Pointed gourd: The Forgotten Vegetable of Indian Cuisine

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“Pointed gourd” is one of the readily available summer vegetable in India. In Hindi it is called as “Parwal” and called as “Potol” in Bengali. However, the scientific name is Trichosanthes dioica. The English name “Pointed gourd” name after the shape of the vegetable as it is pointed at two end. Many of us do not know that it is rich in fibre and antioxidant thus good for health, and can effectively use for weight lost diet. As it is readily available and financially affordable thus Bengali made lots of dishes from it, thus “Potol” (as say in Bengal) become a delicacy of Bengali cuisine. The famous potol dishes are Cinri potol (made with Prawn stuff), Doi Potol (made with Curd), Posto potol (made with Poppy seed) but the way you made it can increase or decrease its medicinal properties! Thus it’s very important to know the right way to make a healthy dish of potol.

Here I’m enlisting two recipe of “Pointed gourd”, preparation is very easy and healthy dish used in Bengali cuisine:

Mustered Potol:

Requirements:

Take 250gm potol.
50gm Saraso (Mustard seed).
1-2 Green/Red chilli.
1-2 Table spoon cooking oil.
1 Tea spoon turmeric powder.
1 Table spoon of common salt.
2 cup water and 1cup hot milk.

Method: Take washed and clean potol. Peel it off with gaps, you may cut it in pieces also.. Then boiled it in pressure cooker. Made a fine paste of mustard seed along with green/red chilli. Keep a frying pan on flame and put 1or2 spoon of cooking oil in it and allow warming it. Then put mustered paste, salt, turmeric powder and boiled potol in it and cooked for 2 minutes. Then put water and milk in to it and allow boiling it completely for 3-4 minutes. Then off the flame and delicious “Mustued Potol” is ready to serve. You can eat it with either rice or rooti in your lunch and dinner.

Cashew Potol:

Requirements:

Take 250gm potol.
50gm Cashew Nut.
5-6 black paper.
1-2 Table spoon cooking oil.
½ (half) Tea spoon jeera (cumin) powder.
1 Table spoon of common salt.
3 cup water.
½ (half) tea spoon mustard seed.

Method: Take washed and clean potol. Peel it off with gaps; you may cut it in pieces also. Then boiled it in pressure cooker. Made a fine paste of cashew nuts. Keep a frying pan on flame and put 1or2 spoon of cooking oil in it and allow warming it. Put half tea spoon mustard seed and crushed black paper in to it, then cooked for few second. After that add cashew nut paste, 3 cup of water, salt and boiled potol in it and cooked for 3-4 minutes. Then off the flame and sprinkle jeera powder delicious “Cashew Potol” is ready to serve. You can eat green chilli with the dish if you like more spicy food. You can eat it with either rice or rooti or paratha in your breakfast and lunch. As cashew is highly nutritious and reach in good fat and thus increase metabolism. Hence I suggest not eating it in supper.