Crocodile Tears of Careless Karelas and Brinjal

Careless Karelas and Brinjal? Are we making a story out of a simple everyday Bengali dish? Yes, we are. Because every dish has a story behind it.

A trip down memory lane

I had heard stories as a child about crocodile tears- it’s an idiom oft used in Bengali households to playfully describe children’s tantrums and tears to get what they want in life. As I was recently reminded of this while travelling to Fort Kochi. I saw a little girl of 5 or 6 refusing to walk because she was too tired and wanted her parents to pick her up.

This brought a smile to my face as I remember being chided by my mother too when I wanted a cold drink every 10 minutes after walking. I refused to drink or carry a water bottle. These are from those times when we couldn’t splurge on a bottle of cooldrink for every day. This was seen as a treat or luxury. It’s funny how life comes full circle now. I myself chide my mother and brother for drinking too much of sweet cold drinks these days. Sugar is viewed as the new demon given a history of diabetics in my family. I’m actually not so strict about it. But I’m telling you the struggles and battles in reality of what moderation is all about. 🙂

Remembering an old friendly foe

Anyways, this brings me to a vegetable that is supposedly very good for cleansing and flushing out toxins- especially for those who are diabetics. That dreaded bitter gourd or karela! 😛 It helps to regulate the blood sugar levels, reduce/regulate weight or some such shit. Honestly, I am not a supremely knowledgeable person and there are enough articles and food nazis fighting their own battles on their own turfs about food, health and nutrition. You may want to look up some feeds from locavore on this.

My husband loves karelas- so do my mother and brother. I absolutely hated the taste of bitter gourds and would find it hard to swallow even when mixed with boiled potatoes, onion, chilies and mustard oil- which is a very common way Bengali mothers introduce it in the children’s diet. In fact, I was supported by my grandmother in my complaints as she herself narrated tales of how she would quietly pass her bitter gourd/ bitter neem leaves to her neighbouring student in the hostel mess and this would go on till the entire lot was thrown out of the window.

My own version of the game changer

I think my sly granny was clever enough to narrate these tales while she made sure that I ate something healthy-ish if not entirely healthy. She was a master manipulator and knew well how to dish out tough love in good measure. 🙂 My love for her comes from her clever way of handling multiple people with different requirements in a large joint family household. It was always full of extremely loud and argumentative Migrant Indians. While I wish I had her strength and guile- unfortunately I don’t have that discipline or that environment anymore. So, I do what I can to eat and stay healthy. And to adjust my diet to be able to eat with others and enjoy meals with others. Many of them have slightly different choices or preferences when it comes to food habits.

The Devil is in the details

This is my take on a Simple Classic Bitter gourd dish which I kind of found a bit more palatable. It’s a hybrid version and not entirely as healthy as one would like it to be. But perhaps, it is a bit tastier and it kind of works. Isn’t that the whole point of food that is good? 🙂

I have added the boiled mashed sweet potatoes – something similar to “aloo chokha” or “aloo sheddho” inside. Also added some fried brinjals – called “begun bhaja” – again a much-loved Bengali side dish which is often eaten along with dal and rice. Additional ingredients like mushrooms are not a must have- it just improves the protein quotient I believe, and I had them in the fridge.

Important ingredients are roasted tomatoes, chilies, onions and chopped cilantro/coriander. Some chaat masala, lemon juice and mustard to add a bit of kick. An alternate version could be to stuff the karela with some “baingan bharta” which is another classic Indian vegetarian dish made from roasted brinjals. It doesn’t look very appetizing and should be avoided by those allergic to nightshade vegetables. For that matter chilies and tomatoes also fall in that category, I believe. Since, I am not avoiding these anymore, I feel happy to use these ingredients once again.

Honestly, the number of things one has read and re-read which signal alarm bells in your head is not funny! It’s constantly evolving. For now, I like to avoid stress at least when it comes to food in my own kitchen. Just try to keep it as healthy, fresh and clean as possible. And manage to make it tasty/palatable within my own limited budget.

Sometimes I want to keep it uncomplicated

It’s a very simple and humble recipe- but sometimes that’s what I like. It brings you back to your childhood memories. Albeit, without the added guilt of too many calories. Finger food/snacks like this would be my bet for busy working professionals who may like a taste of something bitter, sweet, sour and savoury in a small bite.

Do check out my Youtube short video on this.

Hope some of you like to try this too someday. Happy Cooking, for the Veggie loving Good Looking! 🙂

Special Footnote from Foot soldiers:

This was posted on Earth Day 2024 for back-to-back birthday babies who refused to talk to each other. Muahhh from Mother Earth to 2 Fishy Angry Birds!

Do check out a beautiful website for further inspiration- from a humble apprentice to Secondsguru who couldn’t wait another second to share their birthday cake! 🙂 😉