How many ways can you cook/eat bitter gourd?

Like all bitter vegetables, the humble bitter gourd or bitter melon is an acquired taste.  It's a case of you either love it or hate it!  I remember I hated them when I was young...all the way to my adult years.  If I see it at the chap fan line, I would avoid it like the plague...but I've since grown to love this vegetable! ;)

Although I would gladly pick them out from a chap fan line now or choose them stuffed in a yong tau foo, I've never cooked them at home.  The reason for this is because I was afraid they'd turn out bitter coz, first of all, I don't know how to choose the "right" bitter gourd (one that's hopefully less bitter) and, two, I wasn't sure if the "process" we had to go through to take out the bitterness would actually work.

One of the most common methods to reduce bitterness is to salt the bitter gourd generously (after they've been sliced with the seeds removed and the pith scrapped off).  Rub salt all over the bitter gourd slices and let it stand for about half an hour.  The salt will draw out water from the bitter gourd and apparently remove some of that bitterness.

So I consulted my favourite pork noodles stall in my neighbourhood and he told me you don't have to do that actually...you just need to choose a bitter gourd that has less 'teeth' or ridges (or wide/'fat' pronounced ridges).  The larger, lighter green variety with the widest ridges is the one you want as they're generally less bitter.

Armed with that knowledge, I followed his advice to a tee and purchased my very first bitter gourd which turned out just fine, not bitter at all.  So, that extra step of salting it first is a lot of baloney which you don't need to do if you chose the right bitter gourd in the first place.  Now that I know, I cook it quite often at home since bitter gourd is known to help lower blood sugar levels besides having other immense health benefits.  I now include bitter gourd into my diet regularly and cook them in the following ways.

#1 - Stir-Fried Bitter Gourd with Eggs

One of the most common and popular way to cook bitter gourd is to stir-fry them with eggs.  For this dish, I used half a bitter gourd and 2 eggs.  This is good enough as the vegetable component for 2 meals for me.  (So PH, can rival Kar Hiong's...lol! ^_~

The key is to make sure you fry the bitter gourd slices until they're well soften (I hate hard bitter gourd!), so slicing them thinly helps.  Fry slowly on medium heat, you don't want them to brown, just soften, so you'll need a good 5 minutes for that.  I add in the minced garlic about halfway through so that the garlic don't get too browned by the time the bitter gourd softens.  Once well soften, push them aside and add in your beaten eggs.  Scramble them and mix in with the bitter gourd.  Season to taste.  You may add a little water at the end.

#2 - Stir-Fried Bitter Melon with Canned Black Bean Fish

This is a great recipe if you happen to have leftover canned dace fish with salted black beans (which I do as one can takes forever to finish).

You cook it similarly as the earlier dish.  Fry the bitter gourd slices until well soften before adding the canned dace fish (break into smaller pieces) and salted black beans.  I added the sauce from the canned dace fish too for its saltiness...sorry, that's why the bitter gourd looks darkly-coloured.  If you use just the salted black beans, it'll probably look more presentable and appetising.

#3 - Stir-Fried Bitter Gourd with Anything

You can pretty much stir-fry bitter gourd with anything.  I usually do it with homemade fish cake or pork slices though I like it with egg the best.  You can also do it simply with just salted black beans or taucheo (salted fermented soybeans).

#4 - Bitter Gourd Omelette

Another dish you'd find in a chap fan line, though not as common as the earlier stir-fried bitter gourd with eggs, is this bitter gourd omelette.  It's not as popular with kids (and some adults) who love eggs but not in an omelette with bitter gourd...lol.

I used 1/4 of a bitter gourd with 2 eggs for this omelette dish.  Again, I ate this over 2 meals...since I'm the only one who appreciates bitter gourd in my family! >.<

#5 - Bitter Melon Soup with Pork Ribs

Since I'm making soup in a slow cooker with pork ribs, I can afford to cut the bitter gourd into larger chunks for both to simmer slowly till tender (the bitter gourd needs only about an hour to get soft, so slow-cook your pork ribs first).  I think the pith (the white part) contributes to the bitterness, so removing most of it (and the seeds) is critical, especially so if we're boiling the bitter gourd for a period of time to minimise the bitterness that would otherwise get into the soup.

