Pavakkai (Karela) Chips

I know a lot of people, who don't like Pavakkai (karela) and even refuse to taste it. I was one among the lot till last month, but after much persuasion from my mom decided to give it a try for Tamil New Yr's. She said for first timers, frying the karela was a good choice. Now after tasting it I have to agree that its not bad at all. Honestly this would not be my favorite dish, but with all its health benefits I wouldn't mind having it once in a while.

Ingredients:

Pavakkai (Karela) (sliced) - 2 cups
Chilli powder - 2 tsp (can be changed according to taste)
Salt - as needed
Turmeric - 1 tsp
Oil - for frying



Method:

Discard the seeds and slice the pavakkai into thin rounds. Wash and let dry. Sprinkle all the powders on top. Add as less water as needed to coat the pavakkai slices with the powder. Let it marinate for 15-20 min and then deep fry in oil, till it turns crispy. Remove and strain on a kitchen towel. You can store this in an air tight container for up to 2 weeks. Serve with rice and sambar.

Comments

DEEPA said…
wow !!!! deepz...one of my favt veegi is pavakka...looks great and yummy ...it must be great with curd rice...
7:32 AM
Suganya said…
WOW......Nice way to eat pavakkai...Its simple and nice.... I was searching for some nice recipe for pavakkai....I think i will give this a try...
1:15 PM
Meera's Blog said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
9:33 PM
Meera's Blog said…
beautiful pic:)i sometimes soak this in water mixed with yogurt over night, and drain the water and dry it for a while.if the weather isnt good i keep it in the oven at the lowest temperature.after you fry it,you can keep it in air tight containers for a long time:)
i used to hate pavakka too:)
9:35 PM
Deepz said…
Thanks Deepa. It does taste good with curd rice.

Thamks Sukanya. It is a very easy recipe to try.

Thanks Meera for your suggestion. I will definitely try your method the next time.
3:25 PM
Anonymous said…
deepz i love paaavakaai ..esp during pregnancy i had a craving for paavakaai (i know its wierd though) :) i usually make this in the conventional oven to avoid the usage of oil .. as u mentioned i mix all the powders along with karela ,pre heat the oven and then keep this .. no need to pour oil at all. with that heat itself it gives yummy crispy chips.
4:08 PM
Deepz said…
Thanks gayathri for your healthy suggestion. I will try it the next time.
1:37 PM
ashadas said…
yesterday i tried in the same way what u said but it does not work good. bcoz after washing the cutted pavakkai's it was so watery even though i had those masalas...sorry for my feedback give me some suggestions......
12:10 AM
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