INDIAN VS CHINESE : Bitter Melon Showdown - Weird Fruit Explorer

Finally settling things and comparing the Indian and Chinese bitter melon. Who will reign supreme and so on..
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[@lot1655]

my grandmother always said this to me , those who can't eat bitter gourd most likely they can't endure hardship in life ...

[@dianeadkins6337]

totally agree! Your grandmother was probably my neighbor in Hawaii in days bygone

[@BrainGiggles]

😂 “It’s funny that this is suppose to be really good for you because it taste like it’s going to kill you!” 😂🤣😂

[@shamikghosh1131]

There is a version of Indian bitter gourd we call 'uchchhe' in bengali. It it a bit more bitter. We usually boil them with potatoes and mash them into a paste with some salt and mustard oil, and have it with rice first thing during lunch, it cleans your palate and prepares your taste buds for other tastes, in traditional East Bengali cuisine the lunch usually goes from bitter to savoury to spicy and finally ends with sweet.

[@eligoldman9200]

You should have more subscribers for how authentic you and your channel is.

[@WeirdExplorer]

thanks!

[@FreshSmog]

I used to make the most cost saving meal with these. Stir fry one of these with a can of preserved mackerel. Oil and salt comes from the can and it's super quick and easy. Takes out almost all the bitterness.

[@ElCachorro97]

Stir fry it with ground pork or beef, add shrimps and scramble some eggs too.

[@TamMinhLy]

In Vietnam, we use the bitter melons like the Chinese does. We saute with different meat and eggs. We stuff them with meat and make a soup and eat them with rice. Incredibly delicious vegetable, the bitterness gives it character and flavor. We also eat them raw with soy sauce and rice. Look up various recipes for bitter melon. In Vietnam, they're called "kho qua". Search those words and a bunch of recipes comes up.

[@talhaakram]

It tastes amazing stuffed with spicy minced meat and chopped onions (that you pound together to make a stuffing)! it pairs really nicely with beef (in the same way bell peppers pair well with meat).

[@WeirdExplorer]

never heard of it being made that way, is that a regional preparation?

[@SambodhiBhattacharyya0]

Stuffing it is pretty common across India, particularly the older ones where the bitter flavor takes precedence over the light floral flavor in the younger ones.

[@uk7866]

@@WeirdExplorer common in Pakistan especially in the Punjab, Kashmir region

[@mercurywoodrose]

ok ill buy that about it being like bell pepper. i dont like bell peppers flavor but it does pair with strong meats and spices well.

[@paulthomas8262]

Where are you from? Not much beef eaten in India, except maybe Kerala. I actually like bitter gourd it with lamb, but with a contrasting flavour with sweet paprika/pepper sauces. Maybe with little caraway seed, which is rarely used for meat in the west for some reason. I never had bitter gourd as brown has he did, I guess I sweat it, so it gets more bright. You can save the oil as a bitter extract. I guess I'm a bitter freak. But bitter extracts are popular in mixers (albeit not oil based ones). It is kind of like a primary ingredient, like sugar or salt, of lemon juice or something umami.

[@vietganinja7095]

I love the thumbnail. The bitter melons holding little weapons is funny and cute.

[@WeirdExplorer]

Haha I giggled quite a lot making that

[@ByronAgain]

Ah yes - My son and I were eating bitter melon with dal bhat every day in Nepal - because it was in season. Sadly, jackfruit was also in season so we had the delight of enjoying two strongly individual foods at the same time! The bitter melon was generally prepared with onion, potato, turmeric, and garlic, then served with rice, lentil soup and an achaar (pickle), usually including a local chili variety; don't let its round, cute little tomato appearance fool you - they hurt, but then again, they also take your mind off the bitter melon & jackfruit - FTW!

[@kabir3510]

I see you have met the dalle. 😂

[@boblim5530]

Thought you fried bitter melon with tomato instead of potatoes.is this a typing error?

