Kalounjie

A regular reader of my column, Zally, who lives in the USA, asked me a few weeks ago how to make stuffed karaila - kalounjie, and that gave brith to the idea for this week's subject. This vegetable is called many things - bitter squash, bitter melon, bitter gourd. In Guyana we call it karaila and in Trinidad and Tobago it is called, caraili.

Read the column to learn about my love-hate relationship, with this vegetable, as a child and how much I love it now. Email me for the recipe.


Karaila, bitter gourd, bitter melon, bitter squash, caraili





Sauteed baby shrimp that I used to stuff the karaila. You can vary the stuffing, some people use minced meat, chicken or vegetables.



Karaila stuffed with shrimp








Stuffed karaila tied with kitchen string to keep in the stuffing during the cooking process. Tooth-picks can also be used.




Saute karaila, turning and browning all around.






This is the finished dish after it has simmered in a flavourful, spicy sauce. Use coconut milk or water, which ever you prefer.
I ate my kalounjie with rice but you can eat it with roti as well,