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Puspesh Pant reinvents the humble lauki with everybody’s summer favourite
mint and
Chef’s corner
Ingredients
Method: Clean, wash and chop coriander and mint leaves and the chillies. Grind together with salt in a blender with little water if necessary. Heat oil in a karahi and deep fry lauki on medium heat till it is slightly crisp but doesn’t change colour. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on kitchen towels to remove excess oil. Arrange lauki in a bowl and pour the chutney over it. Garnish with tomato slices and lime wedges or slices.
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Advent of summer always brings visions of tall cool drinks — mint juleps and home-made lemonades, tangy raytas and refreshing salads. The palate also pines for soothing yogurt-based delicacies. Most seasonal squash vegetables like lauki, torai, tinda, sitaphal, parval all have a cooling effect. They are great for keeping the system well hydrated and nourished. Easily digestible, these hardly take any time to cook. The only problem is that these poor plebian veggies are not valued for taste and people tend to avoid them. We have tasted delectable dum ki lauki from Kashmir and sublime potol from Bengal, sitaphal remains a favourite with puri in UP while bharwan tinde tempt Punjabis. But then variety is the spice of life and recipes too need to be packaged like the proverbial old wine in new bottles. Chutneywali Lauki is one such new wine that can put to shade any vintage stuff. This one is best enjoyed cold. If you prefer a lighter hue and milder taste add a couple of tablespoons full of thick well-beaten
dahi.
