Bitter Melon Recipes: Healthy and Delicious Meals

Five Delicious Bitter Melon Recipes

Looking for a way to add more nutrients and flavor to your meals? Bitter melon might be just what you need! This unique vegetable can be used in various dishes, from stir fries to soups. This blog post will share some of our favorite bitter melon recipes with you. We'll also provide tips on how to select and store bitter melon. So get ready to enjoy these healthy and delicious meals! If you have diabetes, these dishes will also help you control your blood sugar levels.

Bitter Melon Stir Fry

Ingredients

1 pound bitter melon One tablespoon of garlic that has been minced 1/2 teaspoon chili pepper flakes Two tablespoons of oil that is not flavorful, such as canola or peanut oil Two tablespoons of reduced-sodium soy sauce One tablespoon of balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar. 1/2 teaspoon sugar Toasted sesame oil.

Whole and half cut raw bitter gourd

How to Go About Making It

1. Wash bitter melons thoroughly.

2. Halve them along their longitudinal axis.

3. Using a modest-sized metal spoon, scrape off and dispose of the seeds.

4. Scrape the seeds out of the astringent melon.

5. Cut the meat on the diagonal into slices that are 1/4 inch thick. Using a sharp knife, cut the bitter melon into bite-sized pieces.

6. Sprinkle the slices with salt, then arrange them in a strainer and set it aside to drain for 15 minutes.

7. After seasoning the acrid melon with salt, rinse it in a strainer.

8. Combine the minced garlic and the chili pepper flakes in a small bowl and mash them together.

9. Combine the chili pepper flakes and the minced garlic in a mortar and pestle. While the wok is heating up over medium-high heat, add two teaspoons of unflavored oil to the pan. When the oil is hot, add the mixture of chilies and garlic that has been minced.

10. Stir-fry the ingredients briefly until they release their aroma, about 30 seconds. Add the bitter melon to the mixture. Stir-frying the ingredients for around two minutes before adding the soy sauce, red wine, or balsamic vinegar is recommended.

11. Mix the sugar into the mixture. Continue to cook the bitter melon for another two to three minutes, or until it turns brown and becomes softer.

12. If preferred, stir in a few drops of sesame oil and then serve the dish.

13. Add a few drops of sesame oil to the bitter melon that is in the wok and stir it together.

Bitter Melon Cooking Tips

There is a wide range of variety available for bitter melon. Those that may be found in China are typically green in color, whilst those that are cultivated and utilized in Taiwan are white in color. They are distinct from one another in terms of how they taste.

Bitter melons from Taiwan typically have a smoother consistency and a more pronounced bitter flavor. Because the skin of the bitter melon can also be eaten, there is no need to remove it before preparing the dish. Recipe Variations For a dish with a little extra "bite," try using balsamic vinegar for the red wine vinegar called for in this recipe.

However, if you have access to a quality Chinese rice wine vinegar, you should feel free to use that instead if that is what you want. Pork is another protein that goes well with bitter melon, and you can prepare it in a stir-fry, as a main dish, or with black bean sauce. If you want a savory side dish that's full of umami, give frying bitter melon with dried shrimp a shot.

How To Store?

You may keep any leftover bitter melon in the refrigerator for up to four days if you place it in a small airtight container.

How is it possible to remove the bitterness from bitter melon?

Although it is impossible to remove all bitterness from bitter melons, you can reduce it by selecting more mature melons, which are often lighter in color and have red seeds within. When extracting the seeds from bitter melon, it is important to take care not to leave any of the white pith behind.

After that, you can salt the chopped bitter melon and let it set for a while; then, before you use it, give it a gentle squeeze to remove any excess moisture. The bitterness can also be mitigated by parboiling the cut bitter melon pieces for two to three minutes in salted boiling water.

After that, you should immediately shock the pieces in ice water, pat the pieces dry and continue with the procedure. Lets move on to some awesome bitter melon recipes.  

Bitter Melon with Eggs, Stir-fried in a Chinese Style

Stir-fried bitter gourd with egg.

The combination of bitter melon and eggs in a stir-fry is a traditional dish in Chinese cuisine. It is a recipe that can be prepared fast on a weeknight without requiring the cook to thaw anything or chop a million different ingredients. The kind of recipe I would make.

The richness of the eggs is a good counterpoint to the astringency of the bitter gourd, another name for the melon. It's up there with Beef with Bitter Melon in Black Bean Sauce as one of the most reliable recipes in the book. You just need to cut the bitter gourds in half lengthwise, remove the seeds, and give them a quick blanch in the wok.

