This versatile veggie yellow cucumber plays amazing role in every households of Udupi. Because be it summer, winter or monsoon you’ll find this wonderful cucumber in all the vegetable markets. Given a chance to explain it’s versatility, you can turn the vegetable in to ‘N’ number of distinctly tasting dishes. The recipe in which you put in this Mangalore cucumber, it turns out magical, unique and amazing for sure. From the milky white kernels of yellow cucumber to it’s skin to seeds, everything is non-disposable. Meaning, if you are a person who never bothers wasting such gifts of nature then I would definitely recommend Mangalore cucumber. The colorful skin can find their way in to yummy chutney. And the seeds in to rasam or tambli. The most usable part that is it’s kernel can take every other curry variety. So today, let me introduce you to this roasted cucumber curry.
Roasted Mangalore cucumber curry is distinct the way it is cut in to pieces. Because the key idea here is to roast or char the skin of veggie so that the flavor overpowers. So the cutting process goes like this.
Take the cucumber, cut it in to half vertically and scoop out the seeds. Make the wedges which can then slit like cubes keeping them intact to skin. The slit has to be halfway because all the cubes in a wedge has to be attached to it’s skin. When this entire wedge is charred over pan, the flavors waft out smelling the house wonderfully awesome. Cooking these Mangalore cucumber wedges with tamarind extract and jaggery in thick paste of roasted spices is too yummy to devour with rice.
So next time when you buy this veggie, try this roasted cucumber curry and see your taste buds thanking you for sure.
Ingredients
- Mangalore cucumber- 1 medium sized
- Tamarind- Small lemon sized
- Jaggery powder- 3 tsp
- Salt- 1.5 tsp or to taste
- Split chickpea lentils- 1 tsp
- Split black gram lentils- 1.5 tsp
- Coriander seeds- 3 tsp
- Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp
- Fenugreek seeds- 1/2 tsp
- White sesame seeds- 1.5 tsp
- Cooking oil- 1 tsp
- Red chillies(byadagi)- 3 nos.
- Curry leaves- Few
- Fresh grated coconut- 1/2 cup
- Coconut Oil- 2 tbsp
- Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
- Curry leaves- Few
Instructions
- Soak the tamarind in warm water for about 10-15 minutes. Extract it's juice, discarding residue.
- Wash and cut the Mangalore cucumber in to half vertically. Then cut in to wedges and make slit in each of the wedges as shown below. Let the pieces doesn't separate from the skin.
- Heat a pan with oil, mustard seeds and curry leaves. As the mustard splutter, slowly add the slit wedges of Mangalore cucumber such that it's skin is in contact with pan. Let it roast in medium flame.
- While the veggie is cooking, heat another pan adding oil, both lentils, curry leaves and red chillies. Saute and roast them for few minutes. Then include coriander, cumin and fenugreek seeds. Continue sauteing till all the spices are roasted.
- Finally include the sesame seeds and saute for few more seconds and switch off. Transfer all these spices in to a mixer jar, include grated coconut too. Adding little water grind it to little coarse paste.
- Now the Mangalore cucumber pieces would have roasted to perfection with kernel turning to tender soft.
- Now, include the ground paste from above step. inlcude tamarind extract, jaggery powder and salt. Bring this to boil.
- Extremely delicious roasted Mangalore cucumber curry is ready to serve with hot steamed rice.
- This curry needs the veggie to be cut in to wedges with slits all along. So do not cube them.
- The roasting should be carried out in medium flame otherwise the veggie wouldn't char and cook perfectly.
- Do not add too much water to the curry. It needs to be thick in consistency.
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