Turai Ke Chilke Ki Chutney (Chutney From Peels Of Ridged Gourd)

Turai chilke ki chutney

Turai/tori are of two types one with smooth skin another with ridges, Ridged gourd and sponge gourd. In Maharashtra ridged gourd is called Dondka and sponge gourd as Ghosali.

Whenever I make the vegetable of ridged gourd, my mind is flooded with the memories of my house help Sharda Jagtap. She used to carefully remove the ridges of gourd which are having slightly tough string like fibers. Then she used to peel the gourd. She would chop the gourd for my cooking it and pack the soft peels to take home. This exercise was repeated every time I had ridged gourd for meal.

My curiosity took over me and one day I asked her what she does of the peels. Chutney she said. I was flummoxed as I had never had Turai ke Chilke ki chutney. One day, she got a little for me to taste. I loved it. The routine of her taking the peels and bringing little chutney for me continued, as it was used as main course by her, to be had with bhakri (Jowar roti).

Today I share this recipe so lovingly taught by Sharda to me.

Preparation Time: 10 Minutes

Cooking Time: 7-8 minutes

Servings: 5-6 small helpings

Ingredients For Making Turai Ke Chilke Ki Chutney:

• 100 gm Turai ke Chilke (Soft peel of Ridged Gourd) I got this amount from 500 gm of Ridged Gourd.
• 50 gm  Garlic or 15-20 medium size pods of garlic
• 8-10 Green Chilies / to taste
• 1 teaspoon cooking oil
• Salt to taste

Direction For Making Turai Ke Chilke Ki Chutney:

• Wash and towel dry Ridged Gourd.
• Remove the ridges with the help of a peeler. Discard them.

Ridges to be discarded

• Peel the gourd like any other vegetables are peeled with the help of the peeler. Keep the soft peels aside for use.

Soft Peels Of Ridged Gourd

• Use the peeled gourd/Turai/dondka for making savory dish for main course. https://jyotsna-pant.blogspot.com/2015/07/turai-mooli-shimla-mirch-ki-sabzi.html
• Peel garlic and keep aside.
• Check the hotness of green chilies and take the green chilies according to taste. Break them to pieces. Keep aside.
• Heat oil in a thick bottom wok/pan.
• When the oil is hot add
• Peeled garlic
• Green chili pieces and cook on low flame till garlic and chili pieces acquire slightly brown color.

Garlic and Green Chilies in oil

After 2 minutes of cooking

After 5 minutes of cooking

• Add the peels and mix nicely.

Soft peels added to Garlic and Green Chilies

• Add salt and mix. Cover and cook on low heat for 2-3 minutes with stirring two three times.

After 2 minutes of cooking

• Switch off the heat and let the contents cool in the wok. This will slow cook the peels with garlic and green chilies. The peels will have changed the color and texture maintaining the moisture in them.
• When cooled to room temperature grind the cooked mixture to a slightly course paste/ Fine paste as per liking. I prefer little course texture.

Chutney of Peels of Ridged Gourd

• Water is not required while grinding, because garlic, chili and peels have sufficient moisture.
• Remove in a bowl and add few drops of fresh lemon juice to give the tangy taste.
• Chutney is ready to be served with Stuffed paranthas / Dal-chawal / Khichadi

https://jyotsna-pant.blogspot.com/2013/01/patta-gobhi-ke-paranthe-cabbage-stuffed.html

https://jyotsna-pant.blogspot.com/2013/05/aloo-parantha-potato-stuffed-pan-fried.html
https://jyotsna-pant.blogspot.com/2012/12/mooli-ka-parantha-radish-stuffed-pan.html

Tips:

• Always remove the ridges before peeling. The ridges are stringy and will give unpalatable texture to chutney.
• Always check the hotness of the chili (Green/red/dry/fresh/powder) before use. The hotness varies from one variety to other.

Suggested Variations:

• 3-4 Teaspoons coursely ground roasted groundnut can be added to give crunchy texrure.