Lauki Muthiya or Dudhi Na Muthiya is a popular snack from Gujarat. It is a very nutritious and filling recipe. This steamed snack is made with grated bottle gourd that is mixed with wheat flour, chickpea flour (besan), sooji (semolina), and flavored with assorted spices.
Muthiya or muthia literally translates into a fist. We make the dough as a cylinder or circle by pressing it between the palms and then steaming it. I love Gujarati food and have a great affinity towards various snacks that they make.
No one can say no to Dhokla and we are no exception. My boys can literally eat dhokla anytime I make it. If you are looking to make an Instant dhokla, then take a look at this Instant sooji / rava dhokla as well.
I have a lot of Gujarati friends and they know that I am a foodie. I would always be greeted with tons of food and I have had an opportunity to learn traditional recipes like these from them.
I make dudhi na muthiya very often during summer with our homegrown fresh bottle gourd. The whole summer, we are blessed with a big bounty of bottle gourds and I make several recipes with it.
Why make this recipe?
- Dudhi muthiya is a very easy-to-make and filling snack. It is a great snack to serve in the evenings with a cup of hot tea.
- Lauki Muthiya is very healthy as it is steamed and then pan-fried.
- It is a vegan recipe and is made with basic Indian ingredients found in the pantry.
- It takes less than an hour to make the dudhi na muthiya recipe and it feeds a crowd.
- If you have an Instant Pot, use it to steam the muthiyas.
Ingredients and substitutes
Check the recipe card at the bottom of the page for exact measurements and printable detailed recipes.
Lauki / Bottle gourd - Dudhi or lauki or bottle gourd is that star ingredient in this Muthiya recipe. We use grated and squeezed bottle gourd to make this recipe. Muthiya or also made with greens such as methi (fenugreek leaves) or spinach. We can also use grated zucchini or cabbage to make muthiya.
Flours - I use wheat flour, semolina/sooji / rava, and gram flour/besan.
Other vegetables - We will be using green chilies, ginger, and cilantro in our muthiya dough.
Spices - I add turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt, sugar, and some baking soda in the dough.
Seasoning - We will season the muthiya and pan-fry them adding mustard seeds, cumin seeds, sesame seeds, curry leaves, asafetida and then add lemon juice and more cilantro in the end.
Step-by-step process
- Peel the bottle gourd and grate it. Bottle gourd has a very high water content, so squeeze out as much as water you can from the vegetable and keep the vegetable in a large mixing bowl. Do not discard the squeezed-out water. Keep it aside as this will be the water we will use to knead the dough.
- In the bowl with the vegetable, add all the ingredients mentioned above (except the seasoning ingredients). Mix well using your hands and form a soft dough. Use the squeezed bottle of gourd water to make the dough. Cover the dough and keep it to rest for about 20 minutes.
- Heat water in the steamer. Using wet hands make cylindrical shaped muthias from the dough and layer them on a greased steamer plate. Repeat the same with the rest of the dough and then steam the muthias for about 18 - 20 minutes. Insert a fork in the muthias to see if it comes out clean. If the fork comes out clean, then the muthias are done.
- I use Instant Pot to steam my muthiya. I steam it on steam mode with the vent open for about 18 minutes. Make sure to keep a timer externally as the timer will not count down when the vent is open.
- Remove the steamed muthias and let it cool down a bit. Then slice them into ½-inch thick pieces.
- Heat 2 tablespoon of oil in a wide pan and add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, sesame seeds, curry leaves, and asafetida.
- Fry for a few minutes and then add the sliced muthias. Mix gently to coat and let it cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add the lemon juice and cilantro and stir.
- Serve the Dudhi Muthia with sweet tamarind chutney and green chutney!
Expert Tips
- Make sure to remove as much as moisture you can from the grated bottle gourd. Otherwise, the dough will become very soft and will be hard to shape it. If at all your dough becomes too soft, place a ladle full of sough in idli plates and steam. We can then slice it into long logs.
- After steaming the dough, let it sit for a few minutes, and then insert a fork or knife into the steamed dough. If the fork or knife comes out clean, then we know that it is entirely cooked. Otherwise, steam it for a few more minutes.
- Make sure to pan-fry the dudhi na muthiyas until they become slightly crunchy on the outside. I love using a wide pan or a wok for this purpose.
Frequently asked question
Muthiya can also be made with greens such as methi (fenugreek leaves) or spinach. We can also use grated zucchini or cabbage to make muthiya. We can also use a mixture of carrot, zucchini, and cabbage to make muthiya.
Yes, we can make lauki muthia gluten-free. Instead of using wheat flour and semolina, we can use gluten-free flour like jowar flour along with besan to make them.
I have refrigerated it for 2 - 3 days and used it. I also freeze a batch of muthiya when making a large quantity and then thaw it and use it. They freeze great. You can freeze them before seasoning or after seasoning.
Yes, use a wide pot or pan and fill it halfway with water. Then place a greased plate on top of the pot and place the shaped logs. Cover the pot and steam. You could also place the shaped muthiyas on an idli plate.
