Pavakka Theeyal | Bitter Gourd Theeyal Recipe

Theeyal is one the popular curry from Kerala Cuisine. It is a thick gravy made with tamarind, roasted coconut, shallots and bitter gourd. “Theeyal” means “burnt”. Instead of burnt, the coconut is roasted till its dark brown. Roasted coconut along with asafoetida and curry leaves makes the spice paste extremely flavorful. Shallots and bitter gourd slices are cooked in tamarind juice along with this roasted coconut spice paste to get a semi-thick delicious Theeyal. We can make theeyal only with shallots too. Its popularly referred as “Ulli Theeyal” or we can make Vendakka Theeyal or Brinjal Theeyal. Relish this scrumptious Pavakka Theeyal with hot steaming rice along with a tsp of ghee. Serve with stir-fry thoran or simply with papadam.

Kerala recipes are always rich with coconut flavor. Along with roasted coconut, coconut oil is used for sautéing and tempering. Also conventionally in villages, stone based grinding equipment (Ammi-Kuzhavi) where they add very less water to grind the frying ingredients. The thick spice paste really adds thickness to the gravy.

Tips for making Pavakka Theeyal:

1. Fry Bitter gourd slices in medium flame to prevent it from getting burnt. Fry till the bitter gourd are light golden so they are not very bitter while eating.
2. While roasting coconut, stir it continuously so it didn’t get burnt. We need coconut to become dark brown but not burnt.
3. Use coconut oil for frying, tempering and sautéing veggies. If you don’t have coconut oil, you can use regular oil.
4. Adding Urad dal to frying ingredients is optional. Urad dal helps to make the gravy thick. If you want thin consistency we can exclude urad dal.
5. Usually I add fenugreek for Ulli Theeyal, but here we have already bitterness from Bitter Gourd so I have not added fenugreek.

If you like this Pavakka Theeyal, then you can also try other Kerala Cuisine recipes 

• Parippu Curry – Paruppu Curry (Dal curry) is a typical Kerala dish. It’s one of the main dishes in Onasadhya (Onam Sadhya menu). Kerala’s unique version of this curry is elevated with addition of spiced coconut mixture. It’s usually served with rice and ghee.
• Moloshyam – Moloshyam is a simple comfort stew goes well with bowl of rice or as an accompaniment. It’s usually made with a summer vegetable of your choice (Potatoes, ash gourd, snacke gourd, spinach, cucumbers, etc.,) and dal.
• Molagootal – Molagootal is a classic dish from Palakkad cuisine made using mixed vegetables, dal and coconut paste. This is one of the simple dish yet very tasty with good flavor from coconut and rich in vegetables.

Recipe Card for Pavakka Theeyal | Bitter Gourd Theeyal Recipe:

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Pavakkai Theeyal Recipe | Bitter Gourd Theeyal Recipe

Course: Kuzhambu

Cuisine: Indian Cuisine, Indian Recipes, Kerala, South Indian Recipes

Equipments Needed

• Heavy Bottomed Pan
• Mixer Grinder

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 101kcal

Author: Sowmya Venkatachalam

Pavakkai Theeyal, a delicious Kerala Style thick tamarind gravy made with roasted coconut and other spices. With spice from chili, tangy from tamarind and bitterness from Bitter Gourd along with roasted coconut flavor makes this kuzhambu so unique. Relish this Pavakkai Theeyal with hot steaming rice!

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 nos Bitter Gourd Big Size
• ▢ 1 small lemon size Tamarind 1
• ▢ 1 Cup Shallots / Baby Onions
• ▢ 1½ tsp Salt
• ▢ ¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
• ▢ 3 tbsp Oil For frying Bitter Gourd

For Grinding

• ▢ 3 tbsp Oil
• ▢ ½ Cup Grated Coconut
• ▢ 8 nos Red Chili
• ▢ 1 tbsp Coriander seeds
• ▢ 2 tsp Urad Dal
• ▢ ½ tsp Pepper
• ▢ ¼ tsp Asafoetida (Asafetida / Hing)
• ▢ Few Curry leaves

Tempering

• ▢ 2 tsp Oil
• ▢ 1 tsp Mustard seeds
• ▢ Few Curry leaves

Instructions 

Preparing Veggies & Tamarind

• ▢
  Peel the skin of baby onion and keep it aside.
• ▢
  Chop the bittergourd vertically and remove the seeds and slice it into thin slices. 
  
