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Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
http://www.cookaholics.org/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=4346		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  pepperhead212 [ Fri Jul 01, 2016 9:51 pm ]
Post subject:  Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
...that I am going to need some recipes for! Bitter Melon (Shanghai variety...I was amazed at how many varieties there are!) and Indian Gherkin. The gherkins are still a bit small, but probably doubled since I looked at them last!

Both are cucurbits, so they grow on vines, and both are growing like a mutated vine in a sci-fi movie! I only have one of each, and I can't begin to guess how many side shoots are growing off of the main vine, esp. the gherkin. The bitter melons look like miniature full sized ones when only about an inch long! They grow like cucumbers - incredibly fast. Here's a photo from a couple of days ago:
Image

Any favorite recipes out there?
Author:  TheFuzzy [ Sat Jul 02, 2016 5:38 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
Can't say I've heard of Indian gherkin before.
Author:  pepperhead212 [ Sat Jul 02, 2016 7:07 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
Here's a link with some good info on it:
http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic- ... z1410.aspx
Author:  wino [ Sun Jul 03, 2016 4:48 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
Thanks, excellent article :!: :D
Author:  pepperhead212 [ Sun Jul 03, 2016 8:51 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
Here's a better photo of the gherkins. I counted 23 over 1" long today, and I lost count of the smaller ones!
Image
Author:  TheFuzzy [ Sat Jul 09, 2016 2:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
So, what do they taste like?
Author:  pepperhead212 [ Sun Jul 10, 2016 3:58 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
I'll harvest some today - I think that some have reached the max. size.
Author:  pepperhead212 [ Mon Jul 11, 2016 10:28 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
Here are some more photos of the gherkins. I harvested all of what looked like max. size (they seemed to have stopped growing), though there were countless more out there just under this size. The flavor is strong, but not bitter, both raw, and after pickling, and incredibly crunchy! I did a fast, Chinese style pickle - 1/4 c each white vinegar and sugar, plus about 1/2 tsp. salt. Only takes about 3-4 hrs. in the fridge, tossing several times, and keeps for a long time.

The only drawback to these is the deburring - something I tried several approaches to - scraping with a paring knife, making a burr on the knife by honing it a bunch of times on just one side (worked better, but still time consuming), a veg. peeler (not very good), rubbing with an abrasive pad (better, still not good, though I didn't have any scotchbrite, which may be better), and, the best, so far, a SS scouring pad - something I very rarely use! I have some extra coarse scotchbrite pads in my workshop, so I'll try those next.

Deburred gherkins:
Image

Halved gherkin:
Image

Pickles from quartered gherkins:
Image
Author:  TheFuzzy [ Tue Jul 12, 2016 10:25 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Two new (for me) Indian veggies in my garden
They look a lot like lemon cucumbers on the inside.
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