Parwal or Parval (Pointed Gourd) is a vine plant with heart shaped leaves similar to cucumber and squash families. The vegetable is green with white or no stripes and resemble Kovakkai (Ivy Gourd) in shape but are slightly bigger with soft white flesh and crunchy seeds inside. Some other names for parwal include Green Potato, Wild Snake Gourd, Kambu Pudalai (Tamil), Potals (Telugu), Kattu Padavalam (Malayalam) and Potol (Bengali and Assamese).
Parwal is a rare and not so popular vegetable among the Indian masses for reasons unknown to me: Maybe it is harder to grow and not readily available? Maybe it is always very expensive? Maybe because of the crunchy seeds?
Parwal is a good source of carbohydrates, vitamins A, B1, B2 and C and other minerals and fibers, and is very low in calories. In Ayurveda, parwal is used to treat gastric problems and is also used as a natural aphrodisiac that can improve sex life. It is also used to purify blood, treat flu symptoms, improve digestion, relieve constipation, regulate blood sugar and cholesterol, and the leaves are used to cure liver and skin diseases.
My (instant) love for parwal started a few years ago when dining at a Gujarati restaurant. On that buffet, deep fried parwal and sliced potatoes tossed with dry spice powders and salt was served, and at that time I did not know what vegetable it was so I had to enquire about it. That parwal/ aloo fry went so well with the Gujarati sweet dal and chapathi (heavenly combo).
I buy this vegetable very frequently these days albeit they are pricier. Initially my family showed some resistance complaining about the crunchy seeds (and they compared this to Kovakkai or Tindora how soft it was…) but eventually they grow into liking it very much like I do. I wish after reading this blog you would certainly lookout for and buy this vegetable during your next vegetable purchase. Young immature pointed gourds are the most effective for cooking, the skin is bright green colored, the flesh inside is white, and also the seeds are small and tender. Don’t use mature pointed gourds since they are usually less flavorful. The fully ripe fruit turns orange and mushy, is too sweet to consume. If you are cooking parwal first time, please throw in some sliced potatoes and you will not repent it.
Here is a very simple recipe that I want to share today. I would experiment more exotic recipes with parwal and post them in the future.
Parwal (Pointed Gourd) Fry
Tasty Parwal (Pointed Gourd) Fry with very simple spices…
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Parwal (Pointed Gourd)
- 1 lb Potato (optional) slices or strips
- 2 tbsp Sambar powder
- 1 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1 twig Curry leaves optional
- Salt to taste
- 3 tbsp oil
If sambar powder is not available
- 1 tbsp Chili powder
- ½ tbsp Coriander powder
Instructions
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Wash parwal and trim both ends and then cut them horizontally into slices. You can also cut them vertically into quarters.
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Mix sambar powder (if sambar powder is not available, add substitute ingredients), turmeric powder, salt to taste, sprinkle some water and mix well.
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Take a wide non-stick pan, pour oil, when it is hot, add cut parwal pieces mixed with spices, fry for two or three minutes and cover and cook in medium heat for 5 mins.
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Open the lid, stir contents well and continue cooking (without lid) for another 10 mins or so until it gets fully cooked. Add one more tablespoon of oil, mix well and roast till the parwal pieces shrink and are roasted well.
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When this dish is cooked with potatoes, it tastes even better. Enjoy with dal or roti.
Hello, my name is Senthil. I am a passionate food blogger from Houston, Texas. This is my online kitchen, and I will be cooking delicious recipes for you, provide kitchen tips that I have learned over the years, and share personal stories and fond memories around food. Keep checking out for new stuff!
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