Dondakaya Ullipaya Karam | Stuffed Ivy Gourd

Stuffed vegetables are always liked by everybody at my place. The thought of biting into a soft fleshy whole vegetable with a delicious spicy mixture stuffed in it makes me hungry.
I have already posted various stuffed vegetables like Vankaya Ullipaya Karam, Stuffed Bitter gourd, Kakarakaya Ullipaya karam where the stuffing for few is almost the same and only the cooking methods slightly differ for vegetables.The stuffing of sweet and spicy mixture of onion works great for stuffed vegetables.

Dondakaya Ullipaya Karam Recipe:
(Serves 3-4)

Ingredients:
20-25 Tindora/Tendli/Dondakaya/Ivy gourd
3 large Onions,diced roughly
1/2 tsp thick Tamarind extract
1 tsp Red chili powder
a sprig of Curry leaves
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
Salt to taste
3-4 tbsp Oil

Method:

• Wash the ivy gourds and make a slit on one side lengthwise and microwave at high with 1/4 cup of water for 3-4 mins.
  
• Pulse diced onions with salt,tamarind extract and red chili powder in a whipper mode for 5 seconds a couple of times.The resultant mixture should be very chunky with onion bits here and there.This is an important step,so please don't mess up here..we want a chunky mixture not the paste.
  
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a kadai and crackle mustard seeds and add curry leaves and fry for 30 seconds.Add the pulsed onion mixture and fry well until the mixture is completely dry and cooked,it takes approximately 8-10 mins.Fry the mixture on medium flame and stir it in between and take care not to burn the mixture.Cool the mixture.
• Meanwhile in another wide and deep bottomed kadai heat 1 tbsp oil and add cooked and drained ivy gourds and fry for a couple of minutes.Cover it with a deep plate and pour half cup of water over it and cook the ivy gourds over medium flame for 7-8 minutes until they are cooked.Cool them.You can alternatively deep fry the ivy gourds for 2-3 minutes but I don't prefer this process for the amount of oil it consumes.It is left to your choice.
  
• Stuff the fried onion mixture in the fried ivy gourds and keep them aside.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in the same kadai(in which ivy gourds are fried) and place the ivy gourds carefully and fry over medium - high flame for 3-4 mins until the edges turn crisp and charred.
  

Serve them hot with hot steamed rice.
Notes:

1. The key taste in this stuffed ivy gourd curry is the fried onion mixture,so stuff as much onion mixture as you can.
2. The amount of oil is completely left to your choice as the addition of more makes the entire process fast,easy and tasty.I hardly used 2 tbsp oil in the entire process.
   
3. For a variation add 2-3 garlic pods while grinding the mixture,it gives a nice taste too.
4. The same stuffing can be used to make vegetables like Brinjal,Bitter gourd,Ladies finger and ridge gourd.