Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai)
Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai) is a famous kuzhambu in Kerala and some parts of Kanyakumari district. Many of us hate to eat Bitter gourd because of the obvious reason of its bitter taste. But Bitter gourd is a healthy vegetable. It is good for stomach. It has the ability to lower the blood glucose in diabetics. So It is better to take bitter gourd at regular intervals. Instead of deep fry, we can shallow fry the bitter gourd and use it in Pitlai.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Pakarkaai Pitlai is a famous kuzhambu in Kerala and some parts of Tamil Nadu. Many of us hate to eat Bitter gourd because of the obvious reason of its bitter taste. But Bitter gourd is a healthy vegetable. It is good for stomach. It has the ability to lower the blood glucose in diabetics. So It is better to take bitter gourd at regular intervals. Instead of deep fry, we can shallow fry the bitter gourd and use it in Pitlai.
What is Pitlai?
Pitlai is tangy and spicy tamarind gravy that is similar to Sambar but with added spices and also with roasted coconut. For Sambar, we fry Bengal gram (Kadalaparuppu), Coriander Seeds (Dhanya), Red Chili, Fenugreek, Peppercorns. In addition to these ingredients, we add whole urad dal and also toasted coconut. The addition of urad dal and also toasted coconut really adds a nice flavor the Pitlai.
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| Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai) |
Recipe Card:
Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai)
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 260kcal
Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai) is a famous kuzhambu in Kerala and some parts of Kanyakumari district. Many of us hate to eat Bitter gourd because of the obvious reason of its bitter taste. But Bitter gourd is a healthy vegetable. It is good for stomach. It has the ability to lower the blood glucose in diabetics. So It is better to take bitter gourd at regular intervals. Instead of deep fry, we can shallow fry the bitter gourd and use it in Pitlai.
Print Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Bitter Gourd big
- ½ cup Toor Dal (Pigeon pea) 1 cup - 250 ml
- 1 lemon size Tamarind
- 1 fistful Curry leaves
- 1.5 tsp Salt adjust to your taste
For Grinding
- ½ cup Grated Coconut
- 8 Red chilies Adjust to your spice level
- 3 tsp Coriander seeds
- 2 tsp Urad Dal
- 2 tsp Split Bengal Gram (Channa Dal / Kadalaparuppu)
- ½ tsp Peppercorns
- 2 tsp Oil
For Seasoning
- 1 tsp Oil
- 1 tsp Mustard seeds
Instructions
- Soak the tamarind in water for about ten minutes and extract the juice
- Finely chop the bitter gourd and keep it aside.
- Pressure cook the thurdal and smash it and keep it aside
- Pour the oil in the pan and fry the red chillies, coriander seeds, urdhal, channa dal and pepper till the dals turn golden brown color. Take the fried ingredients in a mixer
- To the pan, add grated coconut, curry leaves, Hing and fry till it turns golden red color. Cool this and take it in the mixer
- Grind the above ingredients to a fine paste and keep it aside
- Pour the oil the in the pan and add chopped bitter gourd
- Shallow fry the bitter gourd in medium flame to avoid the bitter taste. Take this aside in a plate.
- Pour the oil the in the pan and add mustard seeds once the oil is hot. When the mustard seeds begins to sputter, add curry leaves and fry for 2 seconds.
- Add tamarind extract and salt and allow it to boil for 5 minutes to get rid off the raw smell of tamarind. To this add the fried bitter gourd pieces.
- Finally add the ground paste and mashed dal and when the Bittergourd(Paavakaai) Pitlai starts boiling switch off the flame.
- The yummy and tangy Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai) is ready to serve with hot rice.