I added some white peppercorns to introduce a bit of heat into the soup which also helps to reduce bitterness, if any.  My bitter melon soup (that only I would drink) is made with half a bitter melon and one strip of pork ribs.  Hot soup with a bit of rice is especially good on a cold, rainy evening.

#6 - Bitter Gourd Soup with Pork Slices

If I want to make a soup that doesn't need hours of boiling and simmering, I would make a quick soup by cooking it over the stove (or, in my case, over the induction cooker).  For this, I slice the bitter gourd thinly so that it softens quickly.

Once that softens (it only takes about 5 minutes), you can add in the pork slices (also thinly sliced and marinated in cornflour and some soy) as they cook very quickly (another 2 minutes).  It's just like the way they make pork noodles.

#7 - Bitter Gourd Pork Noodles

This is my favourite pork noodles with bitter gourd from my neighbourhood stall.  The bitter gourd slices are sliced ever so thinly so that it gets cooked and softened easily.  So good with my choice of yee mee.  It's pretty similar to the bitter gourd soup I make at home, only this one comes with the innards I love.

The bitter gourd he gets for his noodles have even fatter ridges than the ones I buy.  He cuts it so thinly that it's almost transparent.  Let me show you up close just how far apart the ridges are! ;)

This is one vegetable that doesn't get much love during CNY obviously because of its name....fu gua due to its pronunciation.  He hardly get any orders for it (with pork noodles) during this period, especially not from the elderly who avoids it like the plague, he says.  He may get some orders from young people who are oblivious to its connotation! ;D

#8 - Deep-Fried Snake Gourd

Side tracking a bit, I've included this snake gourd in my post coz I used to mistake it for bitter gourd initially. They're only similar to bitter gourd in looks but don't taste bitter.  This snake gourd is seldom found in chap fan lines (they prefer to cook bitter gourd instead) but commonly found in Indian restaurants where I used to eat them...either as a stir-fried vegetable or deep-fried with spices to a crisp (mmm, my favourite).  I suppose you can deep-fry bitter gourd in the same way too.

For those who like a bit of bitterness in their lives (lol), cook the bitter gourd in a soup as the bitterness tends to leak out into the soup and you'll be able to taste the bitterness a bit more.  Cook them in a stir-fry with other proteins if you wish to mask the bitterness or possibly taste none at all.

Now that you know just how simple it is to choose the right bitter gourd (that's not bitter or hardly bitter), all of us should try to eat more bitter gourd for its immense health benefits.  So, with fears of getting a bitter tasting bitter gourd allayed, I've been cooking this humble vegetable more often at home now! ^_~

Restoran Sri Karak @ PJ Section 52

For travellers who frequent Karak Highway (like on their way to Genting ^_*), they would have known about (or perhaps even eaten at) Yik Kei Restaurant in Karak town.  Restoran Sri Karak @ PJ Section 52 is a pork-free/halal reincarnation of that restaurant in PJ.  This restaurant was chosen as the CNY lunch venue with my side of the family (my elder sisters and my mom) so that one of my sisters (and her husband) can join in.

The restaurant showcases produce that Pahang is famous for like smooth and slippery, omega-rich patin fish from Temerloh and its thin and crunchy baby French beans besides their ever popular sang har meen (freshwater king prawn noodles).

The restaurant spans two floors with a more formal dining area upstairs but we, of course, chose to sit downstairs on the account of my elderly mom.  They're busier during lunch times on working days while the weekends see more crowd at dinner time.  My eldest sister called the shots and pre-booked a specially selected set menu, some of which were picked from their preset CNY menus available.

We started off our lunch with the first dish of Braised Sharksfin with Crab Meat Soup.  Although I choose to avoid eating sharksfin due to the cruel practice of shark finning, I made an exception this time since my sister had already pre-ordered the set menu specifically for the luncheon (I think it's more sinful to waste food). 

