Pavakka Poriyal - Method 1

Ingredients

• Momordica charantia | பாகற்காய் | कारवल्ली | Bitter gourd | करेला
• Asafoetida
• Ghee
• Water of washed rice
• Kaitarya | kayphal | Myrica esculenta | Box myrtle | marudham or chaviyachi maram
• Paste of black pepper
• Nutmeg powder
• Coriander powder
• Fenugreek powder
• Cumin powder

Preparation of Pakarkai Poriyal

• Clean pakarkai and cut into 3-4 pieces
• Cook it properly
• Fry cooked bitter gourd with asafoetida in ghee and keep it separately
• Add paste of black pepper to water left after washing rice
• Keep this water in a vessel on fire
• Add kaitarya powder and corriander powder 
• Add fenugreek (vendhayam), cumin powder and boil it and filter the decoction
• When this is properly cooked and thickened, remove from fire
• During serving, add fried pakarkai in the above processed thick decoction and mix properly
• It should be made fragrant with aromatic substances (nutmeg etc.)

Benefits and Properties

• It is appetizer, digestive, palatable
• It alleviates all sorts of ailments and helps subside vata - kapha disorders

Verse from Pākdarpaṇa of Nala by Dr. Madhulika P. 64-65
कानिचित्कार्वल्ल्यास्तु फलानि पुनराहरेत् । पूर्ववच्छोधयेत्तानि कल्किन्या तीव्रधारयाः ॥ ४२२ ॥
छित्वा त्रिधा चतुर्धा वा पूर्ववत्पाकवित् पचेत् । भर्जयेत्पूर्ववत्तानि रक्षेदन्यत्र बुद्धिमान् ॥ ४२३ ॥
तण्डुलस्योदकं किञ्चित् सिञ्चेद्भाण्डे ततः सुधीः ।
कल्कं च मरीचादीनां क्षिप्त्वा तत्र विलोडयेत् ॥ ४२४ ॥
जलं च तादृशं सूदो जालिन्या च विशोसधयेत् । भाण्डे निधाय् प्रपचेत् च्युल्यां तन्मेलनं बुधः ॥ ४२४ ॥

कैटर्यं तत्र निक्षिप्य धान्याकं तुं विनिक्षिपेत् । मेथीजीरकचूर्णं च क्षिप्त्वा क्वाथेऽवतारयेत् ॥ ४२३ ॥
घनसारादिभिः सम्यक् तं क्वाथमधिवासयेत् । भोजनवासरे प्राप्ते भर्जितं च सुरक्षितम् ॥ ४२७ ॥
कारवल्लिफलं तत्र निक्षिप्याथ समाहरेत् । दीपनं पाचनं रुच्यं सर्वामयहरं परम् ॥ ४२८ ॥

कारवल्लिफलमिदं श्लेष्मवातहरं परम् ॥  ४२९ ॥

Peerkanga Poriyal

Source: Agrifarming

Ingredients

• Luffa acutangula | பீர்க்கங்காய் | तुरई | Ridge gourd
• Asafoetida
• Ghee
• Water of washed rice
• Paste of black pepper
• Nutmeg powder
• Coriander powder
• Fenugreek powder
• Cumin powder

Preparation of Peerkanga Poriyal

• Clean peerkangai and cut into pieces
• Cook it properly
• Fry cooked peerkangai with asafoetida and keep it separately
• Essentially follow this.

Benefits and Properties

• It is palatable, alleviates kapha and pitta disorders
• It is light in potency, cures skin and urinary diseases
• It removes worms, cures asthma and anorexia (loss of appetite)

Verse from Pākdarpaṇa of Nala by Dr. Madhulika P. 65
कोशातकीफलस्यैवं सुजातस्य नवस्य च । कृत्वा पाकादिकं तस्य दापयेद्भक्षयेद्बुधः ॥ ४३० ॥
कोशातकीफलं रुच्यं कफ - पित्त हरं लघु । कुष्ठ - मेह - क्रिमिश्वास - कासारुचि विनाशनम् ॥ ४३१ ॥

Tender Peerkangai benefits
मधुरं गुरुपित्तघ्नं बालकोशातकीफलम् । श्लेष्मपित्तहरं दिव्यं विषमज्वरनाशनम् ॥ ४३२ ॥

The tender peerkangai is tender in taste, heavy in potency, alleviates pitta, sleshma (phlegm) and helps in subsiding malarial fever

Ripe Peerkangai Gunas (properties)
कोशातकीफलं पक्व लालासृक् क्रिमिनाशनम् । वृष्यं विषघनं मधुरं महाकोशातकीफलम् ॥ ४३३ ॥
The ripe peerkangai alleviates excessive salivation. It cures blood disorders and it is antihelmenthic (removes worms). It promotes sexual vigour, it is antitoxic and it is sweet in taste

A reason, why pujAris won't ever accept peerkangai when offered.

