Jose Carerras ~ La Donna E Mobile (Rigoletto)
Nickelback ~ Someday
Mozart: Piano Concerto#21 in C
Black Stone Cherry ~ Peace Pipe
Beulah ~ Mary
Ray Charles ~ If I Give You My Love
Erasure ~ Sometimes
Queen ~ Seven Seas Of Rhye
Hunter Valentine ~ The Great Canadian Love Song
Count Basie ~ April In Paris
Melissa Etheridge ~ Come To My Window
Dixie Chicks ~ The Long Way Around
Nickelback ~ Flat On The Floor
Cat Power ~ Love And Communication
It would be a slight understatement to say that Bitter Gourd is an acquired taste. The clue really is in the name, eh? But it is a taste that I am determined to love because of the many health benefits of this fugly vegetable. I was very excited to find a stash whilst visiting the chinese warehouse in the city recently. They were much larger than I'd expected so only purchased one this time but in future I will stock up. The preparation of the gourd is very simple as you wash it well and then slice in half and remove the seeds and membrane. In my researching I read many differing ways to cook it. Some advise boiling it first, some salt it like aubergine and others soak it. This time I prepped my gourd and then left it coated in Himalayan salts whilst I prepped the other veggies for this dish. After a good rinse and press I then heated a little rapeseed/canola oil in my wok and got busy with the stir fry.
My first tasting of the gourd was a little shocking as it was an assault on my taste buds. And I couldn't really say if it was a good or bad experience. It was just very different to any other veggies I have eaten. After doing more research into it I think I would try the boiling prep next time. The salting doesn't take much of the natural bitterness away. I was grateful for the spicy sauce that I had decided to make to drizzle over the stir fry. As a whole, this stir fry is crammed with great textures from the veggies to the aducki beans and the heat from the slightly sweet spicy sauce is a welcome kick.
I am looking forward to testing out more ideas I have for cooking Gourd. It's a challenging veggie but a worthwhile one...
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| Rocket & Roses Spicy Bitter Gourd Stir Fry (vegan & gluten-free) |
Rocket & Roses Spicy Bitter Gourd Stir Fry Serves 4
(Original recipe from the Rocket & Roses Vegan Kitchen)
1/2 tsp rapeseed/canola oil
1 med/lg bitter gourd, prepped, sliced into half moons, salted then rinsed and dried off
6 large runner beans, thinly stripped
4 spring onions, trimmed and sliced into 3-4" strips
2 large red bell peppers, prepped and stripped
1 red chilli, de-seeded and finely sliced
8oz cooked aducki beans
2 dsp prepared extra hot chilli sauce
1 dsp mirin
1/2 dsp agave syrup
Mix the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Set to one side.
Heat a wok with the oil until smokey. Toss in salted and rinsed bitter gourd along with the spring onions, bell peppers, chilli and runner beans. Saute to coat with the oil and then place a lid on the wok for 4 minutes. Remove the lid and give the wok a good shake. Add the aducki beans and stir in and then drizzle over the spicy sauce and cook until the runner beans are tender. Approx 2 minutes longer.
Serve immediately...
Enjoy!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope you are looking forward to your weekend...and if you have any cooking suggestions re gourd please leave me a message.
~Red~
NB: This is my creation. I have no problem with you using it or sharing it. I simply ask that you link back to this post and give credit where it's due. Many thanks...~R~
