SAWCLicious Recipes: Bittergourd with Shrimps and Eggs (Ampalaya with Shrimps and Eggs)

By chance, I happened to see bitter gourd (ampalaya) in one of the Asian stores at Den Haag, Netherlands. You should already know what I would have done, right? I quickly grabbed one and was already excited thinking what I can do with it. Bitter gourd or bitter melon, famously known as ampalaya in the Philippines, is one of the most bitter "fruits" that is widely grown in Asia.  Yes, it is a fruit amidst being brought up and taught by our parents that it is a healthy vegetable!

To remove the bitterness of the fruit, we would soak it in water with salt before cooking. It is one of the "vegetables" that my parents or grandparents would force any kids in our house to eat because of the nutrition that comes with it. Even worse, sometimes, bitter gourd will be boiled and the soup drank like tea. I hated drinking this until I grew up and learned to eat them. Once you get the hang of the bitterness, you'd actually enjoy eating it. Try drinking the soup from a freshly boiled bitter gourd and you will feel rejuvenated the next day. It seems to work in wonders! 

It's the first time that I cooked bitter gourd and my food testers enjoyed  it! I took half of the bitter gourd and prepared a twist to a commonly cooked Filipino dish. Wait for the next post where I will share how I cooked the other half. Here is my version of bitter gourd with shrimps and eggs.

Bitter Gourd with Shrimps and Eggs (Ampalaya with Hipon and Eggs)

Ingredients

• Bitter gourd (Ampalaya)
• 2 whole shallots sliced (or 1 whole white onion)
• 3 eggs scrambled
• 2 1/2 tablespoon shrimp paste
• 12 pcs. peeled shrimps
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 tomato sliced (without seeds)
• 2 tsp. fish sauce
• salt & pepper
• 3 tbsp. oil

Procedure

1. Slice the bitter gourd lengthwise. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds.Then, slice the bitter gourd crosswise (around 1/4 inch thick) to form C-Shaped slices. Gather around 2 cups of sliced bitter gourd. Wash the bitter gourd and soak in a bowl with 4 cups of water and 5 tbsp. of coarse salt for 1 hour.
2. After 1 hour, heat a pan with oil in low-medium heat. Add the garlic and shallots. Once onion is soft, add the shrimp paste and fish sauce. Stir for 30 seconds and add the shrimp.
3. Once the shrimp turns a bit pinkish, add the tomato. Wait until the shrimp is cooked, then add the bitter gourd. Do not stir at this point.
4. Let the bitter gourd cook for a few minutes at low heat. Season with pepper and salt (optional). Then add the scrambled eggs. Now, you can gently stir so that the eggs can be cooked evenly. Once cooked, serve with rice!