[@Kwemony]

I'm sorry, even though I'm Asian, I HATE bitter melons

[@OverlordMaggie]

Recently tried a Chinese cultivar bitter melon, extremely good! I tend to like bitter foods and to me it tasted of green beans, green peppers, and that nail biting deterrent. I even liked it raw, but I can see why others may not want to, the bitterness is pretty intense. Never tried the Indian cultivar but that might be a bit too much for me.

[@robertdoe2256]

the bitter taste grows on you

[@hectorblanco6781]

Yes it does thats why i make a smoothie out of it

[@J_J_Arts]

We Indians just cut some bitter melons into small pieces and put those pieces into a bowl and add some water into it. We add some salt into that bowl and and then we cook it after about 30 minutes. We don't use any meat or any non veg food in bitter melon. We add some chopped onions to increase the taste .

[@phamilee]

You can also boil/blanch it to get out some of the bitterness. Boiling will help cook it more evenly and shorten the time it takes to fry.

[@HMan2828]

Probably something you can pickle or ferment... Lots of bitter stuff gets much better after brine and fermentation...

[@ayandas874]

Stir Frying it to brown and putting salt on it is the best way. Cut it thinly though. No need to scoop out the flesh. The fried seeds in the pith are the best parts. I love eating it with daal and rice.

[@sneakersheik2418]

Sorry to keep commenting-last thing, I promise! I love the melon rating “stars” you used! Also, lol-“...the Indian one looks more badass...”

[@YelDohan]

In case you don't know this already, try finding ripe ones. Most farmers harvest them green, but occasionally they miss one or two. The flesh will turn yellow and the pith will turn red, just like gac fruit.

[@sazji]

They use that as medicine in Turkey, preserved in oil.

[@jspear2755]

I tried the Indian version while I was in Qatar, having no idea what it was, I sliced it into circles and tried it raw. Threw it out instantly. Now I know I ate it completely wrong, so ill try it again.

[@JaiPickOfficial]

It's very healthy fruit. Stir fry it with egg and with lots of onion, garlic and tomatoes. We also put shrimp paste and pork rind.

[@kathynix6552]

Eating it raw now in a salad - no bitterness. I sliced it thinly. Coated it with lemon juice. Sprinkled over a little turmeric powder and black pepper. Added chopped red onion, larger size chilli, and some herbs (a few leaves each of some different basils, parsley…

[@sainellore6874]

Bitter gourd's bitterness is best neutralised by cooking it with tamarind pulp/juice. That's how we use it in South India. My preference is: cut very thin slices of bitter gourd, add tamarind juice & salt. Deep fry it and sprinkle some red chilli powder. Yummmmy!

[@JenkemDungeon]

There is also a Japanese Bitter Gourd. It's shorter, fatter, and it's skin is white.

[@geomundi8333]

Just showed this variety by a friend. Next year I want to grow both Kerala and Japanese Snow bitter gourd. Excited

[@WeirdExplorer]

Neat! I'll see if I can find one

[@JenkemDungeon]

@@WeirdExplorer I have the seeds and intend to grow them next year. If all goes well, I'm more than happy to share.

[@WeirdExplorer]

ooh thanks! Let me know :)

[@sailorsaturn2156]

GOYA!!! MY NEMESIS!! I am a japanese/pacific islander and i swear to you all my cultures love to push bittermelon as a miracle panacea. In Okinawa, and therefore all the people who come from there, they have goya juice, goya yogurt, goya smoothies, goya candy, goya in everythiiiing!!! In the philipines they love to toss it in adobe, stews, stir fries..... My childhood was rife with bittermelon. I hate it to this day. I will say that the japanese cultivar is far milder than the chinese and indian varieties, so its far less traumatic to eat it raw or as juice, it is still the stuff of my nightmares though.

[@WeirdExplorer]

Yeah I can only imagine if my parents made me eat this before getting dessert. blahh

[@kabir3510]

Lol, same here for Indians. I think its a pan asian parental torture technique.

[@josephthompson6541]

Why do some of these fruits looks like they just came out of rick and morty , not even ironically or trying to be stupid , they legit look very similar.