More Bottle gourd recipes
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Recipe
Lauki Muthiya | Dudhi Na Muthiya | Steamed Bottle Gourd Snack
Equipment
- pan
- bowl
- spatula
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 2 cups Lauki /Doodhi/bottle gourd Or about 2 cups (grated
- 1 cup Wheat flour
- ¾ cup Rava/semolina/sooji
- ¾ cup Besan /Gram flour
- 2 Green chilies Chopped into small pieces
- 2 inches Ginger Grated
- ½ teaspoon Baking soda
- 2 teaspoon Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 1 Tablespoon Oil Plus more for greasing the steamer trays
- to taste Salt
- 2 Tablespoon Cilantro Chopped
TO SEASON THE STEAMED MUTHIAS –
- 2 Tablespoon Oil
- 2 teaspoon Mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 2 Tablespoon Sesame seeds
- few Curry leaves
- ¼ teaspoon Asafetida
- 2 Tablespoon Lemon juice
- to garnish Cilantro
Instructions
- Peel the bottle gourd and grate it. Bottle gourd has very high water content, so squeeze out as much as water you can from the vegetable and keep the vegetable in a large mixing bowl. Do not discard the squeezed out water. Keep it aside as this will be the water we will use to knead the dough.
- In the bowl with the vegetable, add all the ingredients mentioned above (except the seasonings). Mix well using your hands and form a soft dough. Use the squeezed vegetable water to make the dough. Cover the dough and keep it to rest for about 20 minutes.
- Heat water in the steamer. Using wet hands make cylindrical shaped muthias from the dough and layer them on a greased steamer plate. Repeat the same with the rest of the dough and then steam the muthias for about 20-25 minutes. Insert a fork in the muthias to see if it comes out clean. If the fork comes out clean, then the muthias are done.
- Remove the steamed muthias and let it cool down a bit. Then slice them into ½ inch thick pieces.
- Heat 2 tablespoon of oil in a wide pan and add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, sesame seeds, curry leaves and asafetida.
- Fry for a minutes and then add the sliced muthias. Mix gently to coat and let it cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add the lemon juice and cilantro and stir.
- Serve with sweet tamarind chutney and green chutney!
Notes
- Make sure to remove as much as moisture you can from the grated bottle gourd. Otherwise the dough will become very soft and will be hard to shape it. If at all your dough becomes too soft, place a ladle full of sough in idli plates and steam. We can then slice it into longer logs.
- After steaming the dough, let it sit for few minutes and then insert a fork or knife in the steamed dough. If the fork or knife comes out clean, then we know that it entirely cooked. Otherwise steam it for few more minutes.
- Make sure to pan fry the muthiyas until they become slightly crunchy on the outside. I love using a wide pan or a wok for this purpose.
Lalitha says
Hi..if i want to make it for a gathering, can i make steam and keep them one or 2 days before and then season and fry them on the day of the party?
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
Hi Lalitha, yes. You can absolutely make them ahead of time and then heat it through and season.
Skye says
As an Australian who loves Indian cuisine it’s so great your recipe blog so I can try things too. I made this last night and it was delicious!! Thank you so much for sharing 🙏
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
Thank you so much for trying and your feedback.
Hayley Dhanecha says
We made your dudhi muthiya earlier this week and they came out perfectly thanks to your expert tips. We will be making this version of yours again and again!
Amrita Roy says
Thank you for sharing this healthy snacking idea. I followed your recipe and prepared lauki muthia which turned out so perfect and tasty.
Vandana says
Made it yesterday and it came out really well. Till now I was making only kofte or sabzi with lauki. Now, I will make muthia too. Thanks for this recipe.
Seema Sriram says
This is the first time the muthia did not fall apart when I was stirfying it. Love your recipe, now I feel confident making it more often.
Pavani says
Made this lauki muthiya recipe and it turned out absolutely amazing. We love Gujarati food too and this was such a lovely dish to make. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Lata Lala says
Making muthiya is a regular at my place since it has all the good things and very healthy also. Your muthiya have turned out perfect with beautiful colour on top Sandhya.
Superb recipe.
Neha says
I had only tried methi muthiya. But today when I tried your steamed lauki muthiya it was awesome. I shall make more of it
Mayuri Patel says
Sandhya I usually make muthiya with besan and sooji only. Today, when I made some, added wheat flour follwoing your recipe. The texture was a bit different, much softer and delicious.
Harini Rupanagudi says
One of my fav dishes. Love your presentation.
Suma Gandlur says
We love these muthiya too. They make an awesome evening snack or a light dinner.
Radha says
This is a classic snack and we love this in our home. The step by step instruction is amazing. Love your recipe.
Srivalli Jetti says
These are my favorite snack Sandhya, all the time I make it, I end up eating more than I can..heheh...very nicely clicked pictures.
Sushma Pinjala says
one of my favorite snack. Perfectly made.
Vaishali says
Our favourite ! We love these muthia’s and make them very often as a light dinner. Gujrati’s serve them with some chai and fried chillies . Now I am tempted to make some right away.
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
Thanks Vaishali! It is one of our favorite too and love as a light dinner.