
Last year, during the monsoons, I came across a peculiar (to me anyways) vegetable that somehow had never caught my attention before. Even though it was new to me, I decided not to give into temptation and buy it. This vegetable belongs to the family of gourds, is small, green and looks like a cousin of the bitter gourd/ bitter melon but covered all over in small soft spines.
Green when unripe with soft whitish seeds inside, it turns yellow when mature and seeds harden and turn brown. Apparently, it makes an appearance every year during the monsoons and I have been here in Goa long enough to have seen it before.
This vegetable is known as the Spine Gourd for obvious reasons and locally referred to as “Phaagil” or “Phagla” It is quite expensive and so much of a favourite that people will wait every monsoon for its arrival at the market and gladly pay whatever it costs to take some home!
I have not seen this vegetable back home, but I understand it is grown and cooked in various parts of Indian including Maharashtra, parts of the Konkan coast, Chattisgarh, Orissa and the North Eastern states. Only the green and tender fruit is used and it is cooked in many different ways.
It is known by various names locally wherever it is eaten and you might recognise this vegetable as Meetha Karela, Khekhsa, Padora, Bhaat Karela, Kakrol, Kankro, Kantola, Aakakarakaya, Phagla, Phaagil, Ban Karela, Bhat Karola or Kartoli!

Some people call the Spine Gourd the Teasel Gourd, but that is a different vegetable. The Teasel Gourd has longer spines and looks more like Rambutan. Though Spine Gourd brings to mind the bitter gourd/ melon, it is generally not bitter thought one might be able to discern a mild bitterness in some fruits (they’re fruit rather than vegetable actually)
It is the season once again, for the Spine Gourd, and as I was assured that it was not bitter, I brought back some from my visit to the market last week. I decided to inaugurate our Spine Gourd taste buds by making “Phodi” out of them. “Phodi” are the Goan way of coating sliced vegetables in a spicy rice flour or semolina mix (or a mixture of both) and then pan-frying them till crisp.
People in Goa love their “Phodi” and it invariably pops up as a side dish at lunch. That’s really not surprising because I don’t know of anyone who could resist fritters that are fried with a thin crisp delicious coating but not greasy.
So you will find Goans making Phodi out of fish as well as a wide variety of vegetables which have very little moisture/ wetness in them like potato (batata), eggplant (vayngan), raw banana (kele), bitter gourd/ melon(karate), elephant yam (suran), ivy gourd (tendli) and spine gourd (phaagil)
In fact, for Ganesh Chathurthi and other festivities here, there is a tradition of making Phodi out of 5 different vegetables and serving it during the festive lunch.

Since this was first tryst with a vegetable that I had never eaten or cooked, and wasn’t sure how it would taste. Now gourds are mostly not big in the taste department by themselves and usually take on flavours of whatever they are cooked with.
I did not really want any unexpected surprises after cooking them, so I decided to make Phodi with my Spine Gourds. In my experience, if there is a way to disguise a vegetable well enough for most people to like it, then it is by frying it!
An added bonus is that this dish is also vegan and gluten-free!
Phaagila (Phagla) or Kantola Phodi (Pan Fried Spine Gourd Fritters)

Phaagila (Phagla) or Kantola Phodi (Pan Fried Spine Gourd Fritters) & Announcing The Winner Of The BongMom Cookbook!
Ingredients
- 1/2 tsp salt About
- 1/2 cup rice flour about fine
- 1 1/2 tsps red chilli powder (according to taste)
- 1/4 tsp asafoetida powder
- 1 tsp cumin powder (optional)
- to taste salt A little more , if necessary ,
Instructions
- Wash the spine gourds well, and trim both ends. Slice them lengthwise into 4 or 5 slices of uniform thickness and then sprinkle the 1/2 tsp salt over this. Toss well to coat the slices uniformly and keep aside for 10 minutes. This will flavour the slices with salt. It will also make them release a little liquid which will help the dry rice flour-spice powder stick to them well.
- In the meanwhile, mix together the rice flour, chilli powder, cumin powder (if using), asafoetida and salt a small bowl. Just add a little salt as the spine gourd slices have already been slated.
- Now press each spine gourd slice into the rice flour-spice powder so that it coats both sides really well and sticks to them.
- Heat about half the oil in a shallow and flat pan or griddle and place the flour-spice coated slices gently on it, in a single layer. Turn down the heat to medium and let the slices fry in the oil. After a couple of minutes, gently flip them over and let them cook on the other side as well. Cook the slices until theyu2019re crisp and a nice golden brown on both sides.
- Place on paper towels and serve immediately (slightly warm) as a side dish with rice and a curry. This can also be served as a snack with some sauce for evening tea.
Very good recipe tried yesterday goes well with rice and daal.
Great, as a Goan I very much enjoy Phagla fries. Have to wait for Shravan month but worth it.
I agree. 😀