Bitter Melon

Remember the spiny-cucumber looking thing that I bought at the market last week? Well, Doug and I decided to try to incorporate it into a stir fry that night. After some googling, we found out that you are supposed to core it and eat the spiny-skin part. You can stuff it with ground meat and spices, or roast it. To start, we decided to boil it in salt water for a bit to soften the skin and cut down on the bitterness. We were going to throw it in the pan with the other veggies but decided to taste it first - and it is BITTER. The bitterness blooms on your tongue slowly and then threatens to suck every bit of moisture from your cheeks. Thank goodness we cooked it separately because it would definitely have ruined the rest of the meal. Doug did what he could, sauteeing it with roasted chili peppers and honey, but I couldn't handle it. Doug was a champ though, I think he ate most of it!

The websites we consulted were not conclusive on where it is native to. Oddly enough, the next night we were watching Bizarre Foods on the Travel Channel (we were wishing it was Anthony Bourdain, but alas...) and Andrew Zimmern was in Jamaica, enjoying a nice meal with a Chinese-Jamaican family that included stuffed bitter melon! We were excited to see how it was prepared, and not surprised that it was popular in China - I'm definitely not an expert but it seems to me that the Chinese appreciate stronger flavors more than other cultures.

It was a fun culinary adventure, but probably not something I'll try again. Today at the market I bought a bag of roasted cacao beans; if we can find a way to winnow and grind them I plan on experimenting with homemade mole!