Sometimes the simplest ingredients have the most complex stories. Take the humble ridge gourd curry – turai ki sabji in Hindi, beerakaya kura in Telugu, and peerkangai kadayal in Tamil. It’s not the star of the show in an Indian meal but for many families across India, it’s a staple, especially during the monsoon when the earth is fertile and the produce is fresh. My grandmother used to say, “If you can cook a good ridge gourd curry/ beerakaya kura, you can cook anything” because the secret lies in how you let this delicate vegetable soak up the flavors.
We used to have ridge gourd curry/ beerakaya kura on our table all the time when I was growing up – simple, wholesome, and full of goodness. Ridge gourd/ beerakaya with its slightly spongy texture has a way of absorbing spices and every bite is flavored. This is the ultimate comfort food, the kind that feels like a warm hug after a long day.
But what’s special about ridge gourd/ beerakaya is it’s not just the vegetable, it’s the life lessons that come with it. I remember my mother peeling away the tough ridged skin and telling me every meal is an opportunity to nourish not just the body but the soul too. She used every part of the vegetable – even the peels would be made into a chutney later – because in our kitchen nothing went to waste. This taught me early on the art of simple mindful cooking.
In India, ridge gourd/ beerakaya is cooked in countless ways depending on where you are. In the South, it would be a tangy curry with tamarind and lentils. In the North, it would be sauteed with minimal spices so the vegetable can shine through. And in every household, there’s that one version of the dish that feels like home.
Today I’m sharing a simple yet flavorful ridge gourd curry/ beerakaya kura close to my heart. It’s light, nutritious, and easy to make – a perfect weekday dish that reminds me of slow afternoons in the kitchen with my family.
How To Make Ridge Gourd Curry/ Beerakaya Kura
Peel and wash the ridge gourds/ beerakaya, chop them, and keep them aside. Now wash onions, tomatoes, green chili, and curry leaves separately. Chop onions, tomatoes, and slit green chili. Keep them ready to make the ridge gourd curry recipe so that it will be easy for you to do without stress.
- Turn on the stove with a lighter, keep the flame on a simmer, put a cleaned and moisture-free pan on the stove, and add oil to the pan then add cumin and mustard seeds, and let them splutter.
- Now add green chili, and curry leaves to the pan and saute for 30 seconds, then add chopped onions to it. Give a stir and let it fry for 1 minute until golden.
- Add turmeric powder and ginger-garlic paste to the pan and saute for 30 seconds.
- Add chopped ridge gourd and 1/2 tsp salt to the pan. Stir it. Cover with a lid and cook for 4 to 5 minutes.
- Remove the lid carefully, you can see moisture released from the ridge gourd curry/beerakaya kura, now add chopped tomatoes to the pan and stir it.
- Cover with a lid and cook until the tomatoes become mushy.
- Add red chili powder to the pan and stir it. Saute for a minute.
- Now add a little water, and salt as needed. Cook for 5 minutes.
- Add chopped coriander leaves to the pan and turn off the stove.
- Finally, Ridge Gourd Curry/ beerakaya kura is ready to serve with plain rice or chapati.
Notes
- Choose young ridge gourds/ beerakayalu from the vegetable market to make ridge gourd curry/beerakaya kura. Older ones are fibrous and tough, not easy to digest.
- Maintain a distance from the pan, when the seeds are popping.
- Use red, ripened tomatoes for a little tangy flavor.
- If you don’t have ginge-garlic paste, you can use chopped garlic too.
- I used a deep-bottomed aluminum vessel for cooking, if you don’t have one, you can use a pan.
Benefits of Ridge Gourd Curry/ Beerakaya Kura
- Onions: Cutting onions may bring tears to our eyes due to their sulfur compounds. It cleans our eyes. It also has antioxidants that prevent cancer, heart disease, osteoporosis, and others.
