Aloo Parwal (Pointed Gourd with Potato)

Parwal (potol in Bengali) is the pride of Bihar and Bengal summers. Lightly scraped, fried until golden and cooked with potato in a simple masala, it has a unique, slightly crunchy-soft bite.

Video by Kabita’s Kitchen on YouTube. Our recipe below is our own home-style version, written in our own words – quantities and steps may differ from the video.

• Serves 4
• Prep 15 min
• Cook 25 min
• Vegan · gluten-free
• Famous in Bihar & Uttar Pradesh

Ingredients

• 400 g parwal (pointed gourd), lightly scraped, halved
• 2 potatoes, in wedges
• 3 tbsp mustard oil or oil
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• ½ tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• ½ tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp salt

Method

1. Fry the parwal and potato in hot oil until golden at the edges. Remove.
2. In the same oil fry cumin and bay leaf, then onion until golden. Add ginger-garlic paste.
3. Add tomatoes and spice powders (except garam masala) and cook until the oil separates.
4. Add parwal, potato, salt and 200 ml water, cover and cook 10–12 minutes until tender.
5. Sprinkle garam masala and serve with rice, dal or puri.

Tip: Scrape the skin lightly with a knife – don't peel it completely.

Shop the ingredients

Everything you need for this recipe is in stock at Farmah’s – order online or pick it up at Annenstraße 41, Graz.