Turai | Beerakaya Pachadi | Ridge Gourd Dip | Peerkangai Thuvaiyal

Hi Supermoms,

I have grown a year older this week 😁.

My birthday was  special with the whole day spent in the loving company of my family and friends. I took a break from cooking and was treated to restaurant food. I had a very sumptuous Rajasthani thali for lunch and before it even got fully digested I had a Mediterranean dinner 🙈. 

Talking about dinner, we had ordered a pita bread platter which was served with dips that did not really compliment the bread. The dip was not fresh and the vinegar was too over powering.  We pushed that dip ( Muhammara)  away and asked for more hummus , which was fresher 🙆. And while eating the dip, discussed how the experience could have been made better by pairing the bread with fresh Indian Chutneys . 

So, when I started prepping  for lunch today morning, I wanted to make a tasty and healthy dip/chutney/thogayal/thuvayal/pachadi ( you can choose how you would like to call it ). Well I chose Ridge Gourd, one of my favourite vegetables for it.

OK, before I explain to you what I made, let me  give you some gyan on Thogayal. Thogayal is a part of our everyday cooking and it takes just few minutes to prepare. It is fresh, healthy with all the nutrients of the vegetable intact. According to Ayurveda, ridge gourd cools our system    ( our doshas) and can be consumed by all. I have earlier shared the Ridge Gourd Skin Chutney recipe and today I am sharing this chutney recipe which has both the goodness of the skin and the flesh of ridge gourd. 

I ground it more smoothly as I wanted to serve along with fresh mini pita breads. You can also serve it along with chapathi /roti or rice . 

Presenting the newest dip in town - TURAI .

Turai :

Preparation time : 5 minutes

Cooking time : 10 minutes

Serves : 4

1 cup = 250 ml cup 

Storage : Keeps good for upto 2 days when refrigerated 

Ingredients :

2 medium size ridge gourd ( Cut them into roundels with skin)

1/2 teaspoon thick tamarind paste OR gooseberry size tamarind 

1/4 cup husked and split black gram /urad dal

4 dry red chillies ( I used the long variety/guntur chillies)

1 teaspoon sesame oil 

salt to taste

To garnish :

2 teaspoons sesame oil 

1/4 teaspoon sesame seeds

1/2 dry red chilli ( chopped finely)

Method :

1. In a kadai/small wok heat oil.

2. Add the urad dal and when they start turning fragrant, add the red chillies.

3. Once the urad dal is slight brown in colour, transfer the mixture to the jar of a mixer.

4. Place the wok back on low flame and add the chopped ridge gourd.

5. Cook them till the flesh changes colour.

Chef tip : It will look cooked. 

6. Add this also into the jar of the mixer.

7. Add tamarind , salt and grind into a smooth paste.

Chef tip: Add water if required while grinding 

8. Transfer this into the serving bowl. 

9. Heat oil , add the sesame seeds and chopped dry red chillies .

10. Pour it over the ground chutney and your 'Turai' is ready to be served. 

Happy Cooking !

With love,

Masterchefmom