Boodida-Gummadikaya Vadiyalu/Ash-Gourd Vadiyams/Poosanikai Vadam

Apart from making pickles during summer time, making vadiyalu/vadams/vadis and papads to stock up for the entire year was another big process that would take place at my grandparent's house.My grandmother,mom and aunts with the help of neighbours and maids would make these in large batches.My grandmother used to make them enough to give them to her daughters and sons families and also to save some for her and my grandfather.She used to share some with neighbours and other relatives too. So imagine how many she had to make and to how many she had to share to help them for the entire year.

Summer time used to be a very busy time for the kids and adults too.We kids used to enjoy the mangoes,palm fruits(munjikayalu),sugarcane and all the snacks that my grand-mother would make for us apart from all the pickles and vadis.My grandmother would never get tired,she used to cook happily several dishes in a jiffy even when guests came in the middle of the night , inspite of all the work during the whole day.

We always used to get our pickles,vadiyalu and appadalu from my grandparents house.We used to eat very less pickles so my mother would get small bottles of all the variety of pickles my grandmother made and also a combination of the different vadiyalu.After my grandmother passed away my mother makes them at home.Till last year I used to get everything from my mother when I visited India.

Ashgourd or Boodida-Gummadikaya is a very useful gourd .It has great medicinal values and used in cooking too.Last year when I went grocery shopping to an Indian store I saw that they were having Ash Gourd(Boodida Gummadikaya) and immediately brought one home and called my mom for the recipe.She gave me the recipe and I made the vadiyams.It felt like I really achieved something when I made the vadiyalu on my own.They tasted very good and I could get 100 vadiyams from that medium sized gummadikaya.I am planning to make them this year too.

Just sharing this recipe ahead (with few pictures I had taken last year) so that you can get ready with this recipe for the summer to try it----------------

Main Ingredients :

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Boodida Gummadikaya/Ash Gourd.............1(med)

Urad Daal...................................................1/4kg

Saggubiyyam/Sago......................................50g

Green Chilly Paste.......................................to your taste

Seasoning Ingredients :

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Asafoetida/Hing........................................1/4tsp

Salt...........................................................to taste

Preparation :

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Wash the ashgourd and wipe it clean.Cut it with the peel on ,into small pieces(2inch).You will need a nice big knife to cut it as this gourd is little hard skinned.

After cutting into pieces rub some salt to the pieces and place all these pieces in a cotton cloth and lock the cloth by twisting it .

You need to place this cloth of pieces in a strainer/colander and put heavy weight on this cloth of pieces and leave it like that throughout the night.(You can place this near the sink so that all the water strains into the sink,if not you can put the colander in a big dish so that all the water collects into it and you can discard that water).

After prepping the ash-gourd is done,take the urad daal nicely rinse it and soak it in water(Urad daal needs to soak atleast for 4 hours.)

Next day morning remove the  weight from the pieces and discard the strained juices.

Rinse the urad daal one more time and grind it with less water to a thick batter.While grinding you can add the chillies according to your taste(more or less) and grind the batter.

Now add the ashgourd pieces to the urad-chilli batter and also add sago/Sabudana to the(you don't have to soak sago).

Now add hing and salt , first taste test the  batter as we already added salt to the ashgourd pieces and then add salt as needed.

Place a nice plastic sheet,table cloth or old cotton saree on the floor and place a spoonful of batter on the cloth and keep doing that with little distance between each spoonful.

Let them dry in the hot sun for 3 to 4 days or till they dry and come out easily off the sheet.

You can store these for a whole year or more (if they are still left) in an air-tight container.

When you would like to consume them you need to deep fry these vadiyams and they are perfect sides for daals and sambar or any stew dish.

Enjoy these yummy Gummadikaya Vadiyalu.

Note :
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1) Cut the Ashgourd very carefully, do not hurt your hands.

2) Prep the Ash-gourd in the night so that by morning the pieces will be ready for making vadiyams and we can use the sunlight completely.

3) Could not take enough pictures last year.This year when I make again I will take step by step pictures and update.For now enjoy the few pictures and bookmark the recipe for this summer.

4) We add sago only to give crispiness to the vadiyams.If you do not want you can skip adding the sago.

I am sending this recipe to Mother's Day event being hosted by Jyoti.