Fried Bitter Gourd Curry (Karavila)

Here's an all time favourite of ours. The kids have loved this ever since they could eat it, which has many people amazed. Bitter gourd is really bitter if you don't cook it properly. In fact even with this method they are slightly bitter but that's what makes them so good! Never seen a bitter gourd? Here is what they look like:

In San Francisco we always bought them in the Chinese stores. Here in Germany we get them at the local Sri Lankan store. An old family friend of my parents taught me how to cook these (or maybe I should put that correctly: her cook/maid taught me how to cook them!). She would always deep fry a whole bunch of them, put them in a jar for emergencies. They last quite a long time if you fry them long enough and your jar is air tight.

Without further adieu here is how to prepare them.

Ingredients:

4	Bitter gourds (about 25 cm long)
1 l	Oil
2	Onions
2	Tomatoes
1/2 tsp.	Dill seeds
1 sprig	Curry leaves
1/4 tsp.	Turmeric
2 tbsp.	Tomato ketchup
1/2 tsp.	Salt

Method:

The first step is to slice them as thinly as possible. If the seeds are hard then you can try and take them out. If they are soft enough to cut through then just save yourself some work and leave them in. Once they are fried you won't notice the seeds and I'm sure they must be just as healthy as the meat. 

 Once they are sliced you now have to extract the bitterness. It is quite simple to do. Put the bitter gourd in a large bowl, boil a kettle of water and pour the boiling water over the gourd. Let it sit for a few minutes then drain the water and rinse in cold water. Repeat this procedure. You  will be able to smell the bitterness in the water vapour. Pat the vegetable dry with paper towels.

Heat your oil to around the same temperature you would to fry chips (fries) and deep fry the gourd until brown. Careful not to burn them but they should be pretty dark.

While you are frying you can get the rest of the ingredients ready i.e. slice the onions finely, dice the tomato (1 cm). You also need a sprig of curry leaves and half a teaspoon of dill seeds.

Add a teaspoon of oil into a wok and heat on high. Once the oil is hot add the onions, curry leaves and dill seeds and fry until the onions are soft. Then add the tomatoes and the turmeric and keep stirring! Once everything is a soggy mess you can add in the fried bitter gourd and mix everything up.

I like to add some ketchup at the end, a couple of tablespoons would do. Add some salt to taste then it is ready to go! Of course you can add chili powder at any time.