Simple and delicious ridge gourd chutney for rice, popularly known as peerkangai thogayal or thuvaiyal!
Check how I make my ridge gourd chutney with detailed step-wise pictures and video.

overhead shot of pperkangai thuvaiyal in a glass jar with spoonful of chutney

We love vegetable-based chutneys, and this ridge gourd or the peerkangai chutney is yet another favorite chutney of ours. Ok, this doesn’t mean that we don’t like our paruppu thogayal (Toor dal chutney) and thengai thogayal (coconut urad dal chutney). Ok, we love our chutneys, Period. :-)

When I can’t make elaborate meals, I opt for vegetable-based chutney and serve it with plain steamed rice with a dollop of gingelly oil or ghee and papad. It’s a delicious combo, and if you haven’t tried it, please do try, and I am sure you will thank me later. :-) Check out some of the delicious chutney recipes below.

Ridge gourd is one of the staple veggies in my kitchen, and I buy them regularly. Ridge gourd kootu and rice come in regular rotation, too, along with this chutney.

Ridge gourd is known as peerkangai in Tamil, turai in Hindi, and beerakaya in Telugu. The chutney with this veggie is quite popular. The tender ridge gourd peel chutney is quite common in Tamil Nadu. As it’s hard to find the fresh and tender ridge gourd, I usually discard the peel use the flesh of this veggie for the chutney.

If your ridge gourd is fresh and tender, you can include the peels as well. You can make chutney exclusive with ridge gourd peels. You might need the peels from 2 to 3 medium-sized ridge gourd.

Dietary specifications and serving suggestions

This chutney recipe is vegan by nature, and you can skip asafoetida or use gluten-free asafoetida to make it gluten-free.

So far, I have stored this chutney for up to 3 days in the refrigerator. Store it in an air-tight container and also use a clean spoon for every use.

ridgegourd chutney store in glass container placed on a wooden board with red chilies on the side

As I mentioned before, you can serve this chutney with plain rice, yogurt rice, and other tiffin items like idli, dosa, and upma. You can pair it with coconut rice and lemon rice too.

The recipe is straightforward. We first roast the lentils and then cook the veggie. Then grind them all with salt and tamarind. I have both video and step-wise pictures for this recipe. Do check it out.

Watch me make ridge gourd chutney.

Ridge gourd chutney recipe with detailed step-wise pictures

Heat a pan or kadai and add ½ tsp of oil. When the oil is hot, add the urad dal, chana dal, and asafoetida. Roast them until the dal are light golden brown.

Now add the dried red chilies and roast until the chilies are crisp and the dals turn deep red-brown. (In Tamil, we say sivakka varukanum)

roasting the lentils till it turn deep red color

Transfer it to a mixer jar and let it cool. Meanwhile, we can cook the ridge gourd. Grind the lentils coarsely before adding the ridge gourd.

transferring the roasted lentils to a mixer jar

In the same pan or kadai, heat ½ tsp of oil and add the ridge gourd along with cilantro. Saute until the ridge gourd turns soft and mushy. Then turn off the heat.

cook the ridge gourd along with cilantro

Let it cool and transfer it to the mixer jar that has coarsely ground lentils. Add salt and tamarind paste.

grinding the lentils and veggies together

Grind the mixture without adding any water.

In a separate tempering pan, heat 1 tsp oil, and when the oil is hot, add ½ tsp mustard seeds and few curry leaves.

When the mustard seeds splutter, add them to the chutney. Serve the chutney with plain rice or idli/dosa and other tiffin items.

overhead shot of peerkangai thuvaiyal in a glass jar with spoonful of chutney

Recipe Notes

Cilantro adds a unique flavor, but it’s completely optional. Along with cilantro, few curries leaves as well.
You can add ¼ cup of coconut, mainly if you serve this with idli or dosa.
Instead of Red chilies, you can also use green chilies.
Make sure the ridge gourd is not bitter. If it’s bitter, the chutney doesn’t come out well.
I typically don’t add water while grinding. It also helps in longer shelf-life. But if needed, you can add up to ¼ cup of water while grinding this chutney.

Explore other chutney recipes for rice

If you try this peerkangai thogayal, please don’t forget to comment and rate this recipe. If you have any questions, please leave a comment, and I will get to it asap. Make sure to follow me on my Pinterest for more healthy and delicious ideas! Follow me on Instagram or join my Facebook Group for more gardening and recipe updates.