Bitter Gourd Chilli Garlic or Kakarakaya karam

I’m pretty sure each of us have a story to narrate how we used to hate bitter gourd (or bitter melon) when we were young. Growing up, at some point, we start to appreciate the nuance that bitter brings to our food. For me, it changed from tolerance to craving for this gourd and now I do not mind eating it often. Today I’m going to share one such bitter gourd recipe that stole my heart- Bitter Gourd Chilli Garlic or Kakarakaya Karam. I’m pretty sure once you try out, it’s definitely going to win your hearts too.

The delectable bitterness of this melon in the mouth is said to whet the appetite and cleanse the palate, a perfect refresher for warm, summer days. It’s only twenty years later, I had actually grown to love the bumpy-textured melon and appreciate both its flavour and health benefits.
The same can be said of LIFE. All of us like everything SWEET but we all are aware that life is pretty one-dimensional, if we have not encountered ups and downs. So if life has been “bitter” for you, you know where you can turn to. Ok…now I should stop becoming philosophical and get back to the recipe.

Kakarakaya in Telugu is commonly known as bitter gourd or bitter melon, karela, pavakkai etc. The scientific name is Momordica Charantia, which is an exotic vegetable is popular world wide mainly for its miraculous medicinal properties. It is a natural wonder that has proven to be very beneficial for people with a number of diseases, particularly diabetes.

This Bitter Gourd Chilli Garlic or Kakarakaya karam is an amazing dish spiced with all possible tastes from bitterness, tanginess to spiciness making this dish enticing and addictive. The simplest of ingredients bring about the splendid mix of flavours and texture that give a crunch and crispy taste.

When choosing a bitter melon, select ones that are firm and light to dark green in color (which indicates a young melon). You can eat the seeds of a young melon, but they get hard and inedible when the melon matures. The bitterness comes from quinine in the melon and it is an acquired taste. But with garlic and spices, it gets a unique deliciousness with a refreshing tastiness from all the different flavours. In my experience, sometimes it takes some bitterness to create a harmony of flavours. Bitter melon is a best friend to other ingredients since it tends to bring out the best.

I was surprised to see the response I got to my last post on Bitter gourd stir-fry. I never ever thought there would be so many fans for this amazing vegetable. In fact, I was asked to share more recipes with this exotic vegetable.

Enjoy this recipe for Bitter Gourd Chilli Garlic or Kakarakaya Karam !!

Step-by-Step process in making Bitter Gourd Chilli Garlic or Kakarakaya Karam.:

• Wash bitter gourds and pat dry. 
• Slice them into 1 cm thick rounds (or even thicker)

• Place the pieces in a mortar, sprinkle a tablespoon of salt and crush lightly with a pestle. Make sure the pieces are intact and only some juice comes out.
• This step is mainly to remove some bitterness from the vegetable.

• Now squeeze the pieces really well and drain off the water.
• Transfer to a bowl.

• Heat oil in a pan over medium heat for deep frying.

• In the mean time prepare garlic chilli powder.

For the garlic chilli powder:

• Take all the ingredients under the section “For garlic chilli powder”.

NOTE: Separate the garlic pods and remove the extra outer layers of garlic,you can keep one layer or you can even remove that completely. I like to use with a layer of peel.

• Transfer to an electric blender and grind for a minute to a coarse powder.

• Transfer to a bowl and add generous amount of curry leaves and set aside.
• The garlic chilli powder is ready for later use.

Back to deep frying –

• Once the oil is hot enough add the bitter gourd pieces and fry them over medium heat till golden brown, stirring occasionally with a slotted ladle.

• Drain the fried gourd pieces onto an absorbent tissue paper.
• Repeat the process till you are done frying with all the bitter gourd pieces.

NOTE: I have also tried baking the bitter gourd pieces in an oven. For this you may want to cut the melon pieces slightly thinner so that they bake fast. Pre-heat oven at 220 degree celsius, rub the crushed and squeezed bitter gourd pieces in some oil and spread them on a baking sheet (do not overcrowd) and bake for 15 minutes on each side flipping half way through until golden crisp. The taste was slightly different but it was fine as it is also healthy that way. Will share pictures next time I make.

• Remove some oil from the pan into a bowl (to discard) and use the rest.

