Chayote Squash Curry | Seeme badnekai huli menasina kodilu | Chayote Squash Side dish

When I tell my friends that I frequently buy chayote squash or chow chow, they all look at me amazed! They have asked me what all can we prepare with chayote? Seeme badanekai (Chayote Squash in Kannada) is used extensively in Karnataka. My mom uses this vegetable regularly. She makes kootu, dal or thovve, chutney, sambar, majjige huli, palya & many other varieties. I have already posted the palya (stir fry) & chutney recipes.

Today am posting a South Canara specialty dish, kodilu made using chayote Squash. Kodilu is a spicy, and a tangy curry flavored with lots of garlic! This kodilu is mostly prepared using tendli (thonde kai or Ivy Gourd). However, I prepare it using few other vegetables too. This is a great side dish for dosa, especially the set dosa, banana dosa or bread dosa!

Preparation Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Serves: 2-3

Ingredients:
Cubed chayote squash/seeme badnekai : 2 cups
Grated coconut: 1/2 cup (fresh or frozen) [Refer notes]
Fresh tamarind :  big marble sized (soaked in 1/4 cup warm water) [Refer notes]
Red chilli powder: 1.5 tsp, more or less
Salt: As needed
Turmeric powder: a big pinch

For tempering:
Oil: 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds: 1 tsp
Curry leaves: 4-6 nos, torn
Garlic: 1 tbsp, sliced

Method:

Add enough water to the cubed chayote squash, a pinch of turmeric & bring it to boil. Cook the squash until it is soft & yet firm. Do not add too much water while cooking the vegetable. You have to discard extra water which could be avoided.
Soak the tamarind in about 1/4th cup of warm water for about 10 mins. Squeeze the soaked tamarind & extract the pulp. Discard the fiber strands & the seeds from the tamarind.

Make a smooth paste of the coconut, red chilli powder & tamarind extract. You could add water to make a smooth paste.
Heat oil in a broad vessel. When oil is hot, throw in mustard seeds. When seeds crackle, add the curry leaves. When leaves wilt, throw in the sliced garlic & saute in a medium heat until the garlic turns golden brown.

Add the prepared coconut paste to the tempering & cook for 2-3 mins until the raw smell of tamarind & red chilli powder vanishes.
Drain extra water from the cooked squash & throw in the cooked squash to the coconut mixture. Add the salt & let the mixture boil on a low-medium heat for about 15 mins.

The squash should absorb the flavors. If you find the curry dry, add some of the drained water & boil again.
Let the cooked gravy or curry sit for about 10 more mins. Serve it hot with dosa or rice.

Notes:

• I do not like throwing away the water in which the vegetables are cooked. Hence, I add little water while boiling the vegetables.
• Instead of adding water, the drained water from the vegetable could be added for making the coconut paste.
• Always thaw the frozen coconut well. Also, use hot or warm water while making a paste using frozen coconut. The coconut will not ooze out oil. I have mentioned the tip here before.
• You could replace fresh tamarind extract with store bought tamarind pulp or paste. Use just 1 tsp of tamarind paste. I prefer using the fresh tamarind pulp because I love the sweet tinge from the fresh extract.

Seemebadane Palya (Chayote Squash Palya)

Let me bring out the difference between palya & gojju. Palya is the dry or sooka sabzi, something similar to stir fry. After entering the blog world, I got to know palya(Kannada term) is known as thoran in Malayalam. Gojju (Kannada term) is something similar to ‘vegetables in gravy’ or in general known as “Curry”.

Usually for any palya recipe, the tempering is done followed by stir frying the vegetables in water or oil until the vegetables are soft. But my mom never prepares palya this way. She always boils the vegetable in pressure cooker (may be 1 or 2 whistles depending on the vegetable she is cooking) & then adds tempering to it. During my initial cooking days, I used to fight with her for stir-frying the vegetables in oil or water for more taste, but she always smiled & refused to do so. I never understood why she was oblivious about my proposal. Even she failed to convince me, partially due to my ignorance about intricacies of cooking.

After many years, I have understood the importance of boiling the vegetables. For those who don't know: Stir-frying the vegetables spoils the nutrient levels of the vegetables & steaming or boiling the vegetables holds most of the nutrients. Hence, it is advisable to boil the vegetables whenever possible. I need not say that, I have started following my mother now :)

Ingredients:
Seemebadane/Chayote Squash: 2 medium sized or 500 gms
Oil: 1 tsp
Mustard Seeds: ½ tsp
Urad dal: 1tsp
Channa dal: 1 tsp (optional, our family prefers this)
Curry leaves: 4 chopped or whole
Green chillies: 2 chopped
Cliantro/Coriander leaves: 1 tbsp finely chopped
Grated coconut: 2tbsp (optional)
Salt: according to taste
Lemon juice: ½ tsp (optional)

Method:

• Peel the skin; discard the seed of chayote squash. Cut them into 1/2inch cubes & pressure cook for 1-2 whistles. (Add around 1/4th cup water while cooking the vegetable). Allow it to cool for a while.
• In a broad pan, heat oil. When oil is hot, add mustard seeds followed by urad & channa dal. Fry till the dal turns golden brown. Add curry leaves, cilantro, green chillies & sauté for 10secs.
• Add the cooked vegetable to the pan (discard excess water), salt & cook on low flame for 2-3 minutes.
• Turn off the flame; add coconut, lemon juice. Mix well & serve it as a side dish for rice, roti or dosa.

PS:

• Do not add more water while boiling the vegetable as it has to be discarded for fry sabzi like this.
• On a second note, by chance if you add more water, do not throw the water, store the water & use it while preparing sambar. The chayote squash boiled water can safely be used while preparing sambar as it doesn't smell pungent like cabbage or radish.
• Have you tried frying the cilantro/coriander leaves in oil along with curry leaves? Try it out; the aroma of fried cilantro is just too good to resist.
  

Blog Events:

This along with Tomato-Onion Gojju goes to "WYF : Side dish" hosted by EC

Seeme Badane (Chayote) Chutney

Today on the festival of Deepavali(Naraka Chaturdashi) our family enjoyed eating seeme badane chutney(Chayote chutney), yele kosu palya (cabbage stir-fry), gujje avial (raw jackfruit avial), besan laadu, palak dal & pundi (rice balls).
Here is my festival plate for you.

Now, the recipe for seeme badane chutney.

Ingredients:
Seeme Badane - 1/2 (medium chopped)
Grated coconut - 4 tbsp
Urad Dal - 1 tsp
Dry Chilli - 2
Jeera - 1 tsp
Jaggery - 1 pinch
Oil - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 6
Asafoetida - 1 pinch
Salt - according to taste
Tamarind - according to taste

Method:

• Add little water to the chopped chayote. No need to remove the skin of the vegetable, before chopping.
  
• To this, add salt, jaggery, tamarind and pressure cook for 1 whistle
• Allow this to cool
• In a pan, add oil. When oil is hot, add jeera, urad dal. Fry till urad dal turns golden in color
• Add asafoetida, curry leaves and red chillies. Saute for a minute
• Make a paste of all the above ingredients along with coconut and cooked chayote
• Chutney is ready to be served (Salt and tamarind have already been added. No need to add again). This chutney can be served with rice, akki rotti, pundi, idli
  

PS: This chutney can also be prepared using only the chayote skin.