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Home » Recipes » Meatless Curries

Lauki Yoghurt Curry

Modified: Sep 26, 2022 · Published: May 20, 2021 by Famidha Ashraf · Leave a Comment

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Lauki Curry — Bottle gourd in tangy tomato, tempered with south Indian tadka of mustard seeds, curry leaves, ginger and dried red chillies is finished off with warmed whisked yoghurt. Lauki yoghurt curry is best served with steamed rice along with some meat or chicken side dish. 

bottle gourd in yoghurt curry with white rice served in a bowl with two kerala style chicken cutlets

This is my mother-in-law's recipe that I mentioned in my lauki paratha post. She calls this "Louki Curry" though the flavour is very south Indian. Not sure why she calls it Lauki which is the Hindi word for Bottle Gourd instead of Chorakka in Malayalam. All of her family call this Lauki Curry but for the blog's sake, I am calling it Lauki Yoghurt Curry.

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I have been making this since the Yanbu days and shared it on Instagram highlights for my reference. But surprisingly many of you tried and loved it too! Therefore, I have been wanting to make it for the blog. Here I am finally sharing the best version of the Lauki Yoghurt Curry recipe with details but with not-so-great pictures. I am so sorry! I don't get to the point of photoshoot whenever I make this... we drown the rice and drink the rest! A perfect summer curry recipe for cooling off the body heat!

Ingredients

  • Bottle Gourd: aka opo squash or calabash, lauki etc.
  • Green chillies: adjust as per your taste and the variety you have.
  • Ground spices: Only turmeric powder and red chilli powder is used in this curry.
  • Tomato: A large ripe one should do.
  • Full-fat yoghurt: It is best to use full-fat for the taste and body of the curry. If you are running short of yoghurt, you may whisk in laban (buttermilk) to make up the difference. You may add tepid full-fat milk to your yoghurt tub and let it sit on the counter overnight to make it curd. Whatever, make sure you use full-fat ingredients to get the best taste of this simple dish.
  • Coconut oil: for tempering aka tadka or like my mil says "kaachioyichu" or like my mom says "thazhichu oyichu" 
  • mustard seeds: Integral part of a south Indian tadka.
  • ginger: Umma's recipe never mentioned ginger but I like to add some. I would highly recommend you add too.
  • curry leaves: duh!
  • dried red chillies

How to make?

First, we got to keep the yoghurt ready. Whisk well and keep it on the counter to bring it to room temperature.

chopped bottle gourd with spices and water ready to cook

Then, we start by cooking the chopped lauki with spices and water.

almost cooked bottle gourd and ready to add tomatoes

When the lauki pieces are almost cooked, they turn translucent.

chopped tomatoes added to the pot

add the chopped tomatoes

cooked lauki and tomatoes with water reduced

and cook until all or most of the water is reduced.

Pouring prepated tadka

Make a quick tempering (tadka) in a smaller pan and pour over the cooked bottle gourd mixture. If your whisked yoghurt is still cold, then switch off the pot and wait until the yoghurt is ready to use.

prepared lauki yoghurt curry with whisked yoghurt

Stir in the whisked yoghurt on a low to medium flame and continue to whisk gently until it starts to steam. Switch off and remove from the hob.

lauki yoghurt curry

Remove the pot from the hob and serve immediately. Lauki curry goes well with rice and beef fry or chicken cutlets and some appalams and achaar.

For lentil based bottle gourd recipe, do check my lauki chana dal recipe.

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bottle gourd in yoghurt curry with white rice served in a bowl with two kerala style chicken cutlets

Lauki Yoghurt Curry

Lauki Curry — Bottle gourd in tangy tomato, tempered with south Indian tadka and finished off with whisked yoghurt is best served with steamed rice.
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Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes minutes
Servings: 3 people
Calories: 208.41kcal
Author: Famidha Ashraf
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Ingredients
 

For Lauki curry

  • 300 grams chopped bottle gourd, approx 2 to 3 cups
  • 3 to 5 green chillies, slit
  • ¾ teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
  • water as required
  • 1 large tomato, chopped roughly
  • 2 cups whisked full-fat yoghurt, room temperature
  • Salt to taste

For Tadka

  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
  • 1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger, optional
  • 1 sprig of curry leaves
  • 2 dried red chillies 

Instructions

Prep the bottle gourd

  • Trim the ends, peel the skin, cut it into half and then slice vertically into half-inch sticks. Slice and discard the seedy and sponge part. Chop into ½ inch pieces. Wash and keep them submerged in water until needed. You may do this a day ahead but keep them in the water to retain freshness. For this recipe, you will need 2 to 3 cups of chopped bottle gourd which is approx 300gms after chopping.

Cook the veggies

  • Take a deep saucepot and add the chopped bottle gourd, green chillies, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and salt. Stir in enough water to cook the bottle gourd.
  • Cook covered on medium flame until the bottle gourd pieces are translucent and are almost cooked. Do stir in between and add more water if required. This will take anywhere between 20 to 25 minutes. You may do this in a pressure cooker.
  • Once the water reduces and the bottle gourd is almost cooked, add the chopped tomato. Cover and cook until the tomato chunks turn mushy and all the water is reduced. Do stir occasionally to prevent it from burning. Bring the mixture to a full boil and then switch off.

Tadka

  • Heat coconut oil in a smaller pan. Add the mustard seeds and let them splutter. Next, add the ginger (if using) and curry leaves and fry for a few seconds lastly add the dry red chillies and switch off. Swirl a few times and pour over the lauki curry. Let this cool before you can add the whisked yoghurt.

Add whisked yoghurt

  • Prepare 2 cups of whisked yoghurt and let it sit on the counter until the curry cools. Stir in the whisked yoghurt and make sure it is mixed well with the curry without any trace of yoghurt.
  • Switch on the heat to low to medium flame. Do not let the curry boil because it will cause the yoghurt to split and curdle. Keep stirring all the time until it steams. You can place your palm over the pot to sense if it has started to steam. Switch off and remove the pot from the hob.

Serve

  • Serve warm lauki curry with rice, chicken cutlets and lime pickle. Refrigerate any leftovers for 2 days. Reheat after bringing it to room temperature. Whisk while warming and heat just until it steams.

Nutrition Info

Calories: 208.41kcal | Carbohydrates: 20.36g | Protein: 9.04g | Fat: 11.74g
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian, Kerala, South Indian
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Mr.F and Famidha

Hey, I'm Famidha

An Indian chai lover in the UAE. As a passionate food blogger, I share a diverse collection of recipes spanning the Middle East and South Asia. With each dish, I aim to spark your culinary curiosity and encourage you to try new flavours and cooking methods.

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