Here comes another post about Bottle gourd! I have mentioned it in my other post that the whole plant and all parts of fruit are edible. So today I am writing another recipe using bottle gourd peels, which is normally considered as a waste in western countries. Unlike other gourds, Bottle gourd’s skin is very smooth, so it has easily taken place in our dietary charts!

Bottle gourd varies in size, color and shape. Some places it is also known as Calabash. The one I got here today is green with whitish dots on and looks like a water bottle. If you decide to eat the skin, all you have to do is wash the bottle gourd well and instead of using a peeler, use a knife to peel the skin. In this way you can keep some flesh on the skin which would give a nice texture and volume when you cook them.

The recipe is very simple but unlike the last recipe, I have used a potato today. Besides bottle gourd peel and a potato, you only need some basic ingredients like onion, green chili, turmeric powder and salt and of course vegetable oil.

What you need to do first is slice the skin thin. As you can see the skin is very light but as it has some flesh on, it will give some nice texture. Slice evenly to ensure thorough cooking as we will not use any water for this recipe. If you want to make a spread/bhorrta of this skin, then you can use a peeler, but that’s another recipe.

When you are done with chopping the bottle gourd skin, chop onions and take a medium deep pan, add vegetable oils in medium heat. When oil the heated, add sliced onions. Fry them until golden.

When onion are nicely golden brown, add sliced potatoes, green chili, turmeric and salt. Stir everything very well.

When potatoes are nice and golden, add sliced bottle gourd peels and stir everything well. After few minutes, it will start to change color to more translucent. At this point, cover the pan with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes in low heat. It will help in cooking, as they will release a lots of water.

After 10 minutes of simmering in low heat, potatoes and bottle gourd peels looks slightly roasted and reddish. You can take them off the pan now but I will cook more without covering them to to release extra water and make it more drier.

After 10 minutes, the gourd skin looks nicely cooked and roasted! Check salt and add more if needed! When its done, I served them in a bowl.

We usually eat bottle gourd peel fry with rice, but you can of course eat them with tortilla or Ruti. So enjoy Bangladeshi style scrappy cooking of bottle gourd peels and let me know if you have ever tried it!

Recipe: 3-4 Servings Prepping time: 8-10 minutes, Cooking time: 20 minutes

Ingredients: Peels of 1 big Bottle Gourd/Lau/Calabash 1 Big Potato Spice and Condiments: 20ml Vegetable Oil (Olive/Mustard/Coconut oil, anything will do) 1 medium Onion 1tbsp fine Salt 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 2-3 Green Chili (optional)

Instruction: 1. Rinse bottle gourd. Peel the skin with knife with some flesh on. Slice them thinly. Also slice onions and garlic. 2. Heat oil in a pan and add onion. Cook until golden over medium low heat. Then add sliced potatoes, turmeric powder, chili and salt and fry them golden too. 3. Add sliced gourd peel to pan. Keep stirring frequently until skins get translucent. 4. Cover the pan and simmer for 10 minutes to ensure proper cooking. Stir often in between. 5. After 10minutes, when gourd peels get cooked and soft, stir fry for few more minutes to release extra moisture. When they look nicely roasted and the oil separating out, take off from the heat. Serve warm with rice or ruti!