Kovakkai Sadam | Tindora (Ivy Gourd) Rice

My 151st recipe, “Kovakkai Sadam | Tindora (Ivy Gourd) Rice”, a super flavorful South Indian Variety rice.  I have already mentioned about my love for kovakkai in my previous posts. At the starting of the week, when my refrigerator is full of veggies, the first veggie I would normally choose to cook would be kovakkai. So, when I was thinking about preparing lunch today, my initial thought was to prepare Curd Rice and my favorite Kovakkai Fry. Though I love kovakkai very much, I still did not want to make the same fry which I prepare frequently. That would kind of make a boring Monday lunch. So I thought of combining my love for kovakkai and RK’s love for variety rice and prepare something interesting. The end result was this extremely delicious kovakkai sadam. It is very easy to make and it tasted different from the other variety rices I make. The kovakkai which was cooked along with the spices gave a wonderful aroma and flavor to the rice. And similar to the other variety rices, instead of eating it immediately, I let it sit for a while. The rice got a chance to absorb all the lovely flavors and tasted absolutely divine. I guess, I now have a new favorite to pack for picnic lunches 😉

Kovakkai Sadam

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Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 20 mins

Total Time 30 mins

Servings 3

Ingredients

  

• Basmati rice - 3/4 Cup
• Onion - 1/2 Small Finely chopped
• Kovakkai/Tindora/Ivy gourd - 30 1 3/4 Cup when Chopped
• Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
• Salt - 1/2 + 1/2 tsp Adjust as per taste

To roast and grind

• Oil - 1/4 tsp
• Chana dal - 1 Tbsp
• Urad dal - 1 tsp
• Black peppercorns - 1 tsp
• Coriander seeds - 1 tsp
• Fenugreek seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Dry red chilli - 3
• Grated coconut - 3 Tbsp

To Temper

• Oil - 1 Tbsp
• Mustard - 1/4 tsp
• Broken urad dal - 1/2 tsp
• Jeera - 1/2 tsp
• Curry leaves - 1 Sprig

Instructions

 

• First cook the rice in any method as your desire along with 1/2 tsp salt. Bring it to room temperature and keep aside. Meanwhile, cut the ivy gourd into circles of about 0.5 cm thickness.
  
   
• Now, heat a pan with oil, add the mustard and once it splutters, add the other ingredients listed under "To temper" in the given order. Once the urad dal turns golden brown, add the onion and saute until translucent.
  
   
• Add the ivy gourd and saute for a further 1 minute. Now add turmeric, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 Cup of water and mix well. Turn the flame to low-medium and cook covered until the ivy gourd is half done.
  
   
  
   
• While the ivy gourd is cooking, in parallel, we will roast and grind the masala needed. Heat a pan with oil and add all the ingredients listed under "To roast and grind" except the grated coconut. Saute until the dal start changing color. Now add the grated coconut and saute for a few more minutes until the dal color turns golden brown. Turn off the flame and bring them to room temperature. Grind them into a coarse powder by just pulsing for few times in the mixie/blender. Keep aside.
  
   
  
   
  
   
• Once the ivy gourd is half cooked, add the ground masala powder and mix well. If needed, add little more water and mix well. Let the mixture gets cooked for few more minutes (about 2 Minutes). By now the raw smell of the masala would have gone and the mixture will become thick. Turn the flame to medium-high and saute for few more minutes until the oil ooze out of the masala slightly. Turn off the flame.
  
   
  
   
• Add the cooked rice to the ivy gourd masala or vice versa and mix nice. Take care not to mash or break the rice strands. Let the rice sit for 10 minutes to absorb the flavors.
  
   
• Serve warm and enjoy with simple appalam or chips.
   

Notes | FAQ

- You can cut the ivy gourd in your desire size and shape.
- Do adjust the spiciness (Black peppercorns + Dry red chilli) according to your taste. The quantity mentioned in this recipe is for a spicy rice.
- Add 2 drops of oil While cooking the rice, to get well separated rice strands.
- In case using left-over cooked rice, you can add it to the ivy masala at the end and saute for a few minutes in low flame until the rice heats up.

Sending this recipe to the First Blog Anniversary Celebration of Delectable Flavours.