a variety of vegetables and greens in our diet, and bittergourd is always on our bi-weekly grocery list. We usually eat it as a curry, either with chapatis/rotis or as a side dish with rice and plain dal/rasam.

Bitter gourd curry/stir-fry or Hagalkayi Palya(in Kannada) has a lot of flavors going in it – bitter, sweet, spicy, and tangy. However, the bitterness of the vegetable overpowers the others. So including ingredients like tamarind and jaggery helps to curb this bitterness to a certain extent and makes it so tasty.

I hope you try this recipe and enjoy!

Simple Bitter gourd curry | Hagalkayi Palya

Bitter gourd stir-fried with cumin, garlic, tamarind, jaggery, onion and spices.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: Bitter Gourd, Dry Curry, Hagalkayi Palya, Simple Bitter Gourd Recipe
Servings: 3 people
Author: Swaadista

Equipment

  • Cooking pan with lid preferably a wide bottom pan

Ingredients

  • 4 small bitter gourds
  • 4 tbsp cooking oil
  • ½ tsp cumin seeds
  • curry leaves
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • ¼ tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp kashmiri red chili powder
  • 1 ½ tsp coriander powder
  • ¼ tsp cumin powder
  • 1 small red onion thinly sliced
  • 2-3 tbsp tamarind juice
  • 1 tsp jaggery powder
  • salt to taste

Instructions

  • Slice the bitter gourd into thin pieces and remove their seeds. Soak them in water along with a pinch of salt for 10 minutes. Then drain out the water completely and squeeze out the excess water from them and keep aside.
    Bitter gourd
  • Heat oil in a cooking pan on medium heat.
  • Transfer bitter gourd slices into the pan and sautĆ© them until light brown (this may take up to 5 minutes), then remove them into a separate bowl.
  • Add cumin seeds into the same oil on low heat and allow them to sizzle.
  • Add curry leaves, minced garlic, and sautĆ© for 10 seconds.
    Cumin, curry leaves and minced garlic
  • Maintaining the heat on low, add turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, and cumin powder, sautĆ© them for another 10 seconds( ensure that the spices don’t burn) and add the tamarind pulp along with jaggery powder.
    Add spices and saute ensuring they don't burn
  • Transfer the fried bitter gourd slices into the pan, add onions plus salt, and mix together.Ā 
  • Cook this for 4-5 minutes on low heat until bitter gourd tender, while stirring continuously.Ā 
  • Turn off the heat and serve bitter gourd curry hot with chapatis/rotis or on the side with rice/quinoa – dal/rasam.

Let me know if you tried this recipe by tagging a picture of your preparation on my Instagram @swaadista and using #swaadistarecipes.

Happy cooking, happy eating!



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