Forest Bitter Melon (Khổ Qua Rừng) has another name is Boh Pan (Ê Đê name). This fruit is considered as one Traditional Vietnamese Food.
It is an annual herbaceous vine, small grow wild, and live commonly in
mountainous and midland. The leaf is similar with annual melon; however
the fruit is small like a finger and has a bitter flavor. Trees are
often found growing in open forest areas, most are on the new burning
clean milpa.
Forest
bitter melon are used widely as a vegetable, however there is no one
plant it at their home’s garden. They just collect them on the upland
field for the additional daily meals when are on spare time. This fruit
can be processed for cooking soup, stir fry. If you are invited this Traditional Vietnamese Food when you come Dak Lak’s home, it means that you are your best visitors.
Forest
bitter melon has a bitter taste like other bitter melon; however this
taste is really better and acceptable for the diners. When we eat this
food may have wrinkled some fierce frown because of unbearable
bitterness. Nevertheless, if people keep eating it, the sweet flavor
comes later and you will love too much. In recent years, some luxury
restaurants serve this Traditional Vietnamese Food on their menu and are highly assessed by the customers due to its special flavor.
Bitter Melon Soup with Pork Filling
Similar
with bitter melon which is sold in the market, the forest bitter melon
can be used in soup or fried with eggs, beef, poultry offal or the
special type of local residents that fried with dried fish and some
package of instant noodles. Due to the shape of forest bitter melon,
people just the heads and tails of this fruit and then take out the all
inside part out and clean it clearly.
Fried Bitter Melon with Egg
There
are many delicious foods in the forest; however people only love animal
food like tiger, snake, and chicken. Why one fruit like forest bitter
melon is not known widely? It is one missing thing of mostly people.
Come to Dak Lak to enjoy this Traditional Vietnamese Food to expand your food knowledge. Hope you have an excited trip in my beautiful country.