After draining them, bring your wok back up to temperature and scramble some eggs. The final step is to combine everything and add some seasoning, and then you're done! There is no need to be concerned if you have never cooked with bitter melon.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE RECIPE

1. Take each of your bitter melons and cut it in half lengthwise so that you have two equal halves.

2. A halved and sliced bitter melon along its longitudinal axis

3. Remove the seeds from the pumpkin by using a spoon. Remove any white pith that may be present inside the melon, as it has a reputation for being exceptionally bitter.

4. Bitter melon halves that have been hollowed out

5. Flip the melon over so that the side that has been hollowed out is facing the cutting board, and cut it into thin slices while moving diagonally across the board.

6. Pour some water into your wok (or a medium to large saucepan), and then toss in one teaspoon of salt. Bring it up to the boiling point. The bitter melon should be blanched for thirty seconds and then drained. Set aside.

7. Placed on a platter, the blanched and drained bitter melon

8. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs with one-fourth of a teaspoon of salt, one-quarter of a teaspoon of white pepper, and one tablespoon of sesame oil.

9. Eggs seasoned with white pepper, salt, and toasted sesame oil.

10. Bring your wok up to temperature until it is fully dry and starts to smoke just a little bit. Add the two tablespoons of oil, and then immediately add the eggs that have been beaten. Scramble the eggs as rapidly as you can so that they don't turn brown and stay soft.

11. We utilize eggs grown on pasture, which, in our experience, have a much richer golden color. These eggs also come from contented chickens.

12. When the eggs have reached doneness of 70 percent, remove them from the pan and place them back in the bowl. Set this aside.

13. Pour an additional tablespoon of oil into the wok, then add the bitter melon to the pan. After 15 to 30 seconds of stir-frying, add the Shaoxing wine in a ring around the wok outside and continue cooking. Stir-fry for an additional fifteen seconds, after which the light soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar should be added.

14. Place the eggs back into the wok and stir them until they are fully cooked.

15. Take the food out of the wok as soon as possible and serve.

BITTER MELON WITH EGGS- SIMPLE STYLE

Bitter melon and eggs stir-fried in a wok is a traditional Chinese dish that is not only quick and simple to prepare but also exceptionally nutritious and beneficial to your health.

Bitter gourd cooked with salted egg

INGREDIENTS

18 ounces of sour cantaloupe (about 2 bitter melons) 5 big eggs 1/2 teaspoon salt (divided) A quarter of a teaspoon of white pepper 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil 3 teaspoons vegetable oil (divided) 1 tablespoon of wine made from Shaoxing 1 milliliter of low-sodium soy sauce 1 drop of oyster sauce per teaspoon (or vegetarian oyster sauce if making this vegetarian) 1/2 teaspoon sugar.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Take each of your bitter melons and cut it in half lengthwise so that you have two equal halves. To remove the seeds, use a spoon to scoop them out. Remove any white pith that may be present inside the melon, as it has a reputation for being exceptionally bitter.

2. Flip the melon over so that the side that was hollowed out is facing the cutting board, and then cut it into thin slices while moving diagonally across the board.

3. Pour water into your wok (or a medium to large pot), and then toss in one teaspoon of salt. Bring it up to the boiling point. The bitter melon should be blanched for thirty seconds and then drained. Set aside.

4. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs with one-fourth of a teaspoon of salt, one-quarter of a teaspoon of white pepper, and one tablespoon of sesame oil.

5. Bring your wok up to temperature, and keep it there until it is fully dry and just starts to smoke. Add the two tablespoons of oil, and then immediately add the eggs that have been beaten. Scramble the eggs as rapidly as you can so that they don't turn brown and stay soft. As soon as the eggs have reached a doneness of seventy percent, transfer them from the pan to the bowl and set them aside.

6. After adding an additional tablespoon of oil to the wok, add the bitter melon to the pan. After 15 to 30 seconds of stir-frying, add the Shaoxing wine in a ring around the outside of the wok and continue cooking. Stir-fry for an additional fifteen seconds, after which the light soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar should be added.

7. Place the eggs back into the wok and stir-fry until they are completely set. Remove the food from the wok as soon as possible and serve. Let's talk more about a few more bitter melon recipes.

BITTER MELON TACOS

Ingredients For Bitter Melon Tacos

1 teaspoon of oil pressed from sunflower seeds or coconut oil A little asafoetida or hing, to taste 1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds One tablespoon of ginger, chopped (optional) One tablespoon of garlic that has been minced. Eight slices of bitter melon, sliced very thinly 1/2 milliliter of tamarind extract, or the equivalent in fresh tamarind pulp

One teaspoon of jaggery or granulated brown sugar 1/4 of a teaspoon of ground turmeric 1/4 milligram of ground red chili pepper Toasted cumin seed powder, one-half of one teaspoon One teaspoon of mango powder that has been dried 1/2 of a teaspoon of ground coriander seeds 1–2 tablespoons of water tortillas made from corn or wheat. Favorite salsa to use: Mango goes well 2 tablespoons of shredded coconut for decorating the dish.