- Tomatoes: Eating tomatoes can aid with blood circulation and digestion, lower blood cholesterol, detoxify the body, avoid premature aging, enhance fluid balance, and lower inflammation. Additionally, this vegetable helps to improve stomach health and eyesight while preventing diabetes, skin issues, and urinary tract infections. It lowers blood sugar levels.
- Green Chilli: Vital vitamins and minerals found in green chilies help people lose weight, see better, take better care of the skin, feel better, and stay healthy. Green chilies’ capsaicin increases metabolism, and vitamin A helps with vision.
- Curry leaves: Curry leaves have been shown to lower cholesterol and lower the risk of heart disease. Strengthens Hair Health: Curry leaves are well-known for their ability to increase hair growth and decrease hair loss. They have nutrients that help to nourish the scalp, stop premature graying, and build hair follicles.
- Coriander leaves: Coriander leaves have high levels of vitamin K, which aids in blood clotting. Vitamin K also aids bone healing, which helps to prevent conditions such as osteoporosis.
- Ginger-garlic paste: Combining ginger and garlic reduces the cold, helps in weight loss, aids in digestion, and reduces infections caused by bacteria and fungi, is analgesic, controls blood sugar levels, and natural blood thinner.
- Cumin seeds: They improve digestion, boost immunity, contain anti-inflammatory and antioxidant qualities, aid in weight loss, and regulate blood sugar levels.
- Mustard Seeds: They can help prevent headaches, enhance digestion, promote heart health, fortify bones and teeth, make skin and hair healthier, postpone aging, defend against free radicals, regulate blood sugar, and more.
- Ridge Gourd/ beerakaya: Rich in dietary fiber and low in calories, Ridge Gourd/beerakaya promotes healthy digestion and gut health. It is also a good source of important nutrients like calcium, iron, vitamin C, and vitamin A.
The Essence of Ridge Gourd Curry/ Beerakaya Kura
Ridge Gourd Curry/ Beerakaya kura may not have the glamour of a biryani or the complexity of a masala curry but it’s in these simple dishes that you find the soul of Indian cooking. This curry is light and filling and refreshing and takes me back to my roots – both childhood and the traditions that have been passed down.
In my home cooking isn’t just about putting food on the table. It’s about love and care and finding joy in the everyday. Ridge Gourd Curry/ Beerakaya kura may seem plain but it’s dishes like these that hold the essence of family meals and the beauty of simple living. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do and it brings some comfort to your home.
Ridge Gourd Curry/ Beerakaya kura/ turai ki sabji/ peerkangai kadayal
Ingredients
- 500gm ridge gourds
- 2 onions small-sized, finely chopped
- 2 tomatoes ripened, chopped
- 2 green chilli slit
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- ¼ tsp cumin seeds
- ¼ tsp mustard seeds
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- ¼ tsp ginger-garlic paste
- salt, to taste
- fresh coriander leaves chopped for garnish
- 1 tbsp oil
Instructions
- Peel the ridge gourds and wash them well under running water, then chop them and keep aside.
- Wash onions, tomatoes, green chilli, coriander leaves and curry leaves.
- Chop the onions, tomatoes, and coriander leaves separately. Slit the green chilli, removing curry leaves from their sprig.
- Heat the oil in a pan, add cumin and mustard seeds, they began to crackle now add green chilli and curry leaves.
- Now add onions, stir it and let them fry until they are golden.
- Add turmeric and ginger-garlic paste to the pan, stir it.
- Now add chopped ridge gourds to the pan and add 1/2 tsp salt to it, stir it. Cover with a lid, let it cook on medium flame.
- As you see water releasing from the ridge gourds after removing lid, now add chopped tomatoes to the pan and stir it.
- Cook on medium flame until the tomatoes become mushy then add red chilli powder and stir it.
- Add little water to the pan, salt as needed as per your taste and cover it.
- As you see oil releasing from the curry, stir it and add chopped coriander leaves and turn off the stove.
- Now the Ridge gourd recipe is ready to serve.