Kambupudalai poriyal

Got wondering what is the difference between kundru (kovaika) and parwal (kambupudalai). Kambupudalai has ladys fingers like seeds, slightly bigger, elliptical, stouter than kovaika.
Before reading this book, had never bought nutmeg all these years.

source

.

source

source

Nutmeg should be powdered

Ingredients

• Kambupudalai | Trichosanthes dioica | पटोल | परवल 
• Asafoetida
• Ghee
• Water of washed rice
• Paste of black pepper
• Nutmeg powder
• Coriander powder
• Fenugreek powder
• Cumin powder

Preparation of Pudalai poriyal

• Clean kambupudalai and cut into pieces
• Half boil kambupudalai in water
• Once cooked fry it with ghee and asafoetida and keep it separately
• Add paste of black pepper to water left after washing rice
• After sometime filter this water
• Keep this water in a vessel on fire
• Add nutmeg powder, corriander, fenugreek, cumin powder
• When this is properly cooked, remove from fire
• During serving, add fried kambupudalai in the above processed water and mix properly
• It should be made fragrant with aromatic substances tied with thread 

Benefits and Properties

• It is hot in potency and sweet post digestion (vipaka)
• Alleviates tridosha

Verse from Pākdarpaṇa of Nala by Dr. Madhulika P. 66
पटोलस्य फलं सम्यगाहरेत् सूदकोविदः । सम्भारदीन् विनिक्षिप्य तत्पचेत्पूर्ववत्पुनः ॥ ४३४ ॥
पासयित्वा पुनस्तच्च वेष्टयित्वा प्रदापयेत् । उष्णवीर्यकरं स्वादु त्रिदोषघ्नं विपाकतः ॥ ४३५ ॥

Kovaika poriyal

Source

Mom's sugar control: Siru kurinja leaves, pavaka, kovakka, knolkhol

Sedative Gasegase payasam without rice, Yummy mochakottai puli kolambu, velrika thayir pacchadi, Kovaika poriyal, maanga thokku, murukku

Kovaika with Vaazhai poo vadai

Gulkand, Vendika puli kolambu, Vaazhaipoo vadai, paapad, Chow chow poriyal, kovaika kootu

Mom prefers her sabji without coconut, dal no oil and it is opposite with me, i would fry in ghee.

Here is my first post on ivy gourd leaves. The first time, i had dinner in guruji's home, they served the most ambrosial kovaika poriyal as part of full banana leaf meals cooked on wood and served by dvijas. After chathurmas, forgot dinner concept, was not at all hungry, but this was dinner at guruji's home, so went up at 10 pm. At the sight of excellent food, served one by one so beautifully on banana leaf, ate to hearts content. So tasty it was.

Weekend trips to Trichy Gandhi market invariably would end up with kovaika, pavaka in the kattai pai, for mom's diabetes. And the hawkers would not sell anything less than a kg. I would buy vegetables from them using signs, without a word in silence. And every time, i would learn after buying, had i bought vegetables from another guy, i could have got perhaps ladys finger for Rs 5 a kg instead of Rs 10 a kg; while waiting for bus, as buyers would discuss prices. Am glad, a break from weekend traveling, no more pre-dawn, market trips right after train journey.

Kovaika reminds me of revati  nakshatra Aug 29 roomie, who said this causes mandha buddhi.

Ingredients

• கோவைக்காய் | कुन्द्रू | Ivy Gourd | Coccinia grandis | बिम्बफल
• Ghee
• Asafoetida
• Spices
• Fragrant substances like camphor

Preparation of Kovaika poriyal

• Take the tender fruit of kovaika and peel out from all sides with knife
• Cook in water
• When properly cooked, it should be fried with ghee, asafoetida
• Finally, it should be made fragrant with substances like camphor

Benefits and Properties

• It provocates sexual vigour, beneficial to eyes
• Alleviates vAta and pitta
• It helps to reduce painful discharge of urine
• It is wholesome, spermatogenic
• Helps to subside jaundice, blood disorders, tuberculosis, asthma, poly dyspepsia (indigestion) and cough

