Bitter melons may resemble cucumbers and may be called melons, but they are neither. Certainly, these long green fruits are bitter. Despite that, one bite soon leads to another: I find myself chewing a piece of salted bitter melon and thinking, “Gosh, this is bitter!” before swallowing and reaching for more.  If you have South, Southeast, or East Asian heritage, this will not surprise you. Bitter melon, also called bitter gourd in English and known by dozens of common names worldwide, is probably native to what is now Malaysia and is a valued functional food in food and medicine homologies like Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda.

For most eaters in the US, this fruit-as-vegetable can be sourced at Chinese, Japanese, and Indian groceries and at some farmers’ markets. But if you have a trellis or a fence to support them, skip the carbon footprint and grow these intriguing and healthy fruits at home.

Photography by Marie Viljoen.

Different species of bitter melon grow in tropical and subtropical Asia and Africa. In the Southeastern states of the US, the vines have escaped cultivation and become invasive. The commonly eaten species, whether smoother or knobbly, is Momordia charantia, botanically; its cucumber-like fruit is eaten unripe and tender, as a green vegetable.

Warty-skinned fruits with tapered ends are often referred to as Indian bitter melon, and in Japan they are known as goya—they are slightly less juicy, but arguably more flavorful than their smoother, longer Chinese counterpart.

As a food, bitter melon is used widely and valued precisely for its bitterness, which is a cornerstone flavor in Asian cuisines. It is associated with a host of traditional dishes in different food cultures. The de-seeded gourds may be added to soup, stuffed with vegetables or meats, simmered and stewed, sliced and sautéed, soaked and pickled, curried and roasted; or they may be cooked whole if still tiny.

Their defining flavor is due in part to an alkaloid called momordicine, which has been associated in both traditional medicines and Western medicines (sometimes only in vitro) with a host of positive effects: anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, and hypoglycemic (blood sugar-lowering). High doses (but how high is high?) may be linked to ill effects similar to favism, which is a serious allergy to fava beans.

Salting and then rinsing bitter melon softens its assertiveness and allows other green, juicy flavors to come to the fore. The young fruits can then be pickled or cooked, ideally with flavors that balance their earthy strength: acid, spice, and sometimes sugar. As with pumpkin and sweet potato greens, the tender shoots and leaves can also be eaten as a cooked green vegetable, after blanching.

There are many more elaborate traditional recipes (in a flurry of culinary traditions from the Caribbean to China) for bitter melon, but I like to begin with the simplest: salting and soaking, before nibbling fresh; pickling—both in vinegar and in a probiotic lacto-ferment; and cooking quickly with egg, whose creaminess offsets the crunch of the vegetable.

Like its cucumber and melon relatives, bitter melon grows as an annual vine, and the seeds should be sown after all danger of frost has past and nights are reliably above 50°F. They relish warm weather and full sun. A trellis or a fence is required for support.

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds offer a smorgasbord of bitter melon cultivars: small, long, round, long, white, and green.

Lacto-Fermented Bitter Melon

Lacto-fermenting is a healthy and easy way to preserve fruits and vegetables, and it tames the bite of bitter melon. Note the weight of the prepared bitter melon; it will determine the weight of the salt you use. With many ferments that is usually around 2.5% of the vegetable’s weight, but with this pickle, I lower it to 1.25% because the slices are already pre-salted. You can use any bitter melon for these versatile, probiotic pickles.

• 3 Indian bitter melons, sliced
• Granular sea salt

(For me this was 7 oz/205 grams bitter melon after salting and rinsing, and 2.5 grams salt. Calculating in grams is easier for such low amounts.)

Prepare: Wash and dry the bitter melons. Slice down the middle, lengthwise. Use a spoon to carve out the seeds.

Pre-Salt: Slice the de-seeded bitter melons fairly thinly. Place the slices in a bowl and add 1 tablespoon of salt. Toss well. Allow to sit out for 1 hour to draw out some of the bitterness. Fill the bowl with water and rinse the slices. Discard the water. Rinse them one more time, and drain again. Pat dry.

Lacto-ferment: Weigh the rinsed slices. Calculate 1.25% of that weight and weigh out that amount of salt. Return the slices to the dry bowl with the salt, toss well to coat, and then pack the slices into a clean jar. Top with water (I use Brooklyn tap, but some fermenters would use spring water if they feel that tap water is too chlorinated for beneficial microbes to proliferate). Place a pickle weight on top of the slices to keep them submerged. Add a lid, loosely. (If you do screw the lid on tightly, vent it once day. After a few days you may notice a satisfying hiss once the bugs are hard at work.) Keep your jar out of direct sunlight and away from winter heat sources. The bitter melon is ready to eat as soon as Day 3 (and this is when I like to add it to cooked dishes), but will be very mild. More time allows more flavor and acid to develop. Transfer to the fridge after two weeks. Fermentation will continue, but very slowly, in the cold.

See also:

• Puntarelle: A Chicory Armed with Spears
• Chrysanthemum Greens: A Fragrant Leafy Vegetable
• Radishes + Butter: 3 Ways to Prepare the Seconds-to-Make, Party-Ready Snack