Ripe Bitter Gourd Gojju (Pikale Karathe Gojju)

From ages if my granny or mom found ripened bitter gourds on the vine, they would be made into this spicy, tangy, delicious smashed goodness after roasting them on charcoal. Guess what, this easy bitter gourd gojju wouldn't even be bitter, thanks to the ripened bitter gourds. Bilimbi or hog plums were usually used to make this gojju to balance the bitterness. If you cannot find them you can use tamarind. You can use raw bitter gourds too to make this. You can cook them instead of roasting them whole on charcoal. 

When bitter gourds ripe, they can't be chopped into pieces to be cooked into something so grannies came up with this gojju where it's roughly chopped, cooked & smashed together into delicious spicy, tangy, flavourful gojju. It's easy, quick to make. When bitter gourds bought accidentally ripen in the fridge or when kept out I make this gojju.

You can make this gojju using raw bitter gourds or ripe bitter gourds. It's usually made using ripe bitter gourds. Ripe bitter gourds don't taste as bitter as when they are raw. Also, a great way to use up ripe bitter gourds that can't be chopped into pieces, they'll just crumble & can be mashed up into a gojju.

Even if the bitter gourd is bitter while it's raw or ripe, when made tangy & spicy, this gojju tastes great, not just bitter-y.

Here's how you can make it easily.

Ingredients:

• 1 Ripened bitter gourd
• Souring agent - 1 hog plum/2 bilimbi/2 chickpea sized tamarind
• Salt to taste
• 3 green chillies
• 1 tablespoon of grated coconut
• 1 tablespoon of coconut oil
• 1/4 cup of water
• 2 garlic cloves/a chana dal sized crystal asafoetida

Serves: 2
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Time taken: 10-15 minutes

Preparation Method:

1. Roughly chop bitter gourd.

2. Add salt, green chillies, souring ingredient, water & cook them until they're well cooked.

3. Add grated coconut while it's cooking.

4. Once they're cooked, cool them down & smash them.

5. Add smashed garlic cloves or crystal asafoetida dissolved in water.

6. Add coconut oil on top & give them a good mix. Enjoy as a side dish or mixed with rice.

Pro Tip: If your bitter gourd is very bitter, please use enough of bilimbi or hog plums. Tamarind doesn't do the job as great as the former two do, use enough of tamarind, if you can't find hog plums or bilimbi.