Luffa Gourd

(click to enlarge)	Luffa Gourd (Chinese Okra) India - Jhinge Posto
	Serves: Effort: Sched: DoAhead:	4 side ** 25 min Yes		A light and delicate gourd dish that isn't at all mushy as squash might be. Excellent as a side for both Indian and Western dishes.

2
1/2
3/4
2
1/2
2
1/2
4

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t
t
T

t
T

Angled Luffa (1)
Turmeric
Salt
Poppy Seeds (2)
Chili Serrano (3)
Red Chili dry (4)
Nigella (Kalonji)
Oil

PREP

Peel LUFFA with a vegetable peeler. Slice about 1/2 inch thick and cut slices into quarters, unless quite small, then cut into halves. Mix in Turmeric and Salt.
Pound POPPY SEEDS to a paste (or use a spice grinder as I do). Chop SERRANO fine. Mix.
Crush the RED CHILI course and mix with Nigella.

RUN

Heat Oil in a sauté or sauce pan. Stir in Nigella mix for a few seconds until chili starts to darken, then stir in Gourd mix for a couple minutes. Cover and simmer 15 minutes over very low flame, stirring now and then.
Stir in the Poppy Seed mix and turn up heat. Stir gently until most of the free liquid has been incorporated into sauce.

NOTES:

Angled Luffa: (Chinese Okra) This is a common vegetable here in California, found in produce markets, markets serving an Asian community and even in some supermarkets. For details see our Luffa Page.
Poppy Seeds: In India, white poppy seeds would always be used. They are available in markets serving an Indian community, but black ones can be used if necessary.
Chili Serrano: These are rather harsher than I like, but they're what most people can get. A half Serrano will make this dish definitely spicy, so use your own judgement. I use 2 or 3 Indian chilis, and you might consider using a Fresno or Holland Red. For details see my Chili Page.
Chili Dry The mild Chilis Japones are good for this recipe. See my Chili Page for details.
U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove, in=inch