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    Home » Andhra » Kakarakaya Podi Kura Recipe| Bitter gourd Dry Curry

    Kakarakaya Podi Kura Recipe| Bitter gourd Dry Curry

    Published: Jan 30, 2020 · Modified: Aug 6, 2020 by Pavani · 31 Comments

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    Kakarakaya podi kura is a delicious side dish made with bitter melon. Fresh spice paste made with coriander, onions and coconut adds lot of flavor.

    Grey bowl with bitter gourd curry

    Kakarakaya aka bittergourd/ bitter melon/ karela as the name suggests has a bitter undertone. It has a cucumber/ melon like texture. It originated in India and is now widely used in most East Asian and Southeast Asian cuisines.

    I personally like bittergourd because of its taste and also because of its health benefits.

    • It is packed with nutrients - Vitamin A and C, folate, potassium etc.
    • It can help reduce blood sugar.
    • Could reduce cholesterol levels
    • May aid in weight loss

    Dry curry with bitter gourd

    The most popular way of cooking bitter melon in Andhra is to fry it in liberal amount of oil until nice and crispy. But being a little health conscious cook, I prefer to use only the required amount of oil and no more. So, I am always in the look out for healthier recipes with this veggie.

    Today's recipe is from a cookbook, Vantalu Pindivantalu by Malathi Chandur. This book was first published way back in 1974, so there were no pictures and the recipes wre written with no measurements. Everything wa s written in terms of fistfulls and a little bit more.

    So here's a recipe with the measurements I came up with. The curry ended up super tasty, do give it a try. I'm sure that the masala would taste great with other veggies too.

    Ingredients

    Grey bowl with Bittergourd

    This recipe is made with just a few pantry ingredients:

    • Fresh Bitter gourd/ bitter melon
    • Chana dal (dried split peas)
    • Coriander seeds
    • Dry red chilies
    • Onion
    • Tamarind paste
    • Dry grated coconut

    Instructions

    Skillet with oil sauteing lentil, spices and onions
    Step by step photos showing the making of spice paste

    Make the Spice Paste:

    1. Heat oil in a small saute pan and fry chana dal, coriander seeds and red chilies.
    2. Cook until dal is lightly browned and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. Remove into a bowl.
    3. To the same pan, add onions and fry until browned around the edges.
    4. Remove from the pan and let cool slightly.
    5. Take the chana dal mixture in a blender.
    6. Grind to a powder.
    7. Add tamarind paste.
    8. Add grated coconut and salt.
    9. Grind until smooth without adding water. Set aside.
    Step by step photos of the making of kakarakaya podi kura

    10. Heat oil in a saute pan, add the chopped bittergourd.

    11. Fry until it turns golden, about 8-10 minutes.

    12. Add the ground masala paste, mix well and cook for 4-5 minutes on medium-low flame.

    13. The spice paste will start of a little wet but once cooked on low flame, it will dry up and coat the veggie.

    Grey bowl with spicy bitter gourd curry

    Tips to remove bitterness in Bitter gourd:

    A lot of people love the bitter taste of bitter melon. But if you are not, then I have a couple of tricks to mellow down the bitterness:

    • Boil or microwave chopped bittergourd with sour yogurt or tamarind paste and salt until the veggie is par-cooked. Let cool for a few minutes, then squeeze the pieces to remove some of the bitterness.
    • Mix chopped raw pieces with salt and a pinch of turmeric. Set aside for as long as you can - at least 1~2 hours, up to overnight. Refrigerate if soaking for more than hours. Then squeeze the pieces.

    Kakarakaya Podi Kura (Bittergourd Dry Curry)

    Kakarakaya podi kura is a delicious side dish made with bitter melon. Fresh spice paste made with coriander, onions and coconut adds lot of flavor.
    Author: Pavani
    Print Pin Rate
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    Prep Time: 20 mins
    Cook Time: 30 mins
    Total Time: 50 mins
    Course: Side Dish
    Cuisine: andhra, Indian, south indian
    Servings: 4 serving

    Ingredients

    For Spice Paste:

    • 2 tsp Oil
    • 1 tbsp Chana Dal (Senagapappu)
    • 2 tsp Coriander seeds
    • 3 - 4 Dry red chilies
    • 1 Small Onion, chopped
    • 2 tsp Tamarind paste
    • 2 tbsp Dry grated Coconut

    For the Curry:

    • 6~8 Medium Bittergourd/ Kakarakaya, diced
    • 1 tbsp Oil
    • To taste Salt

    Instructions

    Make Masala/ Spice Paste:

    • Heat oil in a small saute pan and fry chana dal, coriander seeds and red chilies until dal is lightly browned and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. Remove into a bowl.
    • To the same pan, add onions and fry until browned around the edges. Remove from the pan and let cool slightly.
    • Grind the chana dal mixture until smooth. Add onions, tamarind paste, grated coconut and salt; grind until smooth without adding water. Set aside.

