Karela, also known as bitter gourd- and as the name suggests because of its bitter taste and warty exterior- is liked by a very few people. And my husband and myself are among those few fans of bitter gourd. Yes, we like this vegetable so much that we don’t mind eating it in everyday meals either! Of course, I don’t cook Karela everyday at home, but when I make it it’s like a feast for my husband and myself. Even my elder daughter loves it when I prepare it as a stuffed karela fry. It’s crunchy, spicy and super flavorful. I will share the recipe of stuffed karela very soon. I also prepare karela in tamarind and jaggery sauce which tastes like a sweet and sour curry. You can also cut karela into thin slices and prepare it just as how you would prepare potato fry. Though people avoid this vegetable for its bitter taste, it really can sweeten our health because of the disease preventing and health promoting chemical compounds in it. A must have vegetable to add in the diet for diabetic people.
Last time I bought these karelas to prepare some new recipe, and I was postponing it every day till they became soft and ripe. They looked so good when I cut them; I didn’t feel like throwing them away. So, I thought of making a pickle with it and I’m glad for that little thought that occurred at the right time! Oh, it tasted so delicious that no one would ever guess that it was a karela pickle. In fact, when I served it on the table we had a guessing game with the kids and none of them could guess that it was karela. I told my kids after they finished it all with rice. 😀 Next time when you see karelas ripened in your fridge, don’t just throw them away. Now you’ve a recipe to make good use of ’em!
Click here for the recipes of other chutneys & pickles on my blog.
Karela Pickle Recipe:
Wash and cut the bitter gourd into desired sizes. Discard the seeds. I use them with the peel itself but for whatever reason, if you don’t like the skin, then you can just scrape it before use, thus reducing the bitterness of the karela.
Heat oil in a saucepan, and add minced garlic. If you’re making it for festive days and want to make it a no-garlic recipe you can just skip it. Add dry red chilies and fry them. Add in the karela slices. Add some turmeric powder and salt to taste. Cook them on medium heat till they become soft and their raw flavor vanishes. I also added one medium sized tomato that was cut into cubes to the karelas.
Once the karela and tomatoes have cooked well and the water from the tomatoes gets absorbed, add some soaked tamarind or tamarind paste. Also add in spices like red chili powder, cumin powder and coriander powder and immediately turn the heat off. Let this mixture cool down.
Grind it in the blender coarsely and season it with the tempering. For tempering please follow the same procedure as other chutneys. Transfer it into a bottle or an airtight container and store for later use. This karela pickle goes well with roti, paratha or even with a dosa. You can also mix it in plain rice and have it. Enjoy this healthy, tasty and flavorful karela pickle in your meal!
