Bitter or sweet?

You are in the vegetable section of a supermarket.. Lots of vegetables lined up waiting for you to pick. You see this long oblong green vegetable - Bitter Gourd (known as ampalaya among Filipinos, Karela among Indians, Goya in Japan)... Are you gonna buy one?

I guess ignoring Bitter Gourd is the common thing we do. Who would prefer bitter taste from a sweet one, right? Yes, bitter gourd as the name implies, has a bitter taste and in the top list among the veggies when it comes to bitterness.

Since childhood, I have been suffering from anemia, which means I have low level of iron. Believe me, years of taking iron supplement is quite strenuous. Really fed up of the rustic smell of the capsule.  I planned to reduce my intake from daily to lower dosage. But that means I have to get some nutrients from the food I am eating. And bitter gourd is just one among the vegetables that is rich in iron. We Ilocanos usually include it in pinakbet dish. Here's one dish though that uses this vegetable as the star in plate.

All you need:

• 1/2 kg bitter gourd, washed, cut into rings as shown in the below picture. If there are seeds, patiently remove.
• 1 medium tomato, diced
• 1 head of onion, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, chopped (or better grate)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• Cooking oil
• Salt
• Some ground black pepper

Direction:

• In a pan, heat some oil and sauté the onion and galic.
• Add the diced tomato and cook until tomato has soften.
• Next, add the bitter gourd. Sprinkle some salt.  Cook till it soften but still a bit firm.
• Meanwhile, crack the eggs, add salt and pepper, beat and pour into the pan.
• Cook for another couple of minutes in a low heat (to avoid burning the eggs) just until the eggs are well done.
• Serve.

Enjoy eating!