Anyway, most of the sharksfin we eat today are actually fakes (I think real sharksfin is too expensive these days).  Fishing the sharksfin strands in my bowl, they look too smooth and uniform to be the real thing.  Fake or not, it turned out to be a very disappointing bowl of sharksfin soup as the soup base was bland and very watery coz it was cooked with just crab meat and thickened with cornflour (they didn't use any eggs, it was pretty obvious this dish is not their forte).

This restaurant is known for its Temerloh Patin Fish and Freshwater Prawn Noodle (both of which my sister did not order) but we got to sample their Freshwater King Prawns (still) steamed in egg white instead.  The freshwater king prawns were very fresh indeed with a stunningly firm and amazing texture...and there were 4 king-sized prawns cut in half lengthwise thereby yielding 8 pcs for our eating party.  I'm not sure if you noticed but the restaurant was kind enough to even remove the meat from the prawns' long claws (they look like thin slivers of fake crab meat)...lol! ;)

The eggy sauce (made with only egg white and julienned ginger) was decent too, a bit more subtle tasting than the usual egg sauce which uses the yolks too.  I was hoping for a bit more umami flavour from the prawn roe in the heads (which, unfortunately, was slightly lacking) to make the sauce richer.

Nevertheless, still delicious, the prawns were humongous in size...for comparison purposes, it was the length of a metal spoon, that's how huge it was! :O  They were super fresh without a doubt and steaming the prawns in just egg white kept the flavours clean to further highlight the fresh and sweet tasting prawns.  And yes, I had my meal with some rice (I gave away part of it to my husband but still ended up not finishing the rice).

This was followed by a perennial favourite, the Yam Basket with stir-fried chicken cubes with top shell seafood (which has a chewy texture much like those canned abalone) and cashew nut.  There were vegetables of green bell peppers, carrot, onions, water chestnuts and spring onions in the mix too.

The only usual thing missing from this dish is the dried chillies coz my mom cannot take anything spicy, so my sister had to request for a non-spicy version.  I thought this was executed very similarly to the ones I usually eat at other dai chow places.

The Golden Sand Tossed Chicken Boxing was our meat dish (this dish comes from their 2025 CNY Set Menu of Golden Sand Tossed Chicken Wings).  We got just the drummette part that has been scraped down the bone to become boxing chicken.

Not sure what the coating of the boxing chicken was made up of but it's been finely blended into crumbs (almost powder or sand-like in texture, hence the name) that probably consisted of breadcrumbs and some spices, perhaps?  The chicken pieces were tender and the coating crispy (something different from all the usual fried chicken I've had).  No complaints, it was satisfyingly enjoyable.

Next was the Seafood Claypot filled with premium ingredients like sea cucumber, fish maw and flower mushrooms which were braised till super soft and tender.  There were also homemade tofu (these were especially good), cloud ear fungus and loofa vegetables (as described in menu but none was in sight).  Instead we got crunchy sugar snap peas (which I love), broccoli, carrot and lightly browned whole garlic cloves were spotted too. 

I thought the braising liquid that the seafood claypot dish was cooked in was light but adequately tasty. Great eaten with rice, I'd be happy with just this one dish with rice...who wouldn't when the pot is filled with premium goodies.

We also added on a plate of green vegetables at the last minute, a simple Stir-Fried Kai Lan (or Chinese Broccoli), simply because we realised there weren't much greens in our dishes.  There can never be too much greens!

Our meal concluded with a common dessert of Red Bean with Peach Gum Sweet Soup.  The red beans were blended into a smooth paste and it wasn't too sweet overall but also not quite the taste of some of the better red bean sweet soups I've had.  We also found some chewy, soft-like textured bits which turned out to be peach gum, not something I usually see in a red bean tong sui.  One of my sisters ordered an ais kacang (for one) and that turned out far better than the dessert we had.

