Healthy, Crispy and Spicy Bitter Melon Fries

The festival of Rakhi is tomorrow and the celebrations are in full swing. So as you would expect, the presence of sweets in every household is not unusual. I was going to go along with the flow and make a dessert for this blog post. How I ended up with these slightly acerbic but mouthwateringly tasty BITTER MELON FRIES or KARELA FRIES is anybody’s guess. I am not complaining since they turned out to be the perfect accompaniment to my cup of JOE.

Festival that celebrates bond between brother and sister

I think the bond between a brother and sister is one of a kind in this world. And to my knowledge there is no festival in this world which celebrates this beautiful relationship than Rakhi or Rakshabandhan as it is usually called. Rakhi is the ceremonial thread which a sister ties on her brother’s wrist. In return the brother promises to love and protect her as long as he shall live. Just like any other Indian festival people eat a lot of sweets on this day as well.

Keeping up with the spirit of Rakhi my plan was to make desserts i.e. ice-cream for this week’s post. I made it without the ice-cream maker which got lost during our move from Dallas to Birmingham. Without blabbering on about my attempts at making ice-cream and boring you I am going to give you the abbreviated version. (LAUGHS!!!). I took two shots at making it and both were waaaayyy off the mark.

Mom to the Rescue!!!

This was the moment when I gave up all hopes of even posting a recipe for this week. But there is always one person in this world who will come to your rescue every single time and that is your MOM. I had just begun talking with her on Skype. The first thing that she said is this amazingly unique recipe made with WAIT FOR IT!! WAIT FOR IT!!!! BITTER MELON. Now I can hear all of your oohs and aahs and groans. But please bear with me on this one.

There isn’t any ingredient in the world which will not taste great if it is cooked the right way and Bitter Melon is no exception. I learned this very early in my childhood when I ate a delicious, 15minute bitter melon stir fry that my mom used to make. The trick was to add sugar to balance out the tartness of the melon.

How to reduce the bitterness of bitter melon?

I am going to reduce the sour taste of the melon by sweating out the water with a little bit of salt. I squeezed out all the water, which took away most of the bitter taste.

How to make Kurkure Karela Fries

After that I added a few spices to add extra flavor and cornflour for extra crispiness. For the spices my choices were turmeric, chili powder for a little heat, black salt, chaat masala for a little tang and cumin because it just goes well with the chaat masala (CHUCKLES). These babies just take about a minute to fry and be ready.

I understand that y’all might still be apprehensive about trying them. But go ahead and work up the courage to taste it y’all. I am pretty positive y’all are going to like it. As for me all I can say is this; cool rains, hot tea and steaming hot fries. It doesn’t get any better than this.

P.S: If y’all want to give me grief about posting a recipe with a bitter ingredient on such a sweet occasion then would love to hear it in the comments section below (LAUGHS!!!!!).

Serving Suggestions for Karela Fries

I usually serve it with a ketchup or cilantro chutney as accompaniment to my cup of JOE or you can also serve it as a side dish with curry, roti and sabji

Tips to make Crispy Bitter Gourd Fries

• Make sure to thinly slice the bitter gourd to get the best crispy karela fry.
• Do not skip step 1 to reduce the bitterness of the bitter melon.
• Fry on medium high heat.
• It taste crispy when served immediately.

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IF YOU LIKE THIS RECIPE, HERE ARE FEW MORE SIMILAR RECIPES FOR YOU TO TRY 

• Fried Okra
• Jalapeno Fritters
• Fried Zucchini Blossoms Stuffed with Goat Cheese
• Cauliflower Wings
• Medu Vada – The snack you want on a rainy day.
• Beer Battered Potato Fritters (Batata Vada)

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BITTER MELON FRIES – KARELA FRIES

Rahul

Spicy and Sour Bitter Melon Fries. A truly unique snack which just might be the perfect companion to your late afternoon cup of tea.

5 from 3 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Course Appetizer, Snacks

Cuisine Indian

Servings 2

Ingredients

  

• 2 Bitter Melon
• 1 tbsp Corn Flour
• ¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
• 1 tsp Red Chili Powder
• ¾ tsp Black Salt
• 1 tsp Chaat masala
• 1 tsp Cumin Powder
• Oil for frying

Instructions

 

• Trim the ends, scrap off the skin and de-seed the bitter melon. Cut into long slices.
• Sprinkle salt, mix well and keep aside for 30 minutes. Wash with water and pat them dry. This will remove the bitterness.
• Sprinkle red chili powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder, corn flour, chaat masala, black salt and toss well to coat.
• Heat oil over medium high heat. Fry in batches until crisp. Drain on an absorbent paper.
• Serve hot with choice of sauce.

Keyword Bitter Gourd Fries, Bitter Melon Fries, Karela Fries

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