[@ShubhraPasayat]

Indian, bittern gourd lover here! But my local grocery store only sells the Chinese variety and I have to travel a long distance to get the Indian variety, I think I will switch to the Chinese one for accessibility. I put shallots+tomatoes+salt+turmeric (variation 1: dry curry), szechuan sauce while stir-frying with garlic (variation 2) and lemon juice+sugar (variation 3: sweet 'n' sour), to help my husband tolerate the bitterness :)

[@percival4461]

i’ve had chinese bitter melon soup my whole life (i live in america but am the child of immigrants) and i really think it’s an acquired taste. some people really hate the bitterness but i actually quite enjoy it honestly. hope you try it again sometime! :)

[@WeirdExplorer]

I can see it being a flavor that grows on you after a while :)

[@miyazakiendo3743]

The secret to take out the bitterness of that bittermelon is you have to chop them tiny and put some salt. Sit it for like 20 minutes, squish some if the liquid. And rinse them till there’s no salt and squish them again. Fry some onions, tomatoes, garlic. Put salt or to make it tasty put chicken powder. Then put the chop bittermelon. Cook it for 10min and add eggs, they’re good and healthy. I’m Asian and I prefer the Chinese one because it’s less bitter than the Indian

[@hectorblanco6781]

I would like to try tge soup need recipes

[@kishar2630]

Where I'm from in Trinidad there are more varieties some even grow wild . From tiny as like 1 inch or 1 1/2 inch long there are some that grow up to more than a foot long. Smooth ones, rough ones, and in between . The darker they are the more bitter. It's better not the drink the juice that you squeeze from the salted bitter melon,it very salty and if you have high blood pressure it's probably no good. We are a mixture of different races so we make them in different ways, I like to slice them thinly heat enough oil and add the bitter melon. Then when it is half done add thinly sliced onions ,garlic ,hot pepper and salt. You can also thinly slice potatoes and add them to the oil the same time as the bitter melon. Some people add orca to it as well. When made like this we like it crunchy. Then some may stuff the bitter melon and fry , we curry as well.We make it with anchar masala ,cut in to sticks like 1 1/2 to 2 inch lengthy ways about 1 cm width ,add to hot oil fry ,add onion, garlic,hot pepper, anchar masala and salt . These are the ways we cook it as Indian decendants I can't really tell you about other people but I mostly make it the first way. But I don't salt and squeeze it ,most people do, Also some people steam it or add very little oil to make it more of a steam for healthy way of eating.

[@mrsenstitz]

Jared vs bitter gourd. I can hear the dread. Extra bravery points for eating it raw.

[@Salmanul_]

I really like bitter gourd especially when it's a curry

[@mabuhayPinay]

Would you mind sharing the curry recipe? I'm collecting recipes. TIA

[@mastermind1099]

We In Bengal make a popular dish called "shukta/shukto" with the indian bitter gourd, and also we can fry it in slices...put salt & turmeric powder in it & leave it for 20-30 minutes, drain the water...then it will be less bitter. You can put salt & turmeric powder to potato & drain the water in the same way also before cooking potato, because potato has many harmful chemical compounds in it.

[@toothytooth3490]

This was perfect timing. I had just come across these in my local market & was wanting to give them a try. I might try a couple of the other things I've stumbled upon that I haven't had yet first though based on what you're saying about these, but I will definitely try them

[@sneakersheik2418]

How did I get as old as I am without knowing the gunk inside a melon is the PITH? Thank you, Jared, for increasing my Jeopardy skills! 😝 Very interesting vid, as usual! ✌️

[@picksalot1]

I've had the Indian variety sun dried/roasted. It tasted quite good, a bit like bacon. Cooked Bitter Melon was an acquired taste for me. Hated it the first time I tried it, but noticed a feeling of improved health. The more I had it, the better I liked it. But, the dried/roasted preparation is by far my favorite.

[@disseria]

You were able to tolerate these pretty well. My mom is Filipino, and us kids were forced to eat this on occasion. I hated it then, and I hate it now. Tastes like chemicals to me.