The red bean sweet soup was served with Pancake Pastries (Lotus Paste Chinese Pancake would be a more precise description), again a common dessert you'd find in many CNY (or wedding) set menus.  The outer layer of the pancakes were nicely crisp and the lotus paste filling wasn't too sweet.  This I enjoyed more than the red bean tong sui.

My Personal Opinion

Overall, I'd say the food was within satisfactory expectations of a restaurant of this kind.  It wouldn't be fair to compare them with other non-halal Chinese restaurants.  Apart from the king-sized freshwater prawns, I thought the yam basket and seafood claypot were the other better executed dishes.

This can be a makan place to consider if you're looking for pork-free/halal Chinese cuisine or when dining out with Muslim family members (or you have Muslim friends to entertain).  That's why it's especially popular for corporate events and office staff when dining out with their Muslim colleagues.

My sister took care of the tab and I found out later that the luncheon cost RM1,109.  I would have guessed not less than RM1k coz half of that cost would have been taken up by those giant freshwater prawns already (we know how expensive a plate of sang har meen is these days).  I certainly wouldn't mind returning for another meal...or, better still, another invite! ^.^

Restoran Sri Karak

No 17 Lapangan Merdeka

Section 52/8

46200 Petaling Jaya

Selangor

Tel: 012-929 3240

Shang Kei Wantan Mee @ Ampang

Located directly opposite the Balai Bomba (fire station) is this old-styled coffee shop, Kedai Makanan Sun Sun @ Ampang which houses Shang Kei Wantan Mee that first caught my attention when I saw a video of their food posted by KL Foodie last year.

The coffee shop can be accessed from the front or back...and the wantan mee stall is situated right at the back but since we came in through the back, the stall will be the first stall you'll see when you enter (and there are just two other stalls here, one selling pan mee and the other pork noodles).  As you walk through the coffee shop to the front where the tables are, you'll pass by the drinks making section in the middle.  This set-up alone tells you just how old-school this coffee shop is.

The first time we drove past we saw lots of people waiting for tables.  So, we braced ourselves for the wait but managed to secure a seat within 5 minutes (by sharing a table).  I was glad we didn't have to wait too long for our food to arrive (it was about a 15-minutes wait and not 30 or more minutes that I read about). I ordered the Dry Wantan Mee with Char Siew, Siu Yuk & Fried Wantan so that I can taste both proteins in one sitting to see which I prefer more.

My son had his with just char siew.  I appreciated that the char siew were thickly cut with sticky-sweet (but not overly sweet) and savoury flavours like those you'd find serve in a plate of char siew rice (unlike the usually thinly cut slices served by most wantan mee sellers).  Do note that this char siew is roasted in a small electric oven and not those typical big stainless steel ovens (over gas or, even better, over charcoal) used by most shops selling roasted meats.  Still with a well caramelised exterior though the smoky flavour may have to take a back seat.  Not quite among some of the excellent char siew I've had but certainly decent enough for a wantan mee stall and they make up for it with their generous portions.

I also got the same order for my husband (except his was medium with one and a half mee).  I munched happily on the siu yuk pieces (again, thick cuts) which had very crispy skin (that even some roasted meat stalls are not able to replicate that level of crunchiness).

My husband (who is a fan of siu yuk more than char siew) was of the opinion that the meat itself didn't have enough flavour...and I do agree.  But he wouldn't mind having the siu yuk again purely based on (once again) the overly generous portion given for the price paid.  Between the two though, I thought the char siew was a bit more successful than the siu yuk.

I also requested for fried wantans instead of soup ones and was surprised to get more than 3 pcs (I think there were 6)...and, mind you, the wantans weren't those teeny-weeny ones either.  Nicely crispy with a pork mince filling, there's nothing to complaint about really.  You should see the humongous pile of fried wantans they fry up at their stall! O_o

Char siew, siu yuk and wantans aside, the wantan mee arrived looking very different from a typical plate of wantan mee with the noodles well tossed in black sauce.  Here, the noodles somehow get tossed in some kind of clear sauce with a squirt of dark soy...so, those who like their wantan mee well mixed with a dark sauce is not going to like this (like my son, for instance).  He went on further to say the noodles tasted vinegary.  I think he meant the kansui taste in the noodles (and yes, this one had a bit more than usual...or it could also be due to them not changing the water used to blanch the noodles often enough).  The lack of a proper black sauce probably highlighted the kansui taste even more.

