Lauki Juice Recipe (Ghiya Juice, Bottle Gourd Juice)
Learn how to make lauki juice at home in 10 minutes. This bottle gourd juice recipe covers the right ratio, taste fixes, and one safety rule most blogs skip.
Servings: 2 people
Ingredients
- 1 medium lauki (ghiya, bottle gourd)
- 10-15 mint leaves
- 1 inch ginger peeled and chopped
- 1 cup water plus more if needed
- 1 teaspoon black salt
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
- ½ teaspoon roasted cumin powder
- ice cubes for serving
- mint spring for serving
Instructions
- Wash and peel the lauki: Rinse a medium-sized bottle gourd well under running water to remove any surface dirt. Peel it fully with a vegetable peeler, then cut off and discard both ends. The stem end especially can hold concentrated bitter compounds, so trim generously (about half an inch on each side). We need 300 grams of bottle gourd.
- Taste-test before proceeding: This is the most important step. Cut a small raw slice and taste it. A safe lauki tastes sweet or completely neutral. If you get even a hint of bitterness, discard the entire vegetable. Bitterness isn't limited to one spot, and cooking or blending will not neutralize it.
- Cube the lauki: Cut the peeled lauki into small, even cubes so they blend easily. If the seeds look mature, hard, or discolored, scoop them out with a spoon; tender young lauki has soft, pale seeds that are perfectly fine to blend in.
- Blend: Add the cubed lauki to a blender jar with mint leaves, ginger, water, black salt, lime juice, and roasted cumin powder. Blend on high until completely smooth, scraping down the sides once if needed.
- Strain: Pour the mixture through a fine sieve or a piece of muslin cloth set over a bowl, pressing with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. If you don't mind extra fiber, skip this and drink it as is.
- Adjust consistency: Check the texture; if it feels too thick to pour or drink easily, add some more water, a few tablespoons at a time, and stir well.
- Serve: Pour into 2 glasses and serve right away for the freshest flavor and best texture. Add a few ice cubes to each glass if you like it cold. You can also garnish it with a mint sprig.
Nutrition
Calories: 10kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 0.4g | Fat: 0.2g | Saturated Fat: 0.03g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.04g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 1172mg | Potassium: 58mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 0.2g | Vitamin A: 221IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 1mg
