Stuffed Bitter-Gourd Stir-Fry

I started eating bitter-gourd since last year only. Since childhood, the name of this vegetable didn't please me and I never got through the idea that why on earth people want to eat a bitter stir-fry!! All my childhood and till last year, I stuck by my thinking until my husband once asked me at-least taste it. He told me that you cook it for me but never eat yourself. You should at-least try it once and if you don't like it, don't eat. I tasted, I liked (and thought to myself.....not as bitter as I thought, in fact it's tasty bitter) and I started eating.

Stuffed bitter gourd (called Karela in hindi) served on bed of stir-fried onions makes them a delicious side-dish for your lunch or dinner. Cooked bitter-gourd stays good in refrigerator for about 7-10 days.

Bitter gourd is claimed to stimulate digestion and also help in treating constipation, diabetes, immunization and there are many other medicinal properties. You can read more about it here.

Here is the recipe (Click here for printable version)

Ingredients:
6-7 pieces of bittergourd (the thinner the gourd is, the better it is)
1 large onion (chopped thin and long)
1 small onion (finely minced)
3/4 tsp mango powder (amchur)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
3/4 tsp coriander powder
salt and red chilli powder- to taste
4 tbsp vegetable oil

Method:
1. Peel the serrated cover of bitter-gourds and make a lengthwise slit in the center. Do it with all the bitter-gourds. Rub some salt in and outside of bitter-gourds and put them in warm water for about 2 hours. This process will take care of removing the bitterness of the gourd.
2. Take the bitter-gourds out of water and let them dry a bit.
3. In a small bowl, add the finely minced onions and mix all the dry spices to it including salt and red chilli powder.
4. Using small spoons or hands, stuff the bitter-gourds with the onion mixture. Then tie the gourd with the thread so that the stuffing doesn't come out when we stir-fry it.

5. First heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan and stir fry the long-thin onions with little bit of salt and red chilli powder until they turn translucent. Remember to put less of the salt and chilli powder as bitter-gourd stuffing too has the spices.
6. Take these onions out of pan and spread them on your serving plate.
7. Now heat the remaining 3 tbsp of oil in the pan, and stir fry the bitter-gourds while turning them in between, till they get tender and get black marks all over.

Serve the bitter-gourds on the bed of fried onions and enjoy with your favorite Indian bread.

PS: Remember to remove the threads that were tied on the bitter-gourd before eating.