The other peculiarity about this plate of wantan mee (besides it looking rather "white/pale") is the tray that the noodles is served in.  It's similar to those metal plates used to serve roti canai coz they need the different compartments to separate the fish curry, dhal and sambal.  I guess it's very convenient in terms of serving (and collecting finished plates too) as everything is on one plate but yet each component is nicely separated (even the pickled chillies).  The stall owner himself has also reiterated that he prefers to serve it this way as he wants each individual ingredient separated for the best taste.

Coming to the price, our 3 plates of wantan mee came up to only RM34 (two of which were medium)...and that's one heck of a price for the amount of meat and wantans we got on each plate.  No wonder the place is always crowded.  Looking around, I realised many had come for their old-school bread (steamed or toasted) and coffees too.  I can certainly vouch that their kopi-o kosong was very good.  Sharing a table with others, the steamed bread looked incredibly fluffy and soft with a generous amount of chilled butter and homemade kaya.

My Personal Opinion

This old-school coffee shop have many regulars coming for their old-school bread and coffees.  If they're not having that, they're probably having the wantan mee.  There's also curry mee on offer which I've not tried.

I thought it was a satisfactory wantan mee...purely for their price and large portions of char siew, siu yuk and fried wantans which make up for the lack of a dark sauce that's typical of a plate of wantan mee.  If you're fine with their non-saucy version, do make your way here if you're in the vicinity.

Having said that, I'm not sure if I'll be back seeing both my husband and son weren't thrilled with the taste. My husband is probably a bit more complaisant if I wish to eat this again...but not my son! :D

Shang Kei Wantan Mee

@ Kedai Makanan Sun Sun

96 Jalan Besar Ampang

Pekan Ampang

68000 Ampang

Selangor

Ikea Swedish Cafe @ Ikea Cheras

I'm sure everyone is familiar with Ikea when it comes to getting some really nice, modern furniture & fittings to refurbish, redecorate or brighten up your home...and if you're familiar with Ikea, you'd be equally familiar with their cafes too.

I had a decorating project to do recently and found ourselves visiting Ikea quite a bit the past few months...and what do you do after loads of walking, browsing and buying?  Well, you eat, of course...and like everyone else most people, we'd eat at the nearest place available too and that would be the Ikea Swedish Cafe @ Ikea Cheras, the branch we were shopping in.

I've eaten at their cafe countless times, in fact each time I shop there, I'd end up wanting to eat at their cafe.  I started eating/shopping at their Damansara branch long before the Cheras branch nearer me opened. Actually, their food is quite ordinary (and some are mere processed food) but I enjoy comfort food once in a while...and my favourite dish here is none other than their signature dish of Swedish (Beef) Meatballs @ RM6.50 (this is the kids portion actually with 5 meatballs, hehe) with mashed potatoes (very smooth) & broccoli served with lingonberry jam.

The very first time I had this (back when their only branch was in Mutiara Damansara), I was apprehensive when I saw it served with lingonberry jam...I thought how would the sweet flavours go with something savoury.  That was the first time I learned that (sometimes) sweet and savoury flavours do go well together.

This is the more appropriate adult portion which have 15 meatballs (I think) but I once had that and found it too much for me, so I get the kids size (lol) + that way I've space to eat something else.  I noticed from their website (recently) that there's a size in between with 8 meatballs @ RM12 (not sure if that's available at the cafe though).  When they're super busy (which is like all the time), presentation takes a back seat.  It's just like getting food from a canteen, you queue and push your trays along, and they scoop/plonk whatever you want onto the plate.

