Recently I’ve come across two interesting items at the grocery that at first proved a full mystery to me.  The first is bittergourd (vegetable).  Doesn’t it look and sound scrumptious?

Nigauri (Japan) / Goya (Okinawa) / Bittergourd

In most of Japan, bittergourd is known as 苦瓜 nigauri while in Okinawa it is known as ゴーヤ goya.  I’ve heard of goya many times before from t-shirts that I’ve seen but I never knew what it really looked like until tonight, actually.  It was not until a few minutes ago that I was aware nigauri and goya were the same thing.

Bittergourd, as you can see, is quite like cucumbers in appearance except for the bubbly skin that makes the skin look like it’s been exposed to severe levels of radiation.  With a western name like that one can’t expect too much from the vegetable’s flavour, and indeed without edit it is quite bitter.  I picked one up from my local grocery to both try something new and to finally figure out the identity and origin of this  crazy thing I’d seen many times.  After my reaction to a small bite, I checked Google to see how the heck to properly use bittergourd.

Once one shaves off the outer bubbly layer of nigauri, it becomes significantly less bitter and significantly better suited for cooking.  (However, now that I’ve ready a bit more about it, apparently salting the outside reduces the bitterness and it’s better to leave the weird-looking part intact.)  The center all along the cylindrical vegetable has the texture of the interior skin of bell peppers with large seeds so one cuts it out, and in the end only a small portion of bittergourd is useful.

I sliced my bittergourd and threw it into a batch of curry I was making along with the standard affair of chicken, carrots, and other veggies. Stripped of the most bitter part, it was a refreshing addition to the dish that did add a subtle flavor.

Bittergourd sliced for curry

Native to tropical Asia and used in various countries in Southeast Asia, bittergourd came to Japan from China in the sixteenth century.  Apparently, for a while it was only used as a convenient way to shade other plants for farming.  It is quite rich in Vitamin C, and in Chinese medicine it’s used to regulate the liver and to treat dry mouth, fatigue, fever, emotional unbalance, impotence, and diarrhea. Now it is used in a famous Okinawan dish called goya champuru, a mix with tofu and egg.