Directions

1. Bring a pan of oil to medium heat. After adding a pinch of asafoetida or hing and being careful not to burn yourself, add the cumin seeds, ginger, and garlic. Stir for about a minute and a half.

2. Add bitter melon slices. Sauté for around 5 minutes.

3. Add the following powders: tamarind, jaggery, turmeric, red chili powder, cumin seed powder, mango powder, and coriander seed powder.

4. Pour one to two tablespoons of water into the mixture. After giving it a brief stir, let the bitter melon cook for approximately five minutes, or until it begins to tender.

5. Serve the stir-fried bitter melon with tortillas so that people can make tacos. Spread some salsa on top to bring the tastes together and strike a balance. Coconut flakes or shreds should be sprinkled on top.

VEGAN BITTER MELON RECIPE

Before you can get started on cooking your bitter melon, you will need to prepare it. We began by peeling them, slicing them, and then removing the seeds. You do not need to peel them or remove the seeds. You should now be left with some adorable tiny O's, and it is time to start sautéing them.

Because the oil helps to reduce the bitterness of the bitter melon and also because the oil captures the tastes of the food, we used a lot of it for this recipe. It is ideal for drizzling over rice or using as a dipping sauce for bread because it captures the flavors of the dish.

You are free to use a bit less oil if that is what you like. After that, the saute is the most important part of the process. Because lengthy and slow cooking helps to reduce the harshness of the bitter melon while also bringing out the sweetness of the onions, we cook our bitter melon longer than we would most vegetables.

After being cooked for about half an hour, the bitter melon has a texture that is soft and smooth, and it has a flavor that is similar to that of a poblano pepper, but it also has that incredibly fascinating bitter flavor, which makes me want to keep going back for more bite after more bite.

Ingredients

2 bitter melons 2-4 tbsp. vegetable oil 2 baby onions with a purple hue Various amounts of salt & pepper, to taste A little bit of chili powder. 2 individual garlic cloves

Instructions

1. To prepare the bitter melons, peel off the bumpy skin covering the melon's exterior. After peeling, cut the fruit into pieces with a thickness of between 14 and 12 inches, and then use your fingers to remove the seeds from the middle of each piece, leaving you with O-shaped pieces.

2. Chop your garlic cloves and onion into small pieces.

3. Heat the oil in a skillet of medium size (I use the entire quarter cup, and the end result is great, although it is really oily). Use less if desired).

4. After adding the onion, salt, pepper, and chili powder, add the bitter melon and continue to sauté for another two to three minutes.

5. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan with a lid, and cook the onions for 20 minutes while tossing them regularly until they have a subtle caramelized flavor.

6. After adding the garlic, continue cooking for another five to ten minutes.

7. Once the meal is finished cooking, serve it warm as a side dish or atop the rice of your choice; if you have diabetes, shirataki rice is the best option.

IS BITTER MELON GOOD FOR YOU?

Now you have heard these bitter melon recipes let's talk about its health benefits quickly. It has a high concentration of polyphenols, Vitamin C, and Vitamin A. It is believed to aid in the prevention of cancer as well as diabetes thanks to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory characteristics.

The bitter melon was referred to as a "panacea for inflammation and cancer"". Bitter melon is considered to have "cooling" effects in Traditional Chinese Medicine, making it an excellent food option for the warmer months of the year. It is thought to improve circulation, reduce inflammation and internal heat, and make digestion easier.

If you're looking for a natural way to improve your health, you should consider taking a bitter melon supplement. This amazing plant has been used for centuries in traditional medicine to treat a variety of illnesses and conditions.

Bitter melon is packed with nutrients and antioxidants to help keep your body healthy and functioning properly. This article will discuss the benefits of bitter melon and how it can help improve your health! For More information about health benefits of bitter melon click here. 

I hope you liked these delicious bitter melon recipes. Remember to pass the word and remember to visit the SugarMD youtube channel. This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have any concerns or questions about your health, you should always consult with a doctor or other healthcare professional.

About the author

Dr. Ahmet Ergin is the author of The Ultimate Diabetes Book and the Founder of the SugarMD YouTube channel. He practices in Port Saint Lucie, FL as an endocrinologist physician.