Verse from Pākdarpaṇa of Nala by Dr. Madhulika P. 66

प्रयत्नेन समादाय बिम्बस्य तरुणं फलम् । शलाकया पुनः सम्यक् छिन्द्यातच्च समन्ततः ॥ ४३६ ॥
निधायप्रवणीभाण्डे सिञ्चेत्तत्र जलं बुधः । पक्त्वा तच्च पुनः सम्यक् सर्पिषा च पुनः पचेत् ॥ ४३७ ॥
धूपयेद्धिङ्गुना तच्च वासयेत्कर्पूरादिभिः । वेष्टयित्वाथ नेत्रेण दापयेद्भोजनार्थिने ॥ ४३८ ॥
इदं बिम्बफलं वृष्यं चक्षुष्यं वातपित्तजित् । हितं कृच्छ्रहरं पथ्यं शुक्रदं कामलादिजित् ॥ ४३९ ॥
पित्तरक्तक्षयश्वासतृष्णाकासनिवारणम् ॥ ४४० ॥

பூனைக்காலி kootu | bigger variety of Velvet beans

Source

Cats tail came to mind. Normal avarai flowers are so beautiful, pinkish, lavenderish. Now this looks very exotic, seeds are cattish.

Source

source

source

Ingredients

• Fresh fruit of பூனைக்காலி | Kevanch| Mucuna Pruriens | किवांच | Velvet beans
• Ghee
• Asafoetida
• Fragrant substances like camphor
• Spices

Preparation of PoonaikAli Kootu

• The fresh seeds of velvet beans should be cooked in water
• When it is properly cooked, it should be fried with ghee and asafoetida
• Lastly it should be made fragrant with substances like camphor

Benefits

• It is alleviator of kapha and pitta
• It is sweet in taste, palatable, unctuous, extremely relishing
• Promotes sudation i.e. sweating
• It is heavy
• It provocates sexual vigour
• It is an excellent cure for dyspepsia (indigestion)

Verse from Nala's Pākdarpaṇa by Dr. Madhulikha
पूर्ववद् विपचेद्विद्वान् कोकान्दोलफलं नवम् । श्लेष्मपित्तहरं स्वादु स्निग्धं रुचिकरं परम् ॥
स्वेदनं गुरु वृष्यं च वहिन्मान्करं परम् ॥ ४४१ ॥

The previous recipe was kovakai kootu, which is given above
Caution: See ayurvedaherbs to get rid of itchiness

Preparation of Tarbooz Kootu

Source

Source

Ingredients

• Watermelon
• Black pepper powdered
• Spices
• Ghee
• Asafoetida
• Camphor
• Pugapatta (cloth smeared with herbal paste)

Preparation of Tarbooz Kootu

• The fresh and pleasant water melon should be taken
• After washing, it should be cut and cooked with water.
• Powdered black pepper should be added to it.
• When it is properly cooked with spices, it should be fried with ghee and asafoetida
• Lastly it should be made fragrant with substances like camphor, tied in pugapatta

This preparation is cardiotonic, alleviates kapha disorders.

It is appetizing, stringent and delectable.

Verse from Pākdarpaṇa of Nala by Dr. Madhulika P. 67

फलान्यादाय रम्याणि कलिङ्गस्य नवान्यथः । शोधनं छेदनं पाकं पूर्ववद्विपचेद्बुधः ॥ ४४२ ॥
योगं च मरिचादीनां कुर्यात्तेषां ततः पुनः। पाकं कृत्वा घृतेनैव भर्ज्येद्रामठेन च ॥ ४४३ ॥
वासयेद्घनसारेण  बद्ध्वा नेत्रेण दापयेत् । कलिङ्गस्य फलं छेद्यं सर्पिषा तच्च भर्जयेत् ॥ ४४४ ॥
वासयित्वा ततस्तच्च वेष्टयित्वा प्रदापयेत् । हृद्यं कफजदोषघ्नं दीपनं ग्राहिरोचनम् ॥ ४४५ ॥

Learning Sanskrit

फलान्यादाय रम्याणि कलिङ्गस्य नवान्यथः (फलान् आदाय रम्याणि कलिङ्गस्य नव अन्यथः)
         फलान् (द्वि. बहु.) Fruits
         आदाय mfn. At the end of compound, taking seizing
           ind.p. having taken, with along with
           adj. seizing, taking, proving st.
           indecl. With, along with
         रम्याणि adj. beautiful, good looking
         कलिङ्गस्य 6v of water melon
 ...to be continuded