Snake Gourd Curd Chutney or Potlakai Perugu Pachadi

March 24, 2015 by Padma Veeranki 53 Comments

For many who read my blog surely know by now my penchant for chutneys. I always love to experiment new and interesting chutneys at home. Snake Gourd Curd Chutney or Potlakai Perugu Pachadi is an Andhra style chutney recipe with my twist. Pachadis/Chutneys are always an integral part of Andhra cuisine, especially those made with fresh vegetables. We can’t finish our meal without having a dollop of freshly prepared chutney. Each variety of chutney has its own taste and aroma.

Snake gourd is consumed when they are young and tender since the ripe ones may give a bitter taste. Though it is less popular compared to the other vegetables from gourd family, its nutritional values are countless. It is a low calorie and fibre rich vegetable, which belongs to the cucumber family. It is anti-inflammatory, a good detox agent and a coolant. Snake gourd when combined with yoghurt makes for a delicious dish that can be served with rice and rotis. It requires only a very few regular ingredients available in any pantry and can be prepared in a jiffy.

So, friends try out this refreshing chutney to cool you this summer and do let me know your views.

Let’s quickly move on to the recipe for Snake Gourd Curd Chutney or Potlakai Perugu Pachadi–

Step-by-Step Process in making Snake Gourd Curd Chutney or Potlakai Perugu Pachadi:

The process mainly has 4 simple steps-

Sautéing
Grinding
Mixing
Tempering

First grab and chop the required ingredients for Snake Gourd Curd Chutney or Potlakai Perugu Pachadi.

Peel the skin of snake gourd.
Chop snake gourd into semi circular pieces or however you wish to. I usually don’t remove the seeds. Feel free to use snake gourd as you wish.
Finely chop red onions.

1. Sautéing:

Heat one tablespoon oil in a pan over medium heat.
Add slit green chillies and a garlic pod and sauté for a minute.
Remove and transfer to a blender.
In the same pan add snake guard pieces, little salt and turmeric.
Sauté over medium heat till translucent for about 3 to 5 minutes. The pieces should not become too soft. You should be able to feel the crunch of the vegetable. That’s how I like to have my veggies in any vegetable chutney.

2. Grinding:

Grind sautéed green chillies and garlic pod along with cumin seeds to a coarse paste in a blender and remove.
Now grind sautéed snake gourd pieces and remove. You should have some chunks, so do not grind to a smooth paste.

3. Mixing:

Meanwhile, beat yogurt till it is smooth. Add a little turmeric to it.
In a bowl, mix together ground chilli paste and snake guard pieces along with yoghurt and chopped onions. All the ingredients must be cooled down before mixing.
Adjust salt to your taste.

4. Tempering:

Now for the tempering, heat a small pan over medium hot with one teaspoon oil and add mustard seeds. Once they splutter, add red chilli and cumin seeds.
Once the cumin seeds start to turn brown, add a pinch of asafoetida and finally add curry leaves and turn off the heat.
Transfer the seasoning once it cools down to the chutney.

Garnish with finely chopped coriander and onion pieces and serve with hot rice, rotis, paratha, idli or dosa. Btw…it can also be had as raita for vegetable pulao.

By now you must be wondering what the twist is?….The red onions with its crunch tastes great in every bite of this Snake Gourd Curd Chutney or Potlakai Perugu Pachadi and it’s out of the world!!….Trust me!!.

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