Comments on Monsoon Spice: Haagalakai/Bitter Gourd Palya: Bitter is Better......

Wow--it's great! Thanks for sharing Sia.

2012-01-29T06:20:26.127Z

Wow--it's great! Thanks for sharing Sia.

Thanks! I will be trying this tonight.

2012-01-27T22:27:45.423Z

Thanks! I will be trying this tonight.

@Ka...

2012-01-27T13:27:57.910Z

@Kathleen, start with 3/4 tsp of concentrated tamarind paste. if u find the bitter gourd still too bitter, add another 1/4 tsp.

I only have tamarind paste, not the dried one. How...

2012-01-27T03:03:05.823Z

I only have tamarind paste, not the dried one. How much should I use?

Somehow I have never liked this vegetable. My moth...

2009-12-02T12:06:43.261Z

Somehow I have never liked this vegetable. My mother used to make it all the time. Palya, gojju and I wasn't forced to eat it anyway. I make it sometimes though. It was interesting to read your write up about your Ajji.

Thank you so much! I really appreciate it. I was g...

2009-06-17T17:17:03.871+01:00

Thank you so much! I really appreciate it. I was going to ask my friend Purva, but since it was your recipe I figured you would be the one to know! I will make a trip up to my local Indian store which is luckily within walking distance. I need to pick up some fresh frozen coconut anyway. I have a whole coconut, but I am thinking that might be a bit more work than I want to do tonight. Then again I could put my boyfriend to work!

@Shannon, U need to use the dry skinned bla...

2009-06-17T08:40:12.149+01:00

@Shannon,
U need to use the dry skinned black lentils (second picture here). Simply dry roast them with other ingredients listed under 'For Roasted Spices & Coconut Paste' as per the instruction and grind them all to smooth paste w/o adding any water.
If it is the first time you are cooking bitter gourd them I suggest you to marinate with enough salt for at least 30-40 mins and then squeeze them really nice to drain their bitter juice. Then rinse under running water and again squeeze the excess bitter juice before you proceed to cook :) Bitter gourd comes under the category of acquired taste and not everyone is fond of them. The use of tamarind (for sour taste), jaggery/palm sugar (available in any Indian grocery store) and dry red chillies along other spices makes this into a interesting flavourful dish.
Please don’t hesitate to leave a line if u need any other help :) You can also drop at our group blog Beyond Curries where we post some basic indian recipes for all those who are interested in learning simple home foods.

Hello Sia, I came across your recipe here this wee...

2009-06-17T06:19:26.118+01:00

Hello Sia, I came across your recipe here this week. This is my first time with bitter gourd and I am a bit afraid! This is only my second time trying my hand at Indian food, but my first try went so well I have to keep going! I do have a question though, since I am not familiar with ingredients can you tell me how i need to prepare the urad dal for this? I am quite confused. Do I cook it first and then used the already cooked dal? Or do I use them dried? OR am I mistaking this for something else entirely! Thank you!!

hi! join in the EFM-Breakfast and Variety Rice Ser...

2009-06-09T11:15:10.775+01:00

hi! join in the EFM-Breakfast and Variety Rice Series going in my blog!

Oh gosh girl! You killing me here! Bookmarked!

2009-06-06T22:13:45.979+01:00

Oh gosh girl! You killing me here! Bookmarked!

Food does take everyone down the memory lane :) I ...

2009-06-02T10:21:54.228+01:00

Food does take everyone down the memory lane :) I think we try to cook dishes and try and match them to our memories...atleast I do :) I think all of us have heard..bitter is better! I dont like karelas that much but your preparation looks yummy since it has jaggery in it.

Beautiful recipe. M makes something similar and...

2009-06-01T20:56:31.903+01:00

Beautiful recipe.

M makes something similar and it is one of my favorites!

Thank you for sharing this.
Arun

Reminded me of my mom's hagalkai palya :) I, howev...

2009-06-01T13:51:11.098+01:00

Reminded me of my mom's hagalkai palya :) I, however, have never tried making it...will try this time, thanks for the recipe!

Lovely pics Sia...you can make even a bitter gourd...

2009-06-01T06:52:51.321+01:00

Lovely pics Sia...you can make even a bitter gourd look so pretty :) Must try this, I do make a few things with bitter gourd and we really like it...picked up a bottle of hagalkai tokku in Bangalore, and its fabulous !!

The gravy sounds so flavorful. I didn't enjoy bitt...

2009-06-01T03:10:21.277+01:00

The gravy sounds so flavorful. I didn't enjoy bittergourds when I was little but like them a lot now.

Simply adore these bitter things...so much , that ...

2009-05-31T13:17:57.563+01:00

Simply adore these bitter things...so much , that i would almost ignore a paneer or potato side dish made at home when everytime bittergourd was cooked, so that the fussy eaters at home(Read...Siblings) could have their meals...gourds with some dal and rice...and it takes nothing more than that to bring out that expression of contentment after having a meal
This is such a gem of recipe...would love to try it soon

I simply love Bitter Gourd.....but ur dish is can ...

2009-05-30T20:59:48.705+01:00

I simply love Bitter Gourd.....but ur dish is can easily convert a person who dislikes Bitter Gourd

Bitter is better at all times. That too after look...

2009-05-30T15:51:02.746+01:00

Bitter is better at all times. That too after looking at thoses photos there is nothing to dispute.

Lovely write up sia, pictures are so good asusual ...

2009-05-29T22:33:09.657+01:00

Lovely write up sia, pictures are so good asusual and i too make this but never added sesame seeds..will add this too when i make next time.I am big fan for this vegetable.. i can even eat raw with salt when i chop them. But only this bitter is better for me not all bitterness.

@Kalai, So glad to see u girl. hw have u b...

2009-05-29T18:42:43.545+01:00

@Kalai,
So glad to see u girl. hw have u been? and I am excited to u liked this recipe. I have bought few bitter gourds to make this palya again this weekend. isn't it addictive? :)

I also think of my grandmother the same way Sia. ...

2009-05-29T18:37:36.834+01:00

I also think of my grandmother the same way Sia. She was such a broad minded and confident woman. Had she be born in the 70's/80's she would have achieved something great.

Lovely pictures as always and an interesting recipe. I have not tried this masala before.

Supriya, I just had to tell you that I tried makin...

2009-05-29T18:18:41.345+01:00

Supriya, I just had to tell you that I tried making this and it was phenomenal! I would have eaten the whole thing myself if I could. Thanks for such an awesome recipe!

Love it... yum :)

2009-05-29T18:12:48.923+01:00

Love it... yum :)

Hi Sia, what a lovely post! Made me think of my gr...

2009-05-29T17:12:09.043+01:00

Hi Sia, what a lovely post! Made me think of my grandmother who were always eager to please her grandchildren and cooked up stuff from her home grown vegetables in a jiffy whenever we went without notice and never let us leave until we were fully satiated! I really adore your pics, especially the spices one in the coconut shell with the woven mat background.We love bittergourd at home (I so agree about bitter and sweet parts of life) Love your recipe, and I will definitely be trying this soon:-)

I bought the bittergourd yesterday and I am going ...

2009-05-29T16:48:57.626+01:00

I bought the bittergourd yesterday and I am going to try this soon. Looks great. I did not know Bitter gourd causes heartburns. Thanks for the info.