Bhara Karela/भरा करेला (Stuffed Bittergourd)

Bhara Karela (Stuffed Bittergourd)

Bitter gourd (Karela) belongs to the family of squash, cucumber melon. While rest are loved Bitter gourd is not well received by many, but Bitter gourd is a rich source of nutrients and minerals, while being very low on calories. It can be introduced in diet by making savories.

Bitter gourd comes in many varieties, ranging from dark green-light green-white, and from small variety 3-5 inches -long variety which can measure up to 10-12 inches also.

Stuffed bitter gourd can is made in variety of ways in India. In Kumaon it is primarily stuffed with potatoes, northern, and central India mostly fennel seed and onion are the main ingredients of stuffing, where as in Western part mostly coconut, onion and garlic are the main ingredients. I picked up all these flavors and made the best combination to make succulent and yummy stuffed bitter gourd. Bitter gourd stuffed san potato can last for weeks together in fridge and even if not stored in fridge it lasts for a week minimum. The best choice for stuffed bitter gourd is to get small sized, dark green bitter gourd. It should be soft from inside (Without hard, ripe seeds). If small variety of bitter gourd is not available then one can make it with long variety of bitter gourd as shown in the blog. (I could not lay my hand on small variety so used the soft but longer ones). The taste remains almost the same but the visual treat and ease of making is in small variety.

Preparation Time: 30 min

Cooking Time: 10-15 min. for stuffing and 30 min. for cooking after stuffing

Nutritional value: (Approx.)

Calories: 45 Kcal

Carb: 340g

Proteins: 5g

Cholesterol: 0g

Fibers: 15 g

Sodium: 10mg

Potassium: 3000mg

Calcium: 45mg

Iron: 50mg,

Rich in micro nutrients: copper, magnesium, manganese.

Rich in Vitamin A, B2-B12, C,

The above values are approximate values for the stuffed bitter gourd prepared from 250 gm of raw bitter gourd.

Ingredients Required For Making Stuffed Bitter Gourd (Bhara Karela):

• 250 gm. Bitter gourd
• 100-150 gm Potatoes
• 250-300 gm. Onion
• 10-12 Cloves of Garlic
• 4-5 cm. Ginger piece
• 2-3 Green chilies
• ½ Teaspoon Turmeric Powder
• 5-6 Sprigs of fresh Green Coriander
• 2 Teaspoons Dry mango powder (Amchur)
• 2 Teaspoons Coriander seed powder (Dhaniya powder)
• 1 Teaspoon Fennel powder (saunf powder)
• 1/2 Teaspoon roasted Cumin seed powder (Jeera powder)
• Salt to taste
• Red chili powder to taste
• 50 gm. Ground nuts (Moongfali)
• 1 Teaspoon sugar
• 10-15 ml. Cooking oil of your choice (I use mustard oil)

Direction For Making Stuffed Bitter Gourd:

• Roast Groundnuts, remove the peels and grind them coarsely. Keep aside for later use.
• Boil potatoes and mash them to small pieces after peeling them. Keep away for later use.

Boiled and Peeled Potatoes

• Scrape the outer rough surface of bitter gourd and slit them lengthwise on one side only.
• Pry the slit gourds carefully and remove the inner core leaving the empty shell of gourd.
• If the gourds are of long variety as shown in this article then cut them to 3-4 inches pieces before slitting them.

Prepped Bitter Gourd

• In a container take 1lt. water, add 2 teaspoon salt and boil it. Once the water comes to boil put cleaned bitter gourd in boiling water cover the container and let it simmer for 1-2 min. Remove the container from heat and let the contents cool. Do not boil too much else the gourds will become very soft mushy. They should be firm yet on softer side.

Cleaned Bitter Gourd in Boiled water

Blanched Bittergourd

• Drain water from gourds using sieve. Let all water drip form them by allowing them to rest on sieve.

• Chop onions, garlic, ginger, green chilies, Coriander sprigs finely. Garkic and ginger can be grated.

Chopped Ingredients For Stuffing

• In a wok take 2 ml. cooking oil and heat it. When the oil is hot enough add chopped 
• Garlic
• Ginger 
• Green chilies and cook on low flame for a minutes or so. 

