Shahi Tendli | Royal Ivy Gourd Curry

Shahi Tendli is a Bengali curry recipe made with fried tindora or ivy gourd. This Indian sabzi is part of the Shahi cuisine and is delicious!

Easily make this restaurant-quality vegan dish at home using basic ingredients! 

What is Tendli

This green-colored vegetable is known by many different names - Tindora/Tendli/Ivy Gourd/Tondli/Pointed Gourd/Kovakka. 

This nutritious perineal herb is a great vegetable to cook with. It is finger-sized, green on the outside, and has white flesh with small seeds on the inside. It actually looks like a baby watermelon!

Benefits of this vegetable

Consuming or including tondli in your weekly diet is a good idea for many reasons. It's known to boost metabolism and is low in calories. 

It's also rich in vitamin C, nutrients, and minerals plus it helps with digestion. It is versatile and can be used in many Indian recipes like curries, pickles, rice, and stir-fries.

There are many health benefits to consuming this gourd. It helps inweight loss, and according to Ayurveda, it has the ability to enhance your immunity and interestingly is also an aphrodisiac. 

Besides this recipe, Tendli Rice and Tindora Fry are two of my favorite ways of cooking them. 

What's Shahi about it

My Bengali friend shared this recipe with me. It is one of her favorite curries and her mom makes it whenever they have guests over. It's part of the Shahi Indian cuisine. Shahi means Royal. 

It's got the tag 'Shahi' attached to it because of the richness in its gravy which comes due to tahini or cashews. The creamy curry texture makes it restaurant quality. 

This recipe is the perfect example of turning a regular vegetable into an exotic dish! Also, this Shahi Indian dish adds to my list of recipes from Bengali cuisine.

It is a very distinct cuisine that uses different spices and flavors. I make and love Rose Sandesh from this cuisine. 

Why make it

Shahi Tendli is a dish that you can make for your friends and family on any day. In fact, you can surprise everyone by making this dish. That's because no one expects a tindora/tendli recipe to look and taste this good!

I can assure you that once they taste this Indian sabzi, they too will become fans of this vegetable and this dish just like me! 

This tindora/tendli recipe is loaded with flavors and this curry is bound to awaken your palate. 

• It's vegan and gluten-free
• A different way to serve ivy gourd 
• Restaurant-style dish made at home
• Very easy and simple to make

Ivy Gourd - Use fresh tendli if possible. You will find them in the fresh produce section of an Indian grocery store. In fact, you will also find them in the frozen section. Select thin, firm ones with no scars on them.

Other veggies like onion and tomatoes make this recipe wholesome and flavorful. 

Spices - Ginger, garlic, cilantro, mustard seeds, chilly powder, turmeric powder, bay leaf, cloves, and cinnamon for an aromatic flavor. 

Poppy seeds - One of the most widely used spices in Bengali cuisine is poppy seeds. It's loved for its nutty aroma and taste. It is popularly used for adding a rich texture and flavor to dishes, as well as for its medicinal properties.

Tahini paste - This is used to give this dish a rich creamy texture. You can also use raw cashews instead. 

1. Rinse tendli under running water. Then chop off the ends and cut them lengthwise. 
2. Heat oil in a frying pan and shallow-fry the chopped tendli till they turn light golden brown. Do not crowd the pan, fry them in batches. Place the fried gourd on a paper towel to soak the excess oil. Set aside.
3. Then roughly chop and boil onions and tomatoes in water for 7-8 minutes. Add salt as well. Strain and let it cool down completely.
4. Transfer this to the mixer grinder along with tahini paste and poppy seeds and make a smooth paste. 
5. In the same pan, heat oil. Temper mustard seeds and then add the whole spices like bay leaf, cloves, and cinnamon. Fry for a minute.
6. Next, add minced garlic, ginger paste, and part of cilantro. Fry for 2 minutes. 
7. Then add the ground paste and saute for 3-4 minutes, or till the raw smell goes. 
8. Now, add turmeric powder and chilly powder along with salt. Mix and bring to a boil. 
9. Lastly, add the fried tendli to the pan, mix, and cook for 5-6 minutes on medium flame or till the tendli is well-cooked. 

Serving suggestions 🍽

Shahi Tendli is ready. Serve this curry with any flatbread like roti/chapati/bread or even with rice. This masala gravy is very delicious and the tendli makes it even more sumptuous. 

You can serve this Indian sabzi as the main course, pack it in lunchboxes, serve it at brunches, or as a weekday meal! It's also perfect to be served on a festive day! 

To make this a complete meal from the Shahi Indian cuisine, serve it with Sultani Dal or Shahjahani Dal and Jeera Rice. 

Top recipe tips 💭

Fresh or Frozen ivy gourd can be used. If using frozen, thaw overnight. You can also cut them in any shape you want. 

Instead of Tendli, you can also use parwal and prepare this same dish. In fact, you can use this rich gravy to cook any other vegetable like cauliflower, potatoes, tofu, or even green beans. 

If you want a more rich taste, deep fry the tendli instead of shallow frying them. It will give it a slightly different and crunchy flavor. Substitute tahini paste with raw cashews if needed.

Recipe FAQs 📖