• In the remaining oil (approximately 2 Tablespoons) in the pan, add the garlic chilli powder prepared above along with curry leaves and fry for about 2 to 3 minutes till the raw smell goes off.

• Now add the fried bitter gourd pieces and mix well.
• Stir for a minute, adjust salt if required and turn of the heat.

NOTE:

Remember this is not a curry, it comes under spicy powders and pickle category. So Bitter Gourd Chilli Garlic or Kakarakaya karam should be enjoyed in moderation with hot rice, a dollop of ghee and an omelette or pappad on the side. For example, You can have 2 to 3 bitter gourd pieces with half to one teaspoon of the powder along with rice. It is really really spicy!!….If you want to get a hang of real GUNTUR karam, this Bitter Gourd Chilli Garlic or Kakarakaya karam is a must try!!

• Store Bitter Gourd Chilli Garlic or Kakarakaya Karam in an air tight container and use for about 2 weeks unrefrigerated or up to 2 months when refrigerated.

Print Recipe

Bittergourd Garlic Chilli Powder or Kakarakaya karam

Bitter gourd Chilli Garlic Powder or Kakarakaya karam is an amazing dish spiced with all possible tastes from bitterness, tanginess to spiciness making this dish enticing and addictive.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time30 minutes mins

Course: Pickles and Powders

Cuisine: Indian

Author: Padma

Ingredients

• 2 to 3 medium sized Bitter gourds washed and cut into half inch thick pieces
• 1 Tablespoon salt
• Oil for deep frying
• For the Garlic Chilli Powder:
• 6 to 10 Garlic cloves
• Small lemon size Tamarind
• 1 Tablespoon Cumin seeds
• 3 to 4 Tablespoons Red chilli powder
• Required salt
• Other Ingredients:
• 2 Sprigs of curry leaves

Instructions

• Place the bitter gourd pieces in a mortar, sprinkle a tablespoon of salt and crush lightly with a pestle so that the pieces are intact and only some juice comes out.
• Now squeeze the pieces really well and drain off the water.
• Heat oil in a pan over medium heat for deep frying.
• In the mean time prepare garlic chilli powder.
• For this take all the ingredients under the section “For garlic chilli powder“ in an electric blender and grind for a few seconds to a coarse powder.
• Once the oil is hot enough add the bitter gourd pieces and fry them over medium heat till golden brown stirring often with a slotted ladle.
• Drain fried pieces onto an absorbent tissue paper.
• Repeat the process till you are done with all the bitter gourd pieces.
• Remove some oil from the pan to a bowl ( to discard) and use the rest.
• In the remaining oil (approximately 2 Tablespoons) in the pan, add the garlic chilli powder prepared above along with curry leaves and fry till the raw smell goes off.
• Now add deep fried bitter gourd pieces and mix well.
• Stir for a minute, adjust salt if required and turn oft he heat.
• Remember this is not a curry, so it should be enjoyed in moderation with hot rice and a dollop of ghee.
• Serving Instruction: You can have 2 to 3 bitter gourd pieces with half to1 teaspoon of the powder along with rice, dollop of ghee and an omelette or pappad on the side.
• Store it in an air tight container and use for about 2 weeks unrefrigerated or up to 2 months when refrigerated.

Notes

1. Adjust spice levels with red chilli powder to suit your taste.
2. If you feel the powder turned out too spicy, you can squeeze some lemon juice and adjust salt and use it. This reduces the spiciness.
3. You can use the garlic pods with skin.
4. The quantity of garlic is flexible, so feel free to use more or less. I usually use a lot.
5. You can use this garlic chilli powder in different vegetable fries and enjoy.
6. Do not bring the powder in contact with water, otherwise the shel life reduces.
7. Make sure you fry the bitter gourd pieces till golden brown.
8. In case you decide to bake bitter gourd pieces, cut it into thin circles so that they bake fast.

Hope you liked the recipe for Bitter Gourd Chilli Garlic or Kakarakaya karam!!….Try out other related popular posts form my blog-

• Ivy Gourd stir fry
• Bitter Gourd Stir fry
• Stuffed Okra
• Onion Chutney
• Stuffed Indian Eggplant
• Eggplant stir fry with spicy lentil powder

And many more to come!!…..Stay Tuned!!

Happy Cooking 🙂

Cheers!!

Padma