Lauki Musallam
Equipment
- Tray
- Bowl
- Heavy-based Pan
- Slotted spoon
- Blender
- Food processor
- Frying Pan
- Skillet
- Mortar and Pestle
- Kitchen Paper
- Paper towel
- Flat pan
- Spatula
- Tight-fitting lid
Ingredients
- 500 g Bottle gourd (Calabash) 1
- Saffron threads pinch of
- 1 teaspoon Kewra water
- 100 ml Vegetable oil (1/2 cup)
- 2 Onions chopped
- 8-10 Cashew nuts
- 1 tablespoon Chironji kernel paste
- 200 g Khoya or 200g / 7oz (1 1/3 cups) milk powder (dry milk)
- 2 tablespoons Poppy seeds
- 6 Cloves
- 6 Green cardamom pods
- 1 Blade mace
- 250 ml Natural (plain) yoghurt (1 cup), whisked
- 1 teaspoon Chilli powder
- Salt
- Coriander (Cilantro) leaves chopped, to garnish
Instructions
- Peel and remove the pith from the bottle gourd and prick the outside uniformly with a fork. Hollow out the inside of the gourd, then rub some salt all over the outside. Place on a tray and set aside for about 30 minutes.
- Put the saffron in a small bowl, add the kewra water and soak until required.
- Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pan over medium heat, add the onions and fry for about 5-7 minutes, or until golden brown. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the onions to a small blender or food processor and process to make a paste. Set aside.
- Add the cashew nuts and chironji kernel paste to the pan and fry for about 1 minute, or until they turn pink. Remove from the pan and chop the nuts with a sharp knife, then set aside.
- Return the pan to heat and add the khoya. Fry for a few minutes until it changes color, then mix in the fried nuts and remove from the heat. Reserve the oil left in the pan.
- Put the poppy seeds in a small, dry frying pan (skillet) over medium heat and stir-fry for about 30 seconds until roasted.
- Transfer to a mortar or small blender, add the cloves, cardamom pods, and mace and pound or process, adding a little water if necessary, to make a paste.
- Pat dry the bottle gourd with kitchen paper (paper towels) and fry in the reserved oil for a few minutes until evenly browned. Remove from the pan.
- Mix the khoya and nut mixture with a little salt and 2 tablespoons yoghurt, then use to fill the inside of the gourd. Mix the onion paste, chilli powder-poppy seed paste, and the saffron mixture together in a bowl and season with salt.
- Place the bottle gourd in a large flat pan and pour the yoghurt mixture on and around it. Use a spatula to push some of the mixtures underneath it. Pour the remainder of the yoghurt on top and cover with a tight-fitting lid. Place over low-medium heat and cook for about 30 minutes. Garnish with chopped coriander.
Nutrition
Serving: 4gSodium: 180mgCalcium: 541mgVitamin C: 6mgVitamin A: 440IUSugar: 6gFiber: 3gPotassium: 401mgCholesterol: 18mgCalories: 331kcalTrans Fat: 1gSaturated Fat: 10gFat: 19gProtein: 14gCarbohydrates: 28gIron: 2mg
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