Karela Fry (Hot/Swt/Sour) also known as bitter gourd

Karela has always been a hated veggie of mine. Until I tried my husbands karela fry.... his dad is diabetic so karela is a regular on their house menu. The only way I ever ate it was at Anand Restaurant in AbuDhabi, UAE. Wow that brings back so many memories. They had a Karela fry with potatoes & a tinge of jaggery which was out of this world!.. AAND hot phulkas...
I wanted to try my own version of the veggie, trying to recapture that taste. Hopefully I've suceeded.. we actually fought over who would get the last bite:)...

Ingredients:

1. 6 to 8 karelas or bitter gourds  - medium sized make sure that they are dark green.
2. Onions - 2 also medium sized
3. Ginger - Garlic Paste - 1 tbsp or less acc to taste.
4. Red Chilli Pwd - 1/2 to 1 tsp again acc to taste(if u like it hotter u could add more)
5. Turmeric Pwd - 1/2 tsp
6. Coriander Pwd - 1/2 tsp
7. Garlic Pwd - 1/2 tsp (optional)
8. Tamarind paste - 1tsp dissolved in a few tablespoons of water
9. Jaggery - 2 to 3 tablespoons crumbled
10. Tarka : Mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dal, chana dal .(equal quantities - totalling about 1 tbsp)
11. Salt - to taste
12. Oil - I use Canola oil to deep fry or shallow fry since the smoking point of the oil is very high as opposed to olive oil which I also use for cooking

Method:

• Slit the karelas in half & remove the seeds. Wash & slice into thin rounds (somewhere between potato chip & potato bajji). Soak in Salted water for 1/2 an hour. Wash the Karelas & squeeze them to get rid of excess liquid.
• Heat some oil in a deep bottomed pan or kadhai & deep fry the karelas. Remove when golden brown with a slotted spoon & place on a paper towel to drain off the excess oil.
• Put some oil in a pan & add the tarka ingredients... when the mustard starts to sputter add onions & fry till golden brown... you can allow some of the onions to get caramelized ... adds to the flavor of the dish.
• Add Ginger garlic paste & all the powders. Fry for a few seconds & add a tbsp of water to cook the masalas thoroughly. Now add the tamarind paste & let it fry for a min & add the fried karelas to the pan. Give it a good mix & let it fry for 5 to 10 mins on a medium high flame.
• Lastly add the jaggery  & let it melt into the karela. Mix & enjoy with hot rotis.... also tastes good with dal & rice.

Ravi's AWESOME Mutton Curry

My husband makes this really awesome , mouthwatering, finger-licking, mutton curry... This will be my first posting...hopefully not the last :) & I hope everyone enjoys it as much as we do!
So here goes;




Spicy Mutton Curry:(this is not for the faint of heart! You have been warned!)
Time: 1 hr 15 mins (Pan Cooked) or 45 mins (Pressure Cooker)
Serves: 6 to 8 persons
Difficulty: Moderate


Ingredients:


Mutton pieces - 2.2lb or 1kg
Onions - 2 - finely sliced
Green Chillies - 5-8-(depending upon the level of HEAT you prefer)
Tomato - 1 - chopped

Coriander - 6 to 10 tbsp s chopped (I usually use much more :))Oil - 3 tbsp s (I prefer canola)

Water - About 2 cups

Dry Roast Masala:

• Cloves - 4
• Cinnamon - 11/2 inch 
• Shah Jeera or Kala Jeera also known as Black Cumin - 1 tbsp
• Poppy Seeds or Gasalu - 1 tbsp

Dry Roast in a pan till aroma rises from spices, then grind to a fine powder. The poppy seeds release some moisture so add them at the end after grinding the first three spices.

(I like to grind the spices just before adding them to the mutton; the aroma is not lost that way.)

  

Marinade for mutton:

• Curd - 2 tbsp
• Turmeric - 1/2 tbsp
• Red Chilli Powder - 2 tbsp
• Ginger - Garlic Paste - 3 tbsp
• Garam Masala Powder - 1 tbsp (I like Priya brand or MTR)

Marinate the mutton pieces for at least 1 hour. Overnight is actually ideal, however 1 to 2 hours is the minimum. The longer it marinates, the faster it cooks.

Method 1:(Pan Cooking)

Take a large, heavy bottomed pan & pour some of the oil into it. When the oil gets hot, add the onions & green chillies to it & fry till golden.

Next add the marinated mutton, mix & allow it to fry for about 20 mins on medium high heat with the lid closed, keep stirring in between so that the meat gets evenly browned.

When the meat is halfway done, add the tomatoes & allow to cook till the tomatoes are mushy, then add about 2 cups of water , mix & close the lid & cook on medium high heat for another 40 mins.

When the mutton is almost done, add the ground dry roast masala to the pan & mix well. Cover & cook for another 10-15 mins.

Add the chopped coriander & there you have it.... AWESOME, aromatic mutton curry!

Method 2: (Pressure Cooker)

Follow the first 2 steps from the first method. In a pressure cooker after adding the tomatoes & let them get a little mushy then add 2 cups of water, close the lid & cook for 4 to 5 whistles (depending upon how soft you want your mutton to be).
Open the cooker after the steam has subsided...(I'm assuming you know not to open the cooker immediately :))
Now take a heavy bottomed pan, add some oil & add the mutton pieces to it (add the liquid later for better gravy), add your Dry Roast Masala to it & fry for a few mins, then add the rest of the liquid to the pan & cook for 10 to 15 mins. Decorate with a little chopped coriander & voila... wonderful mutton curry is ready!

Serve hot with rice & rasam, although it is really good with rotis & naan too.