Bitter gourd are one of my favourite, I love the taste, it crazy bitter. I only able slightly tame the bitterness. I team up this beautiful bitter with smoke tofu, it elevated the flavour.

• 

I cooked this really spicy, another bite of flavour. Overall this recipe are salty, bitter, smoky and spicy. I want to add more sugar for balance but I leave it after all since I am not sure about the result, usually I will just go for whatever the end result I’d got but I don’t want to ruin this my favourite vegetable.

Unfortunately the rest of my family still not able to appreciate this vegetable, which I wont ask why, since it is painfully bitter. So this are my solitaire indulgence.

STIR FRIED BITTER GOURD

Serve 2 portion as side dishes

INGREDIENT

• 2 bitter gourd, slice it
• 1 shallot, slice it
• 2 fat garlic, crush and chop
• 1 lemon grass
• 1 slice of galangal
• 3 lime leaf
• 2 scallion, separate the white part and green part
• 50 gram smoke tofu, dice it
• 4 red chilli, slice it
• 1 tsp chilli flake
• Sea salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tbs vegetable oil
• a lot of sea salt to tame the bitterness
• Warm rice to serve
• Fried shallot/onion to serve

HOW TO

1. How to tame the bitterness are, after you slice the gourd, sprinkle it with table spoon of sea salt then gently squeeze it until quite soft, the leave it for 5-10 minute. Then rinse it under running cold water until all the salt are gone.
2. In medium heat and medium pan, put inside the vegetable oil, shallot, garlic, red chilli, lemon grass, white part of the scallion, galangal and lime leaf, sautéed until fragrance. Then put inside the smoke tofu, continued sautéed.
3. After smoke tofu are properly sautéed (5 minute minimum), put inside the bitter gourd, season with sea salt and pepper. Don’t forget to give it a taste, corrected according your preference.
4. Lastly sprinkle with dried chilli and green part of scallion, sautéed for 1-2 minute and take off from the heat.
5. Serve with warm rice and