[@sazji]

So, no pinakbet for you then. :-)

[@ThanhNguyen-mb2lg]

I mean my family use it as a way to test if you are adult enough. Not flinching eating it raw

[@miyazakiendo3743]

They probably cooked it wrong.

[@miyazakiendo3743]

The secret to take out the bitterness of that bittermelon is you have to chop them tiny and put some salt. Sit it for like 20 minutes, squish some if the liquid. And rinse them till there’s no salt and squish them again. Fry some onions, tomatoes, garlic. Put salt or to make it tasty put chicken powder. Then put the chop bittermelon. Cook it for 10min and add eggs, they’re good and healthy. I’m Asian and I prefer the Chinese one because it’s less bitter than the Indian

[@omerbashir1]

bitter gourd is one of best vegetables, provided it is cooked properly :) . In Pakistan. it is cooked in many ways; some dishes with meat, minced meat, stuffed with minced meat and even without meat with tonnes of spices, still it tastes excellent. The real secret lies in how you cook it and remove bitterness.

[@humorpotamus]

Soaking it in vinegar overnight takes away a lot of the bitterness.

[@brooklyndesi]

Best way to prepare it (had to learn this the hard way) stir fry with equal amt of onions, salt and chili flakes to kill the bitterness. Otherwise its unbearably bitter the indian version. The Chinese (smooth) version is alot more platable and easier to eat.

[@RoseNZieg]

best way to eat those raw is to dip it in chili pepper paste. tastes so good!!

[@rprimbs]

You know you can use them in soups. I love bitter melon soup!

[@peachypeach]

There's recipe in Chinese cooking, that calls for raw bitter melon, thinly sliced on a mandolin. Soaked/shocked briefly in iced water and drizzled with some honey. There are white varieties also. The more you scrape the pith the milder it gets.

[@WeirdExplorer]

So its a dessert then? That I didn't know

[@francesca2202]

Great video to understand more about this vegetable! Thanks

[@sawahtb]

I'm from the South, never had bitter melon until I was an adult. I love bitter melon. Cooked with shrimp and black bean sauce is the best. You need a bit more water and maybe a little corn starch to get a gravy going.

[@resham9914]

You can fry it slowly in low heat and make it completely dry it like potato chips... You add nothing but salt..It tastes so good.. kinda addictive too.🙂

[@prateek752]

South of what

[@sawahtb]

@@prateek752 “The South”. As in the United States. I know Americans seldom eat bitter melon but I have and love it.

[@prateek752]

@@sawahtb Cool beans

[@sensate2000]

Finally a food to match my personality.

[@bonrya]

I love the indian type in a salad of tomatoes and salt! Some even add salted egg to it. Delicious 😘

[@markiangooley]

Jennifer McLaren has bitter-melon recipes in her cookbook, Bitter. There’s one with coconut milk, another with fatty pork (can also be made with ghee and tofu). Delicious, if you don’t mind the bitterness: I’ve made the pork version a few times. Indian seems more common here in south Florida. McLaren also suggests that salting method. I no longer bother.

[@zizy6516]

You can slice it thinly and chill it with ice. The bitter taste will be no more.

[@dasikakn]

Mmm. My favorite. I cut them into round pieces without removing the pith. Soak the pieces for a Few hours in salt, then add tamarind concentrate and soak some more. Meanwhile sauté chopped onions and garlic. Then cook soaked pieces with chopped onions in all that salty tangy juice till the bitter disappears adding salt and tamarind as needed. Could take 30 minutes. Let water evaporate. Meanwhile cook a small bowl of lupin flour in the microwave or stove. Add that plus some more water. Season with salt, paprika, cilantro to taste. Mmm 😋 plus I’m not throwing any of it away including the soaking water.

[@Lillepjusk]

The Indian type looks like the scales of a dinosaur or dragon's back or something! That looks so cool! I'll pass on eating it, though...

