Bottle Gourd or Lau always put me off when I was a child. I also greatly disliked prawns in those days. I never imagined I would ever cook either of the two myself, let alone together in the same dish! And here I am, after 30 odd years showing off the Lau Chingri I have cooked :)
Lau chingri is an eternal favourite among Bengalis and, as is always the case with such preparations, recipes vary from family to family. I got this recipe from my cousin's wife. What surprised me is the incredible simplicity of this preparation and how frugal the list of ingredients is. See for yourself -
Lau Chingri
10-15 prawns, shelled and deveined
1 medium bottle gourd or Lau, peeled and cubed.
turmeric
salt
chilli powder
tej patta or bay leaves
1/2 tsp whole cumin or jeera
2 dried Kashmiri chillies
mustard oil
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp pure ghee
Add salt and turmeric to the prawns and fry lightly in hot mustard oil for a minute, turning frequently. Let them turn just opaque. Remove to a plate.
In the same oil add the red chillies, tej patta and jeera. Let it sizzle and then add the cubed pieces of Lau. Add turmeric, a little salt and some chilli powder.
Stir it all well and fry the lau pieces nicely with all the spices for a few minutes. add some sugar and fry some more. Add a very little bit of water, less than quarter cup, and stir again. Once it starts to boil cover the wok and reduce to a simmer. Let it cook for about 10 minutes till the lau is cooked through.
Add the prawns now and cook covered for another 2 or 3 minutes.
Add a generous teaspoon of ghee once the cooking is complete. Leave it covered for a minute. Remove to a serving bowl and enjoy Lau Chingri with gorom bhaat or steaming hot rice.
Lau chingri is an eternal favourite among Bengalis and, as is always the case with such preparations, recipes vary from family to family. I got this recipe from my cousin's wife. What surprised me is the incredible simplicity of this preparation and how frugal the list of ingredients is. See for yourself -
Lau Chingri
10-15 prawns, shelled and deveined
1 medium bottle gourd or Lau, peeled and cubed.
turmeric
salt
chilli powder
tej patta or bay leaves
1/2 tsp whole cumin or jeera
2 dried Kashmiri chillies
mustard oil
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp pure ghee
Add salt and turmeric to the prawns and fry lightly in hot mustard oil for a minute, turning frequently. Let them turn just opaque. Remove to a plate.
In the same oil add the red chillies, tej patta and jeera. Let it sizzle and then add the cubed pieces of Lau. Add turmeric, a little salt and some chilli powder.
Stir it all well and fry the lau pieces nicely with all the spices for a few minutes. add some sugar and fry some more. Add a very little bit of water, less than quarter cup, and stir again. Once it starts to boil cover the wok and reduce to a simmer. Let it cook for about 10 minutes till the lau is cooked through.
Add the prawns now and cook covered for another 2 or 3 minutes.
Add a generous teaspoon of ghee once the cooking is complete. Leave it covered for a minute. Remove to a serving bowl and enjoy Lau Chingri with gorom bhaat or steaming hot rice.
No comments:
Post a Comment