Momordica cymbalaria (M. cymbalaria) is one of the species of cucurbitaceae family. The plant is a perennial climber available only during the monsoon season and is found in the south Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharastra, and Tamil Nadu. India is the second largest producer of vegetables in the world after china. As per ICMR recommendation vegetable consumption is 280g/day, but the actual consumption of vegetable is only 135g/day. This gap is due to load on production of conventional foods. To overcome this challenge, it is essential to explore the available underutilized vegetables. These underutilized vegetables are far superior in nutrition and have medicinal properties along with high crop yield potential. The crop is valued for its edible fruits, and leaves as vegetable and its tubers are mainly preferred for medicinal purpose. The beta-carotene content of karchikai was 224.9 Ig/100 g and that of sponge gourd and ridge gourd was 200I.U/100 g and 55 I.U/100 g respectively. Karchikai contained a higher amount of ascorbicacid160.77mg/100 g on a fresh weight basis. The iron and phosphorous content of karchikai was also found to be higher (130.00 mg and 5.50 mg/100 g, respectively) compared to other species. The nutrient contents of Fruits of the two vegetables M. cymbalaria (Karchikai) and Momordica charantia (Bittergourd) are compared. The calcium content of Karchikai is three times higher than that of the Bitter gourd. The higher concentration of this nutrient in Karchikai may be exploited and used. The ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) content of Karchikai is two times higher than that of Bitter gourd. The drying of foods in the open sun is a practice being followed in many countries since ancient times, especially by individual households and small scale enterprises. Drying is a part of many conventional food preparations. It also helps to impart special taste and store food items for longer periods. Spray drying technology has given major contribution in drying of liquid products and stores it for high shelf life. The karchikai juice was made into powder by using spray dryer. Maltodextrin was added as binding agent. The proximate analysis and physiological properties was carried out of all the samples.

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