Lau Chingri II - Squash Cooked with Ginger and Shrimp

Lau Chingri

This is a Bengali recipe that traditionally uses bottle gourd, which I often replace with chayote squash because it's more readily available. Zucchini also works well in this recipe.


Ingredients:
2 bottle gourd or 4 Chayote Squash, peeled & cut in strips
1 lb. medium size shrimp, shelled and deveined
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
1 large onion

3 green chillies or 1 jalapeno pepper, diced
2 tsp. ginger paste

1 large tomato, diced

1/4 tsp. sugar
Salt to taste

1/4 tsp. Bengali garam masala powder (ground cardamoms, cinnamon & cloves)
3-5 green chilies, slit
cilantro, chopped 
1 tsp. ghee

Directions:

1. Peel gourd or squash and cut in matchsticks.
2. Toss shrimp with salt, saute lightly in oil until pink and set aside.
3. Sputter cumin seeds and diced chilies in hot oil.
4. Add ginger paste, tomatoes and salt to taste, stir and simmer over medium heat until oil resurfaces.
5. Add gourd/squash, stir well, cover and simmer over medium heat until cooked and all water has been absorbed by the vegetables.
6. Add shrimp, stir and simmer for 5 minutes.
7. Garnish with garam masala, cilantro and ghee.  
8. Remove from heat and serve as a side dish with hot rice or naan.