• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

My Cooking Journey logo

  • Home
  • Recipes
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • Recipes
×

Home » Homemade Spice and Masala Powders » Pavakkai Podi | Bitter Gourd Podi | Spiced Bitter Gourd Powder

Published: Jan 27, 2014 · Modified: Apr 5, 2020 by Sandhya Ramakrishnan · This post may contain affiliate links

Pavakkai Podi | Bitter Gourd Podi | Spiced Bitter Gourd Powder

Pavakkai Podi
Coming from a South Indian background, podi’s are a must have in the kitchen. These are such a life saver when it comes to a busy weeknight dinner. The regular podi’s that are stocked in my pantry are Thengai podi (coconut podi), Paruppu Podi (lentil Podi), karuvepillai podi (curry leaves podi) and Poondu podi (garlic podi).
 
When I saw this recipe of bitter gourd podi in Sowmya’s space and I really liked the idea. We love bitter gourd in my house and I use it very often in cooking. I make Pavakkai Pitlay, Pavakkai curry and occasionally Pavakkai varuval (chips) and Pavakkai urukkai (pickle). When I saw this recipe I wanted to try it out.
 
I would highly recommend this recipe to anyone who does not like the bitter gourd, because it sort of masks the bitterness and it tastes great with over some hot rice with a spoonful of nallennai (sesame oil).I had made just enough to eat for one day, but Sowmya had mentioned that this could be stored for up to 10 days.
Pavakkai Podi
Preparation time – 15 mins plus about 30 minutes to dry out the bitter gourd
Cooking time – 40 minutes
Difficulty level – easy

Ingredients to make Pavakkai Podi – To serve 4-6

  • Pavakkai / Bitter gourd – 3
  • Yogurt – 2 tbsp
  • Mustard seeds – ½ tsp
  • Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
  • Oil – 1 tbsp
  • Salt – to taste
  • Asafetida – ¼ tsp

To dry roast and grind together –

  • Kadalai paruppu / Channa dal – 1 tbsp
  • Ullutham paruppu/ urad dal – 2 tbsp
  • Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
  • Coriander seeds – 1 tsp
  • Red chili – 3
  • Tamarind – a small lime size
Pavakkai Podi

Procedure to make Pavakkai Podi –

  • Wash the bitter gourd and then slice them vertically. Remove the thick fibrous part in the middle and then grate the bitter gourd in a grater. Now squeeze the grated bitter gourd and spread over a paper towel or kitchen towel for about 10 minutes.
  • Transfer the bitter gourd to a bowl and mix it with the yogurt. Keep it aside for about 30 minutes. This helps to remove the bitterness from the vegetable. After 30 minutes, squeeze out the bitter gourd and keep it aside.
Pavakkai Podi
  • In the meantime, dry roast all the ingredients mentioned above and then grind it into a powder once they cool down.
Pavakkai Podi
  • In a pan, heat the oil and add the mustard seeds. Now add the turmeric powder and asafetida and fry it for about 20 seconds. Then add the squeezed bitter gourd and salt and fry it in low flame until the bitter gourds are golden brown and cooked. This takes a good 20 minutes. Make sure you fry it in low flame otherwise you might burn the vegetable.
Pavakkai Podi
  • Add the ground powder to the cooked bitter gourd and mix well. Let it fry for about 2 minutes in low flame and then take it off the flame.
Pavakkai Podi %%
  • Let it cool entirely and then store in an airtight container.
  • It tastes great when mixed with hot rice and sesame oil and served with More kuzhambu or any kootu!
Pavakkai Podi
Post Views: 683
Previous Post: « Ver Kadalai Chutney | Peanut Chutney (version 2)
Next Post: Baked Vegetable Pasta Recipe »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Sandhya

I am Sandhya Ramakrishnan, author, recipe developer and photographer in this journey! 'My Cooking Journey' is all about family friendly Vegetarian and Vegan recipes from around the World with focus on Indian cuisine.

Learn More about me →

Popular Posts

  • Gozleme | Turkish Spinach and Feta Flatbread
  • Air Fryer Arancini | Italian Rice Balls
  • Aish Baladi | Vegan Egyptian Flatbread
  • Saag Aloo | Vegan Spinach And Potato Curry
  • Boulanee Katchalu | Afghani Bolani | Stuffed Flatbread
  • Xian Bing | Chinese Stuffed Pancake - Vegetarian
  • Norwegian Crisp Bread | Knekkebrød
  • Spicy Roasted Makhana | Roasted Foxnut

Street Foods

  • Koshari | Kushari - Egyptian Street Food
  • Esquites | Creamy Mexican Street Corn Salad
  • Churumuri | Beach Style Masala Pori
  • Indo Chinese Vegetable Fried Rice

Sign Up for Newsletter

Copyright © 2021 · MyCookingJourney LLC
Privacy Policy

Sign Up to Newsletter

We'll keep you in the loop with our latest news and new content that we add at MyCookingJourney.com.

Enjoy the journey with us and share it with your family and friends!