The lau of Bengali food

They came, they wrote, they vanished. That is the story of many a blogger. Understandably so, as most of us don't blog for a living, but do it as a creative outlet during our spare time. In my case too, as other things took over, the blog had to take a back seat, putting me dangerously into that vanishing zone, even though I have thought about hauling myself back several times.

Recently, a blogger who often writes lovely comments here said that the squash with Bengali seasoning is now her most favorite way to cook butternut squash, and that she particularly loves the flavor of kalonji. That reminded me of this bottle gourd sabji I make, which has kalonji (also called Nigella) as the predominant flavor.

The other ingredient that is predominant here is mustard oil, which is an essential flavor of several Indian regional cuisines. Although it is not one I grew up with, I have taken to it over the last few years, and really enjoy it in some dishes. Mustard oil is not a wimpy sort of oil and holds its own particularly well. Naturally, it has no substitutes. I even know of mustard oil devotees who can compare and discuss brands, types, and their qualities in great depth. I usually use half mustard and half light olive oil in this dish, but feel free to use all mustard oil.

Bottle gourd is called dudhi in Marathi, lauki in Hindi, and lau in Bengali, which explains the cheesy post title. I find it in my local farmers' markets from spring through late summer, but I have seen it in Indian grocery stores almost all year round. This recipe comes via a full Bengali friend, and I am transcribing it here with his permission. I prefer to have it with soft rotis but it is equally wonderful with plain rice and dal. It also fits into my on going theme of favoring dishes that use only a few ingredients, and in this case they all just pull together, almost unexpectedly. For lack of a better title, I am calling it "Bengali Lau".



Bengali Lau

Ingredients

1 medium sized bottle-gourd, usually 400-500gm
2 Tablespoons mustard oil (or a mix of mustard and olive oil)
1 teaspoon kalonji (nigella)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1-2 small green chilies, chopped fine
salt to taste
a small handful of grated fresh coconut
a few sprigs of cilantro, chopped fine

Method

Peel and de-seed the bottle gourd, and chop it into thin strips about an inch long, roughly like short and thick matchsticks.

In a large kadhai or wok, heat the oil, and add the kalonji. Unlike mustard or cumin seeds, these do not pop, but they release a wonderful aroma when heated, usually in a few seconds. As soon as that happens, add the chopped bottle gourd, turmeric, and green chili. Saute everything quickly, then turn down the heat. Add a little salt, and let the bottle gourd cook until tender, on medium high heat. Place a lid on the pan if required. This usually takes me 10-20 minutes, depending on the size of the slices, and total quantity. When done, the gourd should be fully cooked, and there will be some oil at the bottom of the pan as a result of the released moisture.

Add a little salt at the end, the coconut, and chopped cilantro, and stir once together.

Dudhi with Peanuts

Inspiration for cooking something can come from some odd places at times. Even tabloids! I don't recall when I saved this link in my ever growing list of recipes to try out, but when I was looking for something different to cook with bottle gourd (or dudhi or lauki or lau) I found it.


The 'lauki-groundnut sabji' looked simple, and particularly appealing with the use of garlic and peanuts, neither of which I usually associate with bottle gourd, even though they are familiar ingredients in marathi cuisine.

I weighed the gourd I had in the fridge and it was exactly 500 grams. Arre wah. Knowing that cups in India are often smaller than standard size cups, and also because it seemed like too much of a good thing, I decided to use only 3/4 th cup of peanuts, but when I was cooking, I thought that even that might be too much, so I held back some of it. Naturally, that meant losing some of the garlic and chili flavor too, which was part of the powder. Also, considering that the size of onions in India is much smaller than those in the U.S., I used only half an onion.

I cooked the vegetable right in the tadka, because boiling it in water does not appeal to me. So that normally takes 15-20 minutes depending on how tender the gourd is. Here is my version, with the quantities and method modified.



Ingredients

500 gms dudhi or bottle gourd
1 teaspoon + 2 tablespoons of oil
1/2 cup of peanuts
1 teaspoon of red chili powder
4 cloves of garlic
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
pinch of turmeric
1/2 an onion, chopped
salt to taste
a handful of cilantro leaves, chopped

Method

Peel the bottle gourd, de-seed, and chop into about one inch cubes.

Heat one teaspoon of oil in a pan, and saute the peanuts with garlic for a few minutes. Grind the mixture with the chili powder in a food processor and set aside.

Heat the remaining two tablespoons of oil in a kadhai or wok. Add the mustard seeds, and when they start to crackle, add the cumin seeds and turmeric, followed by the chopped onion and saute until it starts to change color to a golden brown.

Add the chopped bottle gourd and stir it in. Add salt to taste, lower the heat, and place a lid on the pan. Let it cook for about 10-20 minutes until it gets tender, stirring once or twice. If it sticks to the pan, add a few spoonfuls of water.

Finally, add the ground peanut mixture and saute for a few minutes more. Check for seasoning and then add the chopped cilantro leaves. Best to serve with simple polis or rotis.


Update: The link to the recipe in Mid-Day does not work any more since they reconfigured their site.