Green Chillies, Ginger, Garlic cooking in oil

• Add chopped onions and cook on low heat till they  become transparent. (Before taking golden brown color they will become transparent).

Onion cooked to trasparent state

• Add
• Salt
• Turmeric powder
• Cumin seed powder
• Coriander seed powder (Dhaniya powder)
• Fennel seed powder (saunf powder)
• Chili Powder
• Dry Mango powder (Amchur)
• Stir to mix nicely and cook on low flame for 1-2 minutes with constant stiring. 

Salt and other spices added

• Add coarsely ground Groundnut and coarsely mashed boiles potatoes. Mix well. Cook for a minute with constant stiring.
• Add sugar, give a nice stir, switch off the heat and cover the wok. Let the sutffing mixture cool.

Mashed Potatoes and Peanut Powder Added

Stuffing For Bittergourd

• When the cooked mixture is cooled add chopped coriander. Mix nicely for even distribution of chopped coriander.

Seasoned with Coriander leafs

• Fill the stuffing in the gourds. Press the stuffing in gourds till no more can be filled.
• Wrap them by thread so that the stuffing does not come out during cooking. Coat them with little oil using fingers or brush.

Stuffed and wrapped Bittergourd

• These stuffed gourds can be made in minimum oil using non-stick pan (as it is shown in this article) or if minimum oil using non-stick pan (as it is shown in this article).
• Take 2ml. cooking oil a non-stick pan and heat. When the oil is hot enough place the stuffed gourds in it and lower the heat, cover and cook for 5 minutes without disturbing.

Bittergourd cooking in less oil

• The color of gourds will have changed by now. Turn them over, sprinkle few drops of oil and cook till the color on the side it is cooking becomes golden brown or little darker.

After 5 min

• Keep turning the gourds till from most sides it is cooked (The gourd will become thinner and darker).

Cooked Stuffed Bittergourd 

• Remove the cooked stuffed gourds from pan, let them cool. Remove the thread. Some of the filling attached to thread will be on charred side, remove that along with the thread. Serve hot with roti/parantha. Absolute yum.

Stuffed Bittergourd (Bhara Karela)

Tips:

• Bitter gourd is blanched not cooked in boiling water. Blanching will remove some bitterness along with making it softer.
• Wrapping preferably should be done by thicker thread so that removing it after cooking becomes easier.
• If bitter gourd is not being cooked in non-stick pan then requirement of oil will become more.

Suggested Variations:

• If the gourds are very soft from inside then:
• Potatoes can be replaced by extra fennel seed powder, coriander powder.
• Fresh grated coconut can be addedinstead of potato and ground nut ppowder.

Baigan-tamatar ki sabzi (Eggplants / Brinjals with Tomatoes)

Granny's Achari Baigan

Eating brinjal savory (Baigan ki sabji) at my daughter’s place was like jogging down the memory lane. It has been years that my grandma left us and though I remembered her cooking yet do not know how such a wonderful dish had not come to my mind earlier. In Kumaon many people at that time not used to eat (as well as store in house) onions and garlic thus my grandmother used to make brinjal my mom’s favorite vegetable with lots of tomato and spices. I had completely forgotten about it till my daughter made it for me. What a delightful experience it was to be reminded of my grandma’s cooking by my daughter. Today I share this recipe with nostalgia of childhood visits to my granny’s place and have nasmed it as Granny's Achari Baigan in her memory. Absolutely easy, least oily full of flavors and taste this recipe is a must try for all brinjal lovers. Even those who do not like brinjal much will fall in love with this brinjal preparation.

