Potlakaya Perugu Pachadi (Snake Gourd raita)

Summer special vegetables means we only think about Mangoes and cucumbers. But there is one more summer special vegetable that is Snake Gourd. Yes Snake gourd is a seasonal vegetable which we get them in Summer. I am not sure about North India but we get  this seasonal vegetable  in south India and we use a lot in out South Indian cuisines.
                                                                          Snake Gourd is a tropical and seasonal vegetable, belongs to cucumber family. Snake Gourd is believed to have several medicinal values and high in water content and also it gives a cooling effect to body. This vegetable is very low in calories but have a very good content of iron, calcium, phosphorus, riboflavin. This fiber rich vegetable keeps your digestive system healthy and helps in weight management. So here is a recipe with this healthy vegetable in typical Andhra style..:)
INGREDIENTS:--
Snake gourd pieces   --- 1 cup
Ginger green chilli paste   --- 1 tabsp (you can adjust this according to your taste)
Turmeric powder  --- 1/4 tea sp
Salt  to taste
Curd  ---  1 and half cup
Oil   --- 1 tea sp
Mustard seeds  --- 1/4 tea sp
Dry red chillies  ---  2 broken
Cumin seeds  ---- 1/2 tea sp
Curry leaves  ----  one spring
Asafoetida   ---  a pinch
Urad dal  ----  1 tea sp
                                            

METHOD:---
1. Take snake gourd pieced in a pan add turmeric powder, salt and half cup water and cook in a medium heat till Snake gourd pieces are tender. Take care that snake gourd pieces are not over cooked. If they are over cooked they become mashy when do the next step.
2. Remove from heat and let the cool, the squeeze lightly to remove the extra water from the snake gourd pieces and set a side
3. Now blend curd till smooth and add ginger and green chili paste mix well.
4. Add cooked snake gourd pieces, check and adjust the salt mix well to combine every thing and set aside.
Now heat oil in a pan add mustard seeds let them crackle then add urad dal, cumin seeds, broken dry red chillies, asafoetida, curry leaves fry for a while and ass this seasoning to curd and snake gourd mixture mix well.
Serve with rice, roti  or puri.
This is my fourth recipe for Blogging Marathon 27th edition under Seasonal recipes theme let's check other BM members recipes here