• ▢
  Soak tamarind in 1 cup of hot water for 10 mins. Squeeze and extract the juice. Set tamarind juice aside.
  

Preparing Grinding Ingredients

• ▢
  Pour a tsp of oil in the pan. Add red chillies, coriander seeds, urdhal, and pepper. 
  
• ▢
  Fry till the dal turns light brown. Take the fried ingredients aside in a mixer jar.
  
• ▢
  Again heat 2 tbsp oil in the pan. Add grated coconut, asafoetida and curry leaves.
  
• ▢
  Fry the coconut in medium flame till the coconut turns dark brown. Make sure the coconut is not burnt but evenly dark brown.
  
• ▢
  Take the roasted coconut in the mixer jar and allow it to cool off.
  

Frying Bitter Gourd

• ▢
  Heat 3 tbsp of oil in a pan. Add sliced bitter gourd pieces along with turmeric powder.
  
• ▢
  Fry in medium flame till the bitter Gourd becomes slightly brown. Make sure to stir occasionally to prevent the bitter gourd slices to get burnt.
  

Tempering

• ▢
  Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds and allow it to sputter. Then add few curry leaves give a mix.
  
• ▢
  Now, add the shallot and give a good mix. Saute the shallots till they are translucent.
  

Making Theeyal

• ▢
  When the onions are sautéed, add tamarind juice along with salt.
  
• ▢
  Also add fried bitter gourd slices to the tamarind juice. Boil the tamarind juice for atleast 5 mins to get rid off its raw smell.
  
• ▢
  After 5 mins, add the ground coconut paste and stir well. Also pour 1 cup of water in the mixer jar, rinse and add it to theeyal.
  
• ▢
  Stir well. Allow the theeyal to boil for 2-3 mins. Switch off the flame.
  

Serving

• ▢
  Relish this delicious Pavakkai theeyal hot steaming rice along with any thoran or papadam!
  

Video

Nutritional Info

Nutrition Facts

Pavakkai Theeyal Recipe | Bitter Gourd Theeyal Recipe

Amount Per Serving (1 Cup)

Calories 101 Calories from Fat 54

% Daily Value*

Fat 6g9%

Carbohydrates 12g4%

Protein 1g2%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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INSTRUCTIONS WITH STEP BY STEP PICTURES:

PREPARING VEGGIES & TAMARIND

• Peel the skin of baby onion and keep it aside.
• Chop the bittergourd vertically and remove the seeds and slice it into thin slices.

• Soak tamarind in 1 cup of hot water for 10 mins. Squeeze and extract the juice. Set tamarind juice aside.

PREPARING GRINDING INGREDIENTS

• Pour a tsp of oil in the pan. Add red chillies, coriander seeds, urdhal, and pepper.

• Fry till the dal turns light brown. Take the fried ingredients aside in a mixer jar.

• Again heat 2 tbsp oil in the pan. Add grated coconut, asafoetida and curry leaves.

• Fry the coconut in medium flame till the coconut turns dark brown. Make sure the coconut is not burnt but evenly dark brown.

• Take the roasted coconut in the mixer jar and allow it to cool off.

• Grind it to a smooth paste and set aside.

FRYING BITTER GOURD

• Heat 3 tbsp of oil in a pan. Add sliced bitter gourd pieces along with turmeric powder.

• Fry in medium flame till the bitter Gourd becomes slightly brown. Make sure to stir occasionally to prevent the bitter gourd slices to get burnt.

TEMPERING

• Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds and allow it to sputter. Then add few curry leaves give a mix.

• Now, add the shallot and give a good mix. Saute the shallots till they are translucent.

MAKING THEEYAL

• When the onions are sautéed, add tamarind juice along with salt.

• Also add fried bitter gourd slices to the tamarind juice.

• Boil the tamarind juice for atleast 5 mins to get rid off its raw smell. After 5 mins, add the ground coconut paste and stir well. Also pour 1 cup of water in the mixer jar, rinse and add it to theeyal.

• Stir well. Allow the theeyal to boil for 2-3 mins. Switch off the flame.

SERVING

• Relish this delicious Pavakkai theeyal hot steaming rice along with any thoran or papadam!

Sowmya Venkatachalam

IT Engineer turned full time Food Blogger. I ♡ FOOD. I also love food blogging. Did you make a recipe? Tag @Subbusktichen on Instagram. I WANNA SEE!