The meatballs have a slightly dense texture...you can choose between beef or chicken meatballs + there's also an option for plant-based meatballs but I personally prefer beef...and rolling them in that luscious brown sauce (which was pretty delicious) and a little dip in the jam (which used to be a big dip when I wasn't refraining from sweet things) took them from mundane to good enough.  If I wasn't on a low-carb/low-sugar diet, I'll cart a jar of that lingonberry jam home.

My son also likes to eat their simple Fish & Chips @ RM12.90 served with a dollop of mayo and a wedge of lemon.  This I can see would be very popular with kids.....even the picky ones!

There was a time when I was having my usual and I caught a waft of something fragrant permitting through the air and realised that it was some delicious-looking, fragrant-smelling fried chicken wings that many were having.  This is the Fried Chicken Wings with Gochujang Sauce @ RM14.90 for 4 pcs (RM21.90 for 6 pcs). RM3.50 for a whole chicken wing (that includes the drummette) is a very good price if you ask me.

I know I wanted the fried chicken wings but wasn't particularly ecstatic when I learned it was served with gochujang sauce.  Luckily the sauce was served on the side but my fears were unfounded since it didn't taste anything like an authentic gochujang but closer towards a chilli sauce we're more familiar with.  The wings were piping hot and they were fragrant all right.  I'm happy! ^.^

The reason why I order a kids portion of meatballs is when I plan to have their Mushroom Soup @ RM4.90 and Garlic Bread @ RM3.90 (2 pcs).  Their mushroom soup is just nicely thick (of course it's not among some of the better mushroom soups I've had) but it's adequately satisfactory, finished with a dash of pepper (unfortunately, they only have white pepper packets available).

Their garlic bread is also not in the conventional form of a common baguette or bread roll but in slices (and I like that they use wholemeal bread).  Well toasted with butter and parsley with a fair amount of garlic taste, they're still crispy to the bite even though you find them abundantly in a tray and prepared ahead of time.  I think the sheer crowd makes this particular item move fast that they're regularly replenished (and thus able to stay crisp).

And to crown off all that is their unlimited refills of drinks (both hot and cold)...certainly a boon to some who get to enjoy free-flow drinks while resting their tired legs after all that shopping.  For cold drinks, you pay just RM2.50 to get an empty glass and for coffee (or tea), an empty coffee cup will be given...and what's even better, it's free if you're an Ikea member.

You have a wide variety of food and snacks to choose from such as mains of baked salmon, chicken chop, roast lamb, beef steak & ribs including beef wellington, pasta, sandwiches & salads), snacks like chicken lasagna, wontons, spring roll & more, desserts of pastries, cakes, apple pie, panna cotta, etc., even plant-based dishes and a kids menu, so there's something for everyone.

Probably their most famous pastry is their Curry Puffs @ RM7.80 for 6 pcs (or RM1.40 a pc) with a generous filling which is still a steal at today's prices (used to be RM1 a pc or RM5 for 6 when I first started eating them if I remember correctly).  Definitely one of my favourite curry puffs to have...and I've had it countless times (oops) coz I'm always tempted to buy them when I'm there.  The only thing that'll deter me from buying is the super long queue! >_<

My Personal Opinion

Although their food is nothing exceptional, I thought they did a more than decent job bearing in mind that the food is mass-prepared and cooked much like in a cafeteria or canteen.  The only downside is that you have to queue and get your own food...and the queue is always extremely long (luckily it moves along fairly quickly due to their large workforce).

I know some people don't like this canteen-like food...but I fine with it! ;)  It's comfort food for me which can be enjoyed in a clean and pleasant environment...after furniture browsing/shopping.  My favourites here are the Swedish meatballs, garlic bread, mushroom soup and (recently) the gochuang fried chicken wings.

Even if the food is not extra-ordinary, we can't complain about the prices.  C'mon, breakfast prices start from RM3.50 (you can even get a nasi lemak with fried chicken for just RM5.90)...now where can you get a hearty meal at such a reasonable price?  I can certainly see why the cafe is always so crowded coz it's so popular with families! ^_~

Ikea Swedish Cafe

Ikea Cheras

No 2A Jalan Cochrane

Taman Maluri

55100 Kuala Lumpur