hi mamta. today i bought some karela from the indian shop and when i cut into them i noticed that one of them has a red coating on the seeds. are they still okay to use? my only reason for asking is that some time ago i read somewhere that bigger gourd becomes poisonous once it ripens. i do not know if that is true but i thought it better be safe than sorry.

thanks sid.

It is only when the karela has ripened up a bit the seeds get that red coating. It is perfectly normal and not poisonous.

If the red seeds are hard, that is they are almost ripe as seeds, it is better to remove them. Otherwise they make the dish rather unpalatable, difficult to chew. I have not heard of them becoming poisonous when ripe.

I love Karelas and ofteh make extra to freeze. I have some in my fridge for tonight :-)!

I found this very interesting site http://www.healthandayurveda.com/herbs_spices_at_ayurvedic_health_centre_goa.html

bigger gourd=*bitter gourd

thanks for the replies. i dont believe everything i read on the internet but i read somewhere that once the whole gourd ripens that it becomes poisonous. so when i cut into one and saw the red membrane around the seeds i thought it would be better to check from people who know than to just chance it. after reading Rajneeshs reply i cooked it with all the rest. i tried one of the seeds and membrane raw and it was sweet and crunchy. karela is one of if not my favourite vegetable of all. i also like parwal and dudhi i just wish you could buy them in asda and other large supermarkets.

i made mamtas bitter gourd bhaji again this evening and i really like how the ground fennel seeds and tamarind pulp compliment the karela.

When the seeds turn red, really red, they are sweet and slimy, and their shell is rather tough. It does not taste nice in a bhaji. However, a ripe karela can be eaten raw, though not to my taste.

My father used to grow Karelas, along with many other vegetables. It is a climber and he left it to grow on ground, climbing over broken branches and twigs. It was lovely to look for them hidden in the dense leaves. Once in a while we would miss one or he would leave one for seeds. I do love picking my own vegetables. Summer is coming again :-)!

Karela though not my favourite dish but nevertheless I eat it considering it is good for health, i like its seeds only when karela is fried. In India i fondly remember the dish of karela stuffed with diced potatoes mixed with masalas and then tied up with a thread before frying it.

But I am not too eager to try raw karela though i do eat raw spinach with carrots and fruits for breakfast almost daily.

Sorry regarding the earlier post it should have been == Pre friend Tomatoes and Onions (diced) with masalas (turmeric, coriander,cumin powder)and then stuffed in karela which is then tied up and fried lightly. Not potatoes.

It may have been a mistake Rajneesh, but something worth a try. You just might get a delicious dish of Karelas.