[@ConorThacker]

Thanks Jared I love your videos

[@MichaelMarko]

The little store near my apt used to sell both types. Now only the Indian. I slice it thin on the bias and fry it till crispy! I love the contrast between the crispy seeds and the chewy outside. Salt and garlic. I’m having it for breakfast with tea as I write!!!

[@DevourInc2]

I bought an indian bitter melon at a korean grocery store bc it looked cool. Took a big bite out of it, thought i was gonna die. Later i grilled it in butter because I thought it might help, it still tasted like chemicals, but chemicals with butter on it

[@bonitasmithey6269]

Thanks for the review on bitter melon. I bought one at the local market and was so surprised when I cut it open and it was blood red pulp and seeds and I had no idea on how to eat. Loved your comments and description of how it tasted.

[@roderickwarjri1063]

Cut the gourd into chopped crisp like pieces and deep fry it with those pips and all and voila you have a bitter gourd chips which is less bitter and crispy.

[@shreyasss9047]

Size depends on how they are cultivated.

[@mariannedickson3840]

Great video. You answered all of my questions and made me feel adventurous enough to try it!

[@WeirdExplorer]

Glad to hear it!

[@k8eekatt]

I stir fried until tender and made a sauce with arrowroot, apple cider vinegar, garlic and tamari. It was good! I could see this being tasty with kung pow style too. Thanks for the video!

[@michaelpedersen18]

You might want to look in to trying a ripe one, said to be much less bitter and far sweeter/fruitier although the ripe seeds need to be completely removed

[@seiyuokamihimura5082]

Stirfried bitter melon is great! Especially with fried rice noodles.

[@windowpane]

Okinawa Goya champuru made me love bitter melon.

[@rakkrisr123]

Indian bitter melon juice is actually suggested as a remedy for diabetes

[@manharrajesh7356]

True, one of the best natural remedies for diabetes. Drink the juice a few times a week.

[@gunnarthegumbootguy7909]

bitter melon flavored boba tea and other sweet desert like things are super lovely

[@joumasevoet]

My mom eats these raw, she dips it with a chili dip type thing and rice

[@sneakersheik2418]

TEGSAAN Where is your mom from? I think it’s so interesting how people’s tastes develop based on their country and/or culture!

[@soulkeeperpetgrave5020]

Commenting to help the channel, keep up the great work

[@ryu-yuta9259]

You can eat it freshly with rice, sambals and fried tofu,tempeh or both.

[@elchicharron9503]

I love bitter melon. I fry it up like you did and use it as a side dish to strongly flavored, usually indian, food.

[@BorneoViking]

Bitter Melon + Green Apple ..... amazing juice

[@mercurywoodrose]

wow. i had bitter melon a-t a chinese restaurant in california run by the former chef at a fancy beijing hotel. the other dishes were fantastic, very balanced flavors per chinese haute cuisine. but thei bitter melon didnt have the pith scraped out, and was only lightly stir fried in a light garlic sauce, you know, what they usually cook their veggies in to not mask the subtle flavors of snow peas/water chestnuts. did he mess up? did they now know what to do with it? cause it was HORRIBLE. ONE OF THE FEW DISHES ieve ever had that i coul dnot finish. now im curious about it.

[@ryuk202]

It is probably my favorite veggie/fruit. Also the salt thing makes it more bitter in my experience just feels more concentrated.

[@zingmc1918]

it's probably good pickled

[@sp3bibhu]

This is treated as a vegetable than a fruit...very common one and although taste is not good, it's good for health

[@penguwave4025]

The Indian variety looks eerily similar to a Goya.

[@philaphobic]

Very interesting! Thank you!

[@kandigloss6438]

I'm surprised that 15min was long enough to neutralize the bitterness, maybe the ones I get at my grocery store are especially bitter or maybe my taste buds are very sensitive to the bitterness, even the 2 - 3hrs that is usually recommended online isn't enough. I usually put them in a plastic bag and leave them in the fridge in salt overnight. This is coming from someone that actually likes bitter things by the way.

