Bittergourd Two Times

Growing up, bittergourd was one of my favorite vegetables. Hey, I never claimed to be normal in any respect! I think my mother was shocked that I would relish it, but she could never bring herself to eat it. I still adore this gourd that gets so little respect, so when Pooja announced bittergourd for this month's VOTW, I was totally excited!!

I'm sharing two recipes here. One is my Amma's recipe for bittergourd fry that she used to make all the time at home and I just adore it. It's a very simple one that even Amma will eat! The other recipe is one that sort of came about in Amma telling me about something that my Anni (brother's wife) made recently with green bananas. I tweaked things around and a new dish was born. It's a beautiful baby, if I may say so myself!

Amma's Bittergourd Fry:


One thing to keep in mind is that the bittergourd amount will reduce dramatically in cooking them. 2 medium bittergourds will feed about 2-3 people as a side dish.

This particular dish is meant to be fairly spicy with the heat coming from green chillies and black pepper. It sounds so simple, but is absolutely delightful! You can soak the bittergourd in salt and squeeze it out, if you want, but we never do.


Ingredients:

Bittergourd - 2 medium, chopped finely
Green chillies - 5-6
Black pepper powder - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

For seasoning:

Oil
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - 4-5 leaves

Method:

Heat oil in a pan. Season with mustard seeds and curry leaves. Add the green chillies and fry for a few seconds. Now, add the bittergourd pieces and salt to taste. Fry on medium heat until the bittergourd is cooked and crispy. Turn off and serve as a side dish. It goes really well with sambar, rasam, even non-veg dishes and curd rice. Enjoy!



Bittergourd Tamarind Masala:


This one involves cooking of the bittergourd with tamarind and then seasoning it with masala. Onions, tamarind, and a little sugar are used to compensate for the bitterness. Like I said, it's the first time I made this and I will definitely be making this again!!

The taste was out of this world! I adored the combination of the sourness with the spice and slightly bitter taste of the gourds. Simply fabulous!!


Ingredients:

Bittergourd - 1 medium, chopped into large dice
Onion - 1 medium, chopped
Tamarind - 1 gooseberry size, soaked in water and pulp extracted
Jaggery - 1 tsp, or to taste (optional, to balance the sourness)
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Chilly powder - 2 tsp, or to taste
Fennel powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste

For seasoning:

Oil
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves - 4-5, torn

Method:

1. Place bittergourd in a pan with tamarind pulp, jaggery, a pinch of salt, and just enough water to cook the gourds. Cook until done and keep aside.

2. In another pan, heat oil until hot. Season with mustard seeds and curry leaves.

3. Add onions and fry until golden brown. Then, add the masala powders (turmeric, chilly, fennel powders) and fry for a few seconds until you smell their aroma.

4. Now, add the cooked bittergourd and salt to taste. Saute on high heat until the masala has coated the bittergourds well and the flavors have come together. If it looks too dry, add a touch of water. Turn off and serve.

You can serve this as a side dish or a main dish. It is just too good mixed with rice!!

Also, vary the consistency to your liking. You can certainly make it thinner for more of a gravy consistency as well. Enjoy!!

I am sending both of these delicious dishes to dear Pooja. I hope she enjoys these as much as I do!