Notes
- You can even add the cooked Channa into the pittlai, tastes good and increase the quantity
- You can add a tablespoon of grated coconut fried in ghee for garnish. Really tastes well
- You can use other vegetables - Ash gourd, fried yam, etc., and try different variations of Pitlai
Nutritional Info
Nutrition Facts
Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai)
Amount Per Serving (2 cups)
Calories 260
Calories from Fat 12
% Daily Value*
Fat 1.3g2%
Saturated Fat 0.2g1%
Sodium 404mg18%
Potassium 1054mg30%
Carbohydrates 53g18%
Fiber 15g63%
Sugar 18g20%
Protein 14g28%
Vitamin A 2300IU46%
Vitamin C 94.1mg114%
Calcium 110mg11%
Iron 6.1mg34%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Method for making Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai) with Step by Step Pictures:
- Soak the tamarind in water and extract the juice. Pressure cook the thurdal and smash it and keep it aside
- Pour the oil in the pan and fry the red chillies, coriander seeds, urdhal, channa dal and pepper till the dals turn golden brown color. Take the fried ingredients in a mixer
- To the pan, add grated coconut, curry leaves, Hing and fry till it turns golden red color. Cool this and take it in the mixer
- Grind the above ingredients to a fine paste and keep it aside
- Finely chop the bitter gourd and keep it aside. Pour the oil the in the pan and add chopped bitter gourd
- Shallow fry the bitter gourd in medium flame to avoid the bitter taste. Take this aside in a plate.
- Pour the oil the in the pan and add mustard seeds once the oil is hot. When the mustard seeds begins to sputter, add curry leaves and fry for 2 seconds. Add tamarind extract and salt and allow it to boil for 5 minutes to get rid off the raw smell of tamarind. To this add the fried bitter gourd pieces.
- Finally add the ground paste and smashed dal and when the Bittergourd(Paavakaai) Pitlai starts boiling switch off the flame.
- The yummy and tangy Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai) is ready to serve with hot rice.
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| Pakarkaai Pitlai (Bitter gourd Pitlai) |
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Looks like, the Toor Dal is missing in the ingredients… Or, is it that only I am NOT seeing it? 🙂
Mentioned as smashed dal at the last..
The Pakarkaai Pitlai recipe seems to be very interesting, i would definitely want to give it a try, although im a bit skeptical about using the karela scrappings in the filling, as I feel they are more bitter than the actual whole karela..not sure though
This is very useful information regarding herbs for diabetes.Thanks for sharing such information.
bitter melon diabetes
You can even add the cooked Channa into the pittlai, tastes good and increase the quantity…
I tried it replacing bitter gourd with fried yam [ small pieces], it came out well. I recently lost my mother and this one really remembered of her. I also tried couple of you dishes and it all came out well . Actually I was referred to this site by sister. She was reluctant to try and I told her do what Subbu mami says in the instruction you will be appreciated.
you can add a tablespoon of grated coconut fried in ghee for garnish. Really tastes well
Dear subbuji,
I tried this recipe not with bittergourd but with ashgourd.it was fantastic.thanks for this recipe. I am planning to cook at least once a week. Arthy
I am going to try this on the coming Sunday. Looks like a maths theorem. That is worrying me.
I tried this recipe and it came out delicious. Thanks a lot for sharing.
bitter gourd pittlai requires gasagasa fried before grinding.hp u hv missed it
We have never used gasagasa in pitlai.
The bitter ground pittlai s very yummy. I tried d recipe for d first time. Thanks for d nice recipe its easy n very helpful..
Hi Sowmya, I tried this kuzhambu today and I must tell you it was lip-smacking:D the best part my hubby absolutely loved it…keep inspiring us:)
Hello Nivi, Very glad to hear this feedback !.
What is the difference between pitlai and “arraichu vittu sambar”
For Pitlai we include urad dal also for frying and also we fry the coconut. But for arachivutta sambar we dont include urad dal and we dont grind coconut
I always try all your recipes and it comes out well. It seems my husband Manish Ramamurthy knows your husband Soumya as they are originally from nagercoil.
Hello Sindhuja, Thanks for the lovely comment. Good to know that your husband is also from Nagercoil. I will certainly convey this to my husband.
Delicious. Foolproof and my go-to recipe for pitlai. Thank you so much 🙂
Thank you so much Indu
Excellenet recipe. came out very well. i follow your recipes for authentic south indian taste.
Thanks Chitra for your lovely comment
My go-to recipe for Pitlai. Delicious and easy recipe. Thank you so much 🙂
Happy to hear Indumathi. Thanks