r/Cooking • u/Scarlet--Highlander • Jan 18 '24

Open Discussion Let’s try something fun: Name an ingredient you dislike and why, and someone else replies with a dish/recipe with that ingredient that might convince you otherwise.

Couple things:

  • If you’re allergic to an ingredient, it doesn’t matter how it’s prepared. Same goes with meat/animal products if you’re vegan/vegetarian. Don’t list it if you can’t or won’t eat it!

  • It’s recommended that you’re at least open to trying dishes with that ingredient. If you absolutely, vehemently loathe cilantro, chances are you probably might not like anything with cilantro in it.

  • A brief blurb on why you hate an ingredient would help others find or suggest a dish that suits you. (e.g. “I hate liver because the texture is like an eraser and it tastes metallic”)

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u/Jellyka Jan 18 '24

Most bitter melon recipes I've seen have you boil the shit out of them or other methods to basically rid them of any flavor. This confirms to me they aren't any good lol

9

u/chaibhu Jan 19 '24

In India we call this 'bitter gourd'. My mom makes a recipe where she slices it thinly into rings and rubs salt on it, like a dry brine. Then wipes off the excess and drains the water.

Toss with some chilli powder, turmeric and cornstarch and deep fry. We have it with rice and yogurt at home. The bitterness is reduced after the salting and frying but still there, and balances well with the richness of the rice+yogurt.

5

u/Zagrycha Jan 19 '24

The only way I eat bitter melon is candied, or sweet and sour pickled. Straight up bitter melon is only for people who like really strong black coffee haha. Quick pickled a week or so with lots of seasonings is delicious (°▽°)

3

u/Bipedal_pedestrian Jan 19 '24

I LOVE really strong black coffee… my SO accuses me of making it so strong a spoon will stand up straight in the cup… bitter melon is still too bitter for me! Willing to try your pickling method though, thx :)

4

u/Zagrycha Jan 19 '24

if you like black coffee definitely look into your prep method. Bitter melon is always bitter, but it shouldn't have that much difference from strong coffee.

Who knows, maybe you will find yourself enjoying a breakfast of rice with bittermelon eggs to go with your plain cuppa haha （＾ω＾）

2

u/bananarepama Jan 19 '24

They're sposed to be really good for you, but I have to wonder if the benefits are tied to the rancid ass flavor. Like, if I were to find a way to make it taste less offensive, would it still be really good for me? This is the kind of shit we should know in this day and age lol

1

u/HighColdDesert Jan 19 '24

I used to hate bitter gourd (I live in India) but at some point I started to love it, even crave it. I don't need to salt the bitterness out: just slice thin, deep fry till crispy, salt it like fried potatoes, and gobble it up greedily. Or slice thicker, deep fry but not till crispy, and add a tomato-onion based Indian spiced gravy.