Bitter Gourd is one of the things that I learnt to appreciate only after I got married to my husband. It's funny how something you didn't like totally, can transform to something you actually enjoy having after several years. I guess that's how taste buds are developed.
I like my bitter gourd stuffed with fish paste (yong tao fu 釀豆腐), fried with salted egg yolk (which is very common nowadays in restaurant), and of course with stewed chicken which is the most common way of cooking bitter gourd at home.
Here is a recipe which I'd adapted and tweaked from several sources, and I'd tried cooking it many times.
♥Recipe for Stewed Chicken with Bitter Gourd in Black Bean Sauce (豆鼓苦瓜燜鸡)♥ Serves 4 person
You'll need
2 whole chicken tighs (or 400g of chicken), cut into pieces.
1/2 of a large bitter gourd (~300g)
1 big onion, cut into 8 wedges 1 piece of ginger (about 1 inch), slice thinly
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tbs of black bean, rinse and lightly pounded
2 tbs of light soy sauce
2 tbs of vegetable oil
2 tbs of chinese wine
1 1/2 tbs of sugar
1~2 cups of water
1/2 tsp of salt
Method
1) Season the chicken in 1 tbs of light soy sauce in a bowl and leave it for half an hour. Take chicken out and pour away whatever liquid was left on the bowl.
2) Halve the bitter gourd lengthwise, then remove the seeds with a spoon, and cut into ~3cm slices. Sprinkle salt into bitter gourd and leave for 5 minutes, then rinse with water (this will get rid of the bitter taste).
2) Heat oil in wok and fry chicken (drop them piece by piece into the oil) until lightly browned, and then remove chicken from oil.
3) Put in garlic, onion, ginger and fry till fragrance. Put in black bean, fry for 30seconds, and then pour in chicken and bitter gourd. Stir fry for 2 minute. Pour in the Chinese wine and fry for another 2minutes.
4) Add in water and bring to boil. Pour in the rest of the soy sauce and sugar, and once it's boiling, turn down the heat, and cover it, let it simmer for another 10minutes, stirring occasionally.
5) Taste the sauce to see if you need to add in more sugar or salt, season according to your taste.
6) Serve warm with rice.
The hubs absolutely loves it. The black bean gives the chicken and bitter gourd a very nice fragrance and flavour. My eldest would not touch this dish because she's not much a chicken fan (she only takes processed chicken like nuggets, sausages; or deep fried chicken); but my youngest, would nibble on pieces of the chicken and not once complained about the bitter taste.
I like my bitter gourd stuffed with fish paste (yong tao fu 釀豆腐), fried with salted egg yolk (which is very common nowadays in restaurant), and of course with stewed chicken which is the most common way of cooking bitter gourd at home.
Here is a recipe which I'd adapted and tweaked from several sources, and I'd tried cooking it many times.
♥Recipe for Stewed Chicken with Bitter Gourd in Black Bean Sauce (豆鼓苦瓜燜鸡)♥ Serves 4 person
You'll need
2 whole chicken tighs (or 400g of chicken), cut into pieces.
1/2 of a large bitter gourd (~300g)
1 big onion, cut into 8 wedges 1 piece of ginger (about 1 inch), slice thinly
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tbs of black bean, rinse and lightly pounded
2 tbs of light soy sauce
2 tbs of vegetable oil
2 tbs of chinese wine
1 1/2 tbs of sugar
1~2 cups of water
1/2 tsp of salt
Method
1) Season the chicken in 1 tbs of light soy sauce in a bowl and leave it for half an hour. Take chicken out and pour away whatever liquid was left on the bowl.
2) Halve the bitter gourd lengthwise, then remove the seeds with a spoon, and cut into ~3cm slices. Sprinkle salt into bitter gourd and leave for 5 minutes, then rinse with water (this will get rid of the bitter taste).
2) Heat oil in wok and fry chicken (drop them piece by piece into the oil) until lightly browned, and then remove chicken from oil.
3) Put in garlic, onion, ginger and fry till fragrance. Put in black bean, fry for 30seconds, and then pour in chicken and bitter gourd. Stir fry for 2 minute. Pour in the Chinese wine and fry for another 2minutes.
4) Add in water and bring to boil. Pour in the rest of the soy sauce and sugar, and once it's boiling, turn down the heat, and cover it, let it simmer for another 10minutes, stirring occasionally.
5) Taste the sauce to see if you need to add in more sugar or salt, season according to your taste.
6) Serve warm with rice.
The hubs absolutely loves it. The black bean gives the chicken and bitter gourd a very nice fragrance and flavour. My eldest would not touch this dish because she's not much a chicken fan (she only takes processed chicken like nuggets, sausages; or deep fried chicken); but my youngest, would nibble on pieces of the chicken and not once complained about the bitter taste.
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