[@n.y.9894]

"They both taste like bitter poison"

[@myfivestarrealty]

Nice vidio. I do not do salt oil or sugar sos free, so I just stir fry in water. Not overcook. From Germany 🇩🇪 did not grow up with Bitter melons but shop authentic cook authentic for health. I use red peppers onions beans with them and some aminos at the end . Eat with rice mixed with Quinoa or in a burrito 🌯 So good.

[@buhimanshu]

Cook this in indian style, you will find the real taste of bitter gourd

[@Cheap_Skate]

Indian style is really good in Okinawa-style yakisoba (fat handmade noodles w/butter and big bonito flakes).

[@sneakersheik2418]

I’ve seen these at my local Asian supermarket-the Chinese ones-but I thought they were massively huge cucumbers!!! 🥒😂

[@donovanvasta9779]

They are somewhat edible raw if you salt them and add lemon juice on top. I've had them cooked before, but I prefer green beans and green bell pepper. I don't believe this fruit is somehow magically more healthy just because it's bitter. It's probably good but I'm not sure how much so than any other fruit or veggie.

[@daliacastello2608]

Here in Texas I grew the round bitter melon. I cooked like I would squash. I didn’t remove the pulp. It is bitter at all stages it’s an acquired taste. Washing boiling frying does not reduce the bitterness 😂🤣

[@arnoldsmit1978]

Hmmm looks a lot like cucumber! ( the one without spikes ofcourse!)

[@WeirdExplorer]

They're in the same family :)

[@arnoldsmit1978]

@@WeirdExplorer Ohh ok, thats why! 👍keep up this interesting work . I learn alot from you ! Thnx

[@microsleep1986]

I really want you and Smarter every day to do a collab.

[@WeirdExplorer]

That would be great. Maybe one day.

[@Mangosteencountry]

I live in Malaysia, and we get both varieties. The Chinese one I would slice it thinly to make bittergourd and egg soup. I love it. The Indian ones I would fry it with onion garlic and dry anchovies. Also great accompaniment to rice.

[@De.aurious]

where can i buy organic bitter melon in the usa or where can i order it online?

[@mrsenstitz]

What is the enzyme /chemical that makes the gourds bitter?

[@nikhillrao3799]

In India they fry up slices of these into chips. Decently tasty but probably gets rid of the health benefits.

[@puurplegiraffe]

Am I the only one that just can't adapt to bitter food like dark chocolate and grapefruit?

[@Call-me-Al]

Nothing wrong with that. It's about genetics and age.

[@yummyreadygo5036]

Also bitter gourd is a great vegetable that should be included in our diet. Try this unique traditional recipe @

[@onebackzach]

This video almost escalated the China/India border conflict into WW3, but thankfully you called it a tie

[@SecretLars]

Dryer fruits and vegetables are better because it makes them more friendly for drying and even if they aren't preserved they last longer fresh beause mould prefers wetter fruits and vegetables.

[@gottaprobm]

Highly thankful for this 🙏God bless

[@karnokkantisutar237]

I am indian. And I really like bitter melon fry..

[@Jag-ws5ue]

I grew up with mum cooking this, if you want an idea of what it taste like raw, just chew on a paracetamol

[@miftahulfaris4400]

The chinese ones are common in Indonesia. They usually stir-fry these in a wok with some garlic, shallots and other seasoning and eat them with hot steaming rice. So good.

[@japmd17]

You have to try to make it a salad. Its perfect for fried food. Its my favorite

[@wren6311]

OMG THAT THUMB NAIL THO! 😂😂😂

[@craiglist6694]

the content is very well done. I would only suggest to FF or cut some parts to make the blog shorter (like accelerating cutting, frying ...etc) Also , you missed blanching the bitter melons after salting instead of squeezing them. You don't want to lose the precious juice. Like is overall.

[@Animaniafreak]

In Taiwan the bitter melon looks white and fat, not long and slender like these two. Also the white variety I tried in Taiwan only has the faintest bitterness, taste almost like a fruit! I had it as an entree with passionfruit sauce, it's actually quite nice!

[@WeirdExplorer]

sounds good!