Lau Chingri

Bottle Gourd with Shrimp

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Bottle gourd (lau) – 1 Kg

Shrimps – 200 gm

Salt

Sugar – half a tea-spoon

Turmeric

Green chilies – two small, sliced

Cumin Seeds

Bay leaves

Mustard oil (or sun flower- or olive oil)

How to prepare:

De-vein the shrimps and clean the heads very carefully. Usually we do not behead the shrimps ;) but yes, you can get rid of them since cleaning is not an easy task. Marinade them in salt and turmeric powder. Set aside for about fifteen minutes.

In the meantime, peel the skin off from the gourd and cut it into very thin and small pieces.

Now heat some oil in the pan. If you use mustard oil heat it enough so that the typical smell of the oil vanishes. Fry the shrimps and keep them in one side.

Add bay leaves, green chilies and cumin seeds to the oil.

Add the shredded gourd. Let it sauté a little and then stir. Repeat this. Add turmeric and stir well so that it mixes with the vegetable uniformly. Add salt. Stir and mix well. After adding salt water will start coming out from the vegetable slowly; you do not need to add water from outside; so, just cover it and let it cook.

When the vegetable is almost done, add the friend shrimps and half a tea-spoon sugar, stir and mix well and cover again and let it cook for ten more minutes.

Serve with steamed rice.

Next time I prepare it, I will make a better photo to replace the one above!