Preparation Time: 15-20 minutes

Cooking time: 30-40 minutes

Servings:  6 Large servings

Ingredients Required For Making Granny's Achari-Baigan:

• 1 kg Big Dark Violet Color Brinjal  

Brinjals

• 1 kg Red Ripe Tomatoes

Ripe Tomatoes

• 3 Teaspoon Fennel Seeds
• 3 Teaspoons Kalonji (Black Caraway seeds)
• 1/2Teaspoon Asafoetida powder (I use LG Asefoetida powder)
• 10 ml Mustard oil (any cooking oil)
• 3-4 Teaspoon Red chili powder (or to taste)
• 2 teaspoon sugar (Optional)
• Salt to taste

Direction For Making Grand-Ma’s Achari-Baigan:

• Mix Turmeric, salt, 2 teaspoon Red chili powder to make spices mixture for brinjals. Keep aside for later use.
• Wash the brinjals, tomatoes and dry with a cloth.
• Cut one brinjal horizontally to get 2-2.5 mm round pieces.

Brinjal Pieces

• Immediately sprinkle the brinjal pieces with the spices mixture. Make sure all pieces are coated on both sides with spices mixture.
• Heat non-stick tawa and sprinkle 1 oil on it. Spread oil on tawa and place the brinjal pieces on hot tawa and lower the flame.

Brinjal Pieces Cooking with spices mixture

• Repeat the same with all brinjals.
• Cook for 8-10 min on low flame without covering it.

One side cooked 

• Flip the brinjal pieces and cook on the other side also for 4-5 min. This will make the brinjal pieces soft. Do not cook on high flame and do not overcook brinjal.

I love the stalk also yummy to chew and suck the juices

• While the brinjals are cooking make paste of tomato in a grinder- mixer.
• Take 2 ml oil in a wok and heat it till smoking hot.
• Lower the flame and add Black caraway seeds (Kalonji), Fennel seeds (Saunf) and let them split to get maximum flavor. Make sure they do not burn.
• Add asafoetida mix and add tomato paste.

Ready for tomato paste

Tomato paste cooking with tempering 

• Cook on low flame with regular stirring till tomato paste becomes thick and starts leaving the edges of wok. It took me 15 min.

Tomato paste and Brinjal pieces cooking side by side

Tomato paste ready fort cooked Brinjal pieces to be added

• Add the cooked brinjal pieces to the cooked tomato paste and mix lightly so that the brinjal pieces get coated with tomato paste but not get mashed up.

Brinjal pieces added to tomato paste and mixed

• Add salt and chili powder according to your taste.
• Cover and cook for 2-3 min. stirring with light hands once or twice max.
• Add sugar and mix. Cook for 1 min with lid on the wok.
• Grand-ma’s Achari baigan is ready.

Ready to be served

• Remove from the wok in a serving bowl and garnish with fresh coriander leafs.

Granny's Achari Baigan

Granny's Achari Baigan

• Serve hot with any type of Indian bread/Dal-Chawal.

Tips:

• Make sure brinjals do not have seeds.
• All utensils used by me are non-stick thus less amount of oil usage. If other non-stick vessels are not used then oil for brinjal pieces cooking will have to be increased so that they do not stick to pan and break.
• Cut the brinjals and add spice to only that many pieces which can be accommodated on your cooking pan/tawa rest can be kept covered in fridge till one lot is cooked.
• Do not add spices mixture to all pieces until unless you can cook them immediately, else juices will start coming out of brinjal and they will become soggy (Undesired change).
• Make sure brinjal pieces are not cut too thin or too thick. Thin pieces will burn off and break while mixing with tomato paste and too thick will become lumpy.
• The wok taken for mixing the cooked tomato paste and brinjal pieces should be large enough to allow them to spread nicely not get crowded, else mixing will take properly also brinjal pieces will get crushed while mixing.
• This dish tastes best with mustard oil.
• Always take chili powder quantity according to the hotness of it. All variety of chilies, chili powders have different degree of hotness.
• Sugar adds that extra element to tangy, spicy, sour taste of Achari baigan. This is the only change I made to original recipe.

Alternative Suggestions:

• I do not throw away the stalk with green on it, but cook a;longwith. It is yummy to chew and suck juices out of it.
• Tomatoes amount can be increased to 1:1.5 ratio by weight. 
• You can cook baigan and tomato paste as directed in recipe and store them separately in fridge. Mix the required quantity of both cook and enjoy as and when needed.
• If tomatoes are too sour in taste then sugar adding is must.