Bitter Beef – A Pot of Family Memories

Some foods are not just food, but also family memories and a loving aroma. For me, bitter beef has always been such a special food.

I still remember that one afternoon when my uncles and cousins ​​suddenly turned up at our house. The sun was shining outside, but in the kitchen my mother was preparing something special. Someone asked, “What are you cooking today?” So mother smiled and said, “Today, bitter beef is being prepared for you all.”

The bitterness of bitter and the richness of the meat seemed strange at first glance, but as the aroma spread throughout the house, everyone knew that today’s meal was going to be a special treat.

Ingredients (for 8–10 people)
Meat: 1 kg (medium pieces)
Bitter gourd: ½ kg (cut and remove seeds, season with salt)
Onion: 3 medium (finely chopped)
Tomato: 3 medium (chopped)
Yogurt: ½ cup
Ginger garlic paste: 2 tablespoons
Green chillies: 4–5 (chopped)
Turmeric: ½ teaspoon
Red chilli powder: 1½ teaspoons
Coriander powder: 1 tablespoon
Salt: to taste
Oil/ghee: ½ cup
Green coriander: for garnish
How to make
Step 1 – Prepare bitter gourd:
First, mother sprinkled salt on bitter gourd pieces and kept it for half an hour to reduce the bitterness. Then washed it and lightly fried it in oil, until it turned golden.

Step 2 – Cook the meat:
Heat oil in a pan, add onion and fry until golden. Then add ginger garlic paste and meat and fry till the meat changes colour. Later add all the spices, tomatoes and curd and cook on low flame till the meat is cooked, till the oil separates.

Step 3 – Cook bitter gourd and meat together:
When the meat is fully cooked, add the fried bitter gourd to the meat and cook for 10 minutes so that the bitterness of bitter gourd and the flavour of meat blend well.

How to serve
Finally sprinkle green coriander and green chillies. Serve the handi with hot chapatis and white rice.

When we all sat down to eat, the combination of mildly bitter gourd and spicy tender meat felt like magic. My uncle said, “This is real home cooking – it brings back memories.”

That day I understood that food is not just for taste, but also for family moments, happiness and memories.