Sunday, February 1, 2009

Bittermelon Stirfried with Egg and Bacon

Bittermelon I have written about it in my post called "Bittermelon Salad" but just real brief. It is a very bitter vegetable, with lots of health benefits, and I actually enjoy the bitterness and have acquired a taste for it. You can find it at some Asian grocery stores and especially at Filipino stores.

Bittermelon was 1 dollar for 2 pounds so I bought plenty bittermelons, two to make into "Bittermelon Salad" which I enjoyed with Jasmine rice and fried rockhead cod with soy sauce vinegar dip.

So anyways, I remember often times having Bittermelon stirfried with egg and bacon at my Filipino friends house (Shantall) and I really enjoy it, so I gave her a call and asked her how they make it. It is EXTREMELY EASY, I had this for breakfast this morning with Jasmine white rice. (Yes I am aware of the high glycemic index of 109 of Jasmine white Rice, but I hate brown rice in all it's forms I tried it for 2 years and tossed it out the window, I'm sorry I like white rice!)

Ingredients:
-2 bittermelons (cut in half, pith and seeds removed, sliced thinly but not like paper thin)
-1 onion minced
-1/2 head garlic (finely minced)
-4 -6 strips bacon chopped
-6-8 eggs (beaten with a dash of milk, and a couple pinches of salt) -salt to taste
-ground black pepper to taste
-1 pinch of monosodium glutamine/ msg (optional)



Directions:
(1)Heat a wok (if you don't have one a skillet or any pan is fine) on very high heat, add chopped bacon and stirfry until it renders all it's fat, add onions and stirfry for about 3-4 minutes until fragrant and caramelized a bit add garlic and cook until fragrant.

(2)Add bittermelon, mix well, add salt, black pepper, and msg. Stir every 1 minute for about 4 minutes to cook bittermelon.

(3)Add eggs, fold in well and slide, until eggs are cooked and scrambled in well. Taste for salt and add more to taste if neseccary.

(4)Enjoy with some white rice.

3 comments:

FOODalogue said...

Hey Nathan,
I notice you've been doing Filipino dishes lately. Why don't you save one and join me on A Culinary Tour Around the World. I just added the Philippines to the itinerary (ETA 3/23). Details are in my 1/2 post. I also recently did a post about black beans 3-ways which I think you might enjoy. Check it out -- and I hope to "see you" in the Philippines.

Nathan said...

Joan Nova,
Thanks, yeah I've been cooking some Filipino food (my friends mother is so sweet and doesn't mind showing me how to make the stuff she cooks)

I'll go check out your post soon :)

Unknown said...

Nathan, I wouldn't worry about the glycemic index of jasmine rice if I were you! You work out and are not overweight and there's no family history of diabetes, so I'm sure all is well! Enjoy your jasmine rice and other carbs!

I'm American Indian, and most of us get it eventually. I'm hovering on the brink, but if I exercise and eat well, my blood sugar stays in the normal range. I broke my foot back in August, and still have not gotten back into my fitness routine... I've been very, very bad!

I LOVE white rice, white bread, and every sugary thing there is. I agree with you about the brown rice. I do try to eat healthy, but I WILL NOT eat anything that tastes BAD, no matter how healthy is is. There are plenty of wonderful things, like beans, that are low glycemic AND delicious.

Bittermelon seems very interesting. I do enjoy some bitter things, like frisee, a kind of French lettuce. (It is sometimes sold as escarole, but that is a different green, also bitter.) Now that I know a few things to do with it, I may try it! We do have a large Asian market here. Thanks again for sharing :)