    To make the Curry:

    • [Optional] Prep the bittergourd if you want to remove the excess bitterness. See tips.
    • Heat oil in a saute pan, add the chopped bittergourd and fry until it turns golden, about 8-10 minutes.
    • Add the ground masala paste, mix well and cook for 4-5 minutes on medium-low flame.
    • The spice paste will start of a little wet but once cooked on low flame, it will dry up and coat the veggie.

    Notes

    Tips to mellow the bitterness of Kakarakaya:
    • Boil or microwave chopped bittergourd with sour yogurt or tamarind paste and salt until the veggie is par-cooked. Let cool for a few minutes, then squeeze the pieces to remove some of the bitterness.
    • Mix chopped raw pieces with salt and a pinch of turmeric. Set aside for as long as you can - at least 1~2 hours, up to overnight. Refrigerate if soaking for more than hours. Then squeeze the pieces.
    Tried this recipe?Mention @cooks_hideout or tag #cookshideout!

    How to Serve:

    This dry curry is great to serve as a side dish to rice and dal. Here are a few dishes that would go great with this curry:

    • Mamidikaya Pappu (Mango dal)
    • Parippu | Kerala Style Dal
    • Tangy Amti Dal
    • Mixed Dal Sambar with Onion & Radish
    Kakarakaya Podi kura

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Usha Rao

      September 13, 2013 at 11:25 am

      Bookmarking the recipe. Will try it v soon.

      Reply
    2. preeti garg

      September 13, 2013 at 6:34 pm

      Yummy And delicious

      Reply
    3. Priya Suresh

      September 13, 2013 at 6:53 pm

      Seriously even i got the famous meenatchi ammal cookbook from a old store too, a real treasure. Dry curry looks fabulous, i can have it happily with some curd rice.

      Reply
    4. Manjula Bharath

      September 13, 2013 at 10:03 pm

      wow bitter gourd dry curry looks so delicious dear 🙂 love the addition of coconut in it 🙂

      Reply
    5. Janani

      September 13, 2013 at 10:17 pm

      I never make any dish with bittergourd but this makes me think to try it out nice one.

      Reply
    6. Global Tastes & Travels Inc.

      September 14, 2013 at 9:01 pm

      Bitter gourd is another veggie I don;t like but my Mom loves it - will def try this one for her

      Reply
    7. Global Tastes & Travels Inc.

      September 14, 2013 at 9:01 pm

      Bitter gourd is another veggie I don;t like but my Mom loves it - will def try this one for her

      Reply
    8. Sandhya Karandikar

      September 15, 2013 at 12:42 pm

      One more wonderful Bitter Gourd recipe for me to try. Your bowls and mats is very beautiful too.

      Reply
    9. PJ

      September 16, 2013 at 3:12 am

      I love to collect such age old recipe books even though there are no pics. It is indeed a treasure na! And your curry looks yum and you know what a bittergourd lover will do right!!

      Reply
    10. Sapana Behl

      September 16, 2013 at 12:53 pm

      Bitter gourd is my fav , will try this curry ! Lovely presentation !!

      Reply
    11. Gayathri's Cook Spot

      September 17, 2013 at 5:23 am

      The old book shops are the best places to search for cookbooks. The curry looks divine...

      Reply
    12. Srivalli

      September 17, 2013 at 6:25 am

      Looks amazing pavani...my husband and mil love this vegetable..will surely make for them...getting such gem of a book is a real treasure right..wonder if these books are still in publication..

      Reply
    13. Harini-Jaya Rupanagudi

      September 17, 2013 at 8:51 pm

      Good one, Pavani..

      Reply
    14. Nivedhanams Sowmya

      September 19, 2013 at 11:39 am

      curry is looking super delicious!!Sowmya

      Reply
    15. Hari Chandana P

      September 19, 2013 at 5:36 pm

      Aahaa.. chala bagundi.. yummy 🙂

      Reply
    16. Sreevalli E

      September 20, 2013 at 3:26 am

      Wow.. Yummy.. One of my favorite dishes.. My mom makes it the same way & I love it..

      Reply
    17. veena krishnakumar

      September 24, 2013 at 1:26 pm

      I am somehow reluctant to try any bittergourd dish...Think i would start with this...looks very nice

      Reply
    18. Sandhya Ramakrishnan

      September 26, 2013 at 3:17 am

      I love bitter gourd and this sounds delicious!

      Reply
    19. Archana Potdar

      October 05, 2013 at 3:54 pm

      I love bitter gourds and thisone is what I loved .So much that the lone bitter gourd is getting some special treatment tomorrow.

      Reply
    20. michael villena

      October 16, 2013 at 12:52 pm

      Nice article to read here. Please do visit this site related to your topic. Thanks (o'_'o)http://shitifujon.blogspot.com/2013/09/wild-bitter-gourd-in-kalinga.html

      Reply
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