Forget the zucchini boats or even the stuffed peppers ! This is a homegrown Odia dish that is as good as the imported ones. A rich stuffing of onions, freshly grated coconut and broken cashews lend this dish a sweet and rich taste. Some folks avoid adding potatoes to the stuffing but I just cant do without it.
And moreover this is one native dish that really looks beautiful without much effort on the presentation. I mean I have been working on my food photography skills to be able to click some decent photos of the food that I so painstakingly prepare. While I do not buy the logic of making food so good that one wants to take it home instead of eating it, I want my food to look presentable to a given degree. Sadly our dishes lacks the right amount of color but make up for it with the great taste.
Preparation Time - 30 mins
Ingredients -
- 1 medium sized snake gourd (chachindra)
- 3 tsp oil
- a pinch of salt
For the stuffing -
- 2 medium sized potatoes (boiled, peeled and lightly mashed)
- 1 large onion
- 1 cup grated coconut (chopped into medium pieces)
- 1 tsp grated ginger
- 1-2 green chilis (chopped into small pieces)
- 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/3 tsp red chili powder
- 1/4 tsp coriander powder
- 2 pinch garam masala
- 2 pinch turmeric
- 2 tsp oil
- salt to taste
Preparation - Wash and peel the snake gourd. Chop into 3 inch long pieces. Hollow them out by removing the mushy insides.
Cooking - Heat 2 tsp oil in a wok. Add cumin seeds and chopped green chillis. Wait for them to start spluttering.
Follow with the grated ginger and fry for 1 minute. Add the chopped onions and fry till red on the edges.
Add all the powdered masalas and fry for 2 mins. Finally add the potatoes and stir fry for a couple of minutes till everything is nicely mixed.
Stuff this into the hollowed out snake gourd.
Heat a wok or skillet on a low flame. Add the remaining oil. Place the stuffed snake gourd pieces on the skillet and sprinkle a little salt over them. Cover with a lid. Remove the lid at regular intervals and turn them on their sides.
Let it cook on a low flame till completely done. Remove from the skillet .
Garnish with some more grated coconut and cilantro. Serve hot with white rice and dal .