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fresh turmeric, bitter melon, banana flowers

sleevendog (5a NY 6aNYC NL CA)

10 years ago

What to do? Looks like an episode of 'Chopped'.
Pretty on my counter. Along with a mound of bread from Rockland Bakery! (i live 10 miles away and just went for the first time, wow what a bakery)

-just read that the turmeric needs gloved hands and do not get near counters or cutting board....

Was in Forest Hills, Queens....amazing vegetables

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Comments (6)

sushipup1
10 years ago
I guess bitter melon is an acquired taste. I buy it for an 89-yr old woman from Trinidad, where it was growing in her garden many many years ago. It's a folk remedy for a lot of ailments, and she believes that it helps her diabetes. The smaller the more bitter. The store where I get it has two varieties, one the size of a cucumber, the other has rougher skin and is smaller. Rosana's garden many years ago produced ones that were even smaller and more bitter, about fingerling size.

Rosana just cuts up roughly and boils it. And also drinks the water. I admit that I haven't tried it. ;-)

I also saw banana flowers and those were a mystery to me, too.

This post was edited by sushipup on Thu, May 16, 13 at 10:15
arley_gw
10 years ago
A common way to cook bitter melon is to stuff it with a pork mixture and make soup. The link has the details. I've tried this, and I find it tasty--but bear in mind, it IS bitter! If you don't like tonic water, I doubt that you would like bitter melon. It's much more bitter than, for example, a highly hopped IPA.

You can also slice the bitter melon, remove the seeds, sprinkle salt on the melon, squeeze the melon pieces with a paper towel to extract some of the juice, and rinse them off and stir fry them with meat. That technique does take away some of the bitterness.

While I do like bitter melon, I'm currently using it for something somewhat diabolical. I've had problems in the past with some two-legged predators snitching stuff out of my garden. I'm growing some bitter melon along with cucumbers....I can't wait for one of those thieves to steal a bitter melon, thinking it's a cucumber. Hee hee hee...

Here is a link that might be useful: bitter melon soup
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There have been several comments in this thread about bitter melon seeds having a short storage life. I respectfully disagree. I have been saving & planting my own bitter melon seeds since the 1990's. Because I have collected many varieties & can only grow one per location, it might be 5-6 years or more before a particular variety gets regrown. I start all bitter melon as transplants; this year I planted "Taiwan Large" (from 2012 seed) and "Abashi" (from 2013 seed). I also planted a de-hybridized Chinese variety (2020 seed) as a backup. There was no difference in germination between all three varieties, which each had about 90% germination. To put this in perspective, all seed has been stored in zippered freezer bags, at room temperature, with the bags rolled up to squeeze out excess air & stored in a dark, dry location. Proper drying is important; if the seed moisture is too high when stored and/or the seeds are exposed to heat, they will deteriorate quickly. Air-tight containers are best for storage. To get the best germination, start the seeds indoors in pots. Water-permeable pots (peat, paper, soil blocks, etc.) are best, since they avoid root damage during transplanting. It isn't necessary to nick the seeds; after planting, soak the pots & seeds in a tray over-night, then pour off any excess water. A few drops of fertilizer in the soaking water will improve germination (organic fertilizer can be used if it has a high N content). I recommend placing the pots in a warm location until germination... I use 80 F. degrees, but a heat mat, or a box with an electric bulb for heat, will work too. Germination should take 7-8 days; the seedlings should be moved to direct sunlight as soon as they emerge.
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I just finally bought one of these melons about a week ago, and I have now cooked and eaten some 3 times. I love it! I went to web to find recipes and the first one I tried, I have used 3 times. It's very good, though I did change it right away. I have added things to it that original version, so it's now my own recipe, and I know I like it more than I would have the original one. That one called for letting cut up melon sit in lots of turmeric and salt, then rinsing it well before cooking, but I have added more to the marinade and I DON'T rinse it. I am afraid that taking away the bitterness might also take away the melon's ability to do it's job. See: http://milonee.net/bengali_recipes/bitter-melon/bittermelon.html and some of the links on this page for health benifits of Bitter Melon. Here is my version of the recipe called: Bitter Melon Saute Cut one or more bitter melons in half lengthwise and remove the seeds and the soft centre they sit in. Then cut the melon halves into small pieces. These pieces will be quarter moon shaped. They can be any thickness, but I make them about 1/4 inch thick or smaller. Toss these in lots of turmeric, cumin, and salt and let them sit for an hour or more. While they are marinading, slice an onion, several good sized garlic cloves, some leek, some fresh mushrooms and some protein, be it pork, chicken, turkey, tofu or maybe even some kind of fish. After the marinading is done, saute only the melon pieces until they start to soften, then add the rest of the ingredients and saute till the onions are clear. Depending on what protein you are using, you might want to add that a little later, but before the onions are clear. When done, just serve on a plate. You have both protein and veggies, so that could be your meal, or you could have other things with it. I like just that as my meal perhaps with some oat cakes or other biscuit or rice, etc. Enjoy!! I sure do. I am now also curious and anxious to try some of the other offerings from this discussion. Happy New Year all. Jeanne
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annie1992
10 years ago
LOL, arley, that could be fun to watch.

I also have tried bitter melon and did not care for it, so I won't be of any help there.

I do use turmeric a lot and like it, but it does stain clothing, fingers, counters, wooden spoons. It's used widely in Indian cooking and I use it when I can sweet relish. I'm mostly accustomed to dry turmeric, but did get a fresh turmeric root at the Asian grocery once and grated it into lentils and made a rice dish with vegetables and diced turmeric root. It was very mildly spicy, but added more color than flavor.

Bread, now that I'm familiar with. (grin)

Annie
sleevendog (5a NY 6aNYC NL CA)
Original Author
10 years ago
Haha...good idea for the diversion tactic in the garden.

We do like bitter. Last night i sliced one lengthwise, removed the seedy center and sliced into half moons. Caramelized an onion and tossed them in...just had to taste it. Good,(ish)
Thanks for the thai link! I recently made fantastic tiny meatballs, made way too many as i tend to do...froze the rest to drop into soups.
I always have MisoMaster on hand as it lasts forever and is such a good quick soup base with scallions, ginger, cilantro, lime and celo noodles. I usually drop in a few shrimp or a small salmon steak...stuffed bitter melon would be another option.
The turmeric, hmm, one is sitting on my chop board. Making a german potato salad and a beet cole slaw for the weekend bbq. Maybe i'll just slice it into thin rounds and 'neon' all my sides.
I only grow zucchini for its flowers so i have no fear of eating banana flowers...right now it is a good lookin' garnish. Need to do some more research on that one.
sleevendog (5a NY 6aNYC NL CA)
Original Author
10 years ago
This link is fun. Banana flowers and a link to her bitter melon experience....and some nice pics.
One responder mentioned baking the bitter melon till crispy. And another suggested pickling...i'm making a batch of fresh fridge pickles this morning so i will put some in...

Here is a link that might be useful: adventures in ingredients
party_music50
10 years ago
I've had banana flowers... they're very astringent. You need to remove the hard stamen before using in a dish (easy to do), but I definitely wouldn't bother with them again.

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