Bitter Melon Fritters Recipe | Karela Fry | Kakarakaya Fry

Bitter Melon Fritters Recipe (Karate Podi or Kakarakaya fry): These are crispy and crunchy, easy-to-make finger food prepared using rice flour, bitter gourd (karela), and chile powder. Serve this as a side for lunch with dalitoy and steamed rice for a traditional Konkani meal.

Kakarakaya fry (Karela Fry)

Karela is a hindi word. It is also known as karate in Konkani, hagalakayi in Kannada, bitter gourd or melon in English, paagarkaai or pavakkai in Tamil, kakarakaya in Telugu.

This style of fritters is popularly known as karate podi in Konkani cuisine, kakarakaya fry in Telugu, Karela Fry in Hindi, Pavakkai fry in Tamil Bitter melon fritters or Bitter gourd fry in English. It is prepared for lunch but also served with coffee and tea as an evening snack. We prepare it during festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, gowri pooja, etc.

Ingredients

Bitter melon: also called bitter gourd or karela. Available in all Asian stores. Other names are pavakkai, kakarakaya, hagalakayi.
Rice flour: Makes it crispy.
Chile powder: Adds spiciness.
Hing: Adds unique flavor.

Check out the recipe card for the full list of the ingredients to make this bitter melon fritters recipe.

Step-by-step instructions

Preparation

• Wash the bitter melons and chop them into around 2 to 3 mm thick circles. If you want to avoid bitterness, cut it into very thin circles. 
• Sprinkle salt over these chopped melons and keep it aside for 15 minutes.
• Add rice flour, hing, red chile powder, and salt to a bowl and mix well. Now add water little by little to make a thick, smooth paste. Taste check and adjust all spices. 
• Squeeze and add the bitter melon circles to this paste and mix well so the slices are well coated with the paste prepared. If the paste becomes dry, sprinkle water; if it becomes thin, adjust with more rice flour. 

Crispy karela fries (karate podi)

• Heat oil in a pan or kadai for frying. 
• Add a little rice flour to the plate and coat each slice of the melon with the rice flour. (this makes the outer layer super crispy)
• Once the oil is hot, add the melon slices, cook on medium flame, and flip occasionally until crisp and brown on both sides. The fritters should start floating.
• Transfer it to a paper towel to absorb any excess oil, and repeat the process for the remaining melon slices.
• Serve hot and enjoy.

Tips

• To avoid the bitter taste and make it taste like chips, you can chop them into very thin circles.
• If the paste is dry, adjust the water, and if the paste prepared is thin, then add more rice flour.
• Do not overcrowd the pan. They will stick to each other and will not cook uniformly.
• If you like the bitter taste, remove it before it turns crispy.
• If the oil is too hot, it will soon become dark, and if it's too cold, it will absorb excess oil.
• To check if the oil is hot, add a piece of melon and check if it sizzles and rises (the frying temperature is approximately 350 degrees F). 
• Similarly, you can fry kantola (pagila), yam (suran), drumsticks (mashingasanga), banana(kele), sweet potato (kanang), pointed gourd (goint), etc. Check our post on popular konkani podi fritters, seasonal pagila podi, kadgi podi, jeev kadgi podi. 
• For Mangalorean rava fry, instead of coating it with rice flour before dropping it in oil. Coat with semolina or sooji (check out pagila podi video). 

How to make bitter melon less bitter?

Cut them into rings or round slices. Discard seeds if needed (optional). Sprinkle salt and set it aside for 15 to 30 minutes.

More konkani recipes

Recipe card

Bitter Melon Fritters | Karela Fry | Kakarakaya Fry

Kushi

Bitter Melon Fritters Recipe (Karate Podi or Kakarakaya fry): These are crispy and crunchy, easy-to-make finger food prepared using rice flour, bitter gourd (karela), and chile powder. Serve this as a side for lunch with dalitoy and steamed rice for a traditional Konkani meal.

5 from 9 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Course Dinner, Lunch, Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Servings 4

Calories 83 kcal

Equipment

• ▢
  Pan

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 Bitter Melon Karela or Karate or Kakarakaya or Pavakkai
• ▢ ½ cup Rice flour little more for coating
• ▢ 1 to 2 teaspoon Red chile powder
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon Asafoetida Hing powder
• ▢ Salt to taste
• ▢ Oil for frying
• ▢ Water, as needed approx ½ cup

Instructions

 

Preparation

• Wash the bitter melons and chop them into around 2 to 3 mm thick circles. If you want to avoid bitterness, cut it into very thin circles.
  2 Bitter Melon
• Sprinkle salt over these chopped melons and keep it aside for 15 minutes.
  Salt
• Add rice flour, hing, red chile powder, and salt to a bowl and mix well. Now add water little by little to make a thick, smooth paste. Taste check and adjust all spices.
  ½ cup Rice flour, 1 to 2 teaspoon Red chile powder, ¼ teaspoon Asafoetida, Water, as needed
• Add the bitter melon circles to this paste and mix well so the slices are well coated with the paste prepared. If the paste becomes dry, sprinkle water; if it becomes thin, adjust with more rice flour.

Crispy karela fries (karate podi)

• Heat oil in a pan or kadai for frying.
  Oil
• Add a little rice flour to the plate and coat each slice of the melon with the rice flour. (this makes the outer layer super crispy)
• Once the oil is hot, add the melon slices, cook on medium flame, and flip it occasionally till it becomes crisp and brown on both sides. That is, the fritters should come up and start floating.
• Transfer it to a paper towel to absorb any excess oil, and repeat the process for the remaining melon slices.
• Serve hot and enjoy.

Video

Notes

• If you want to avoid the bitter taste and make it taste like chips, then you can chop them into very thin circles.
• If the paste is dry, adjust water, and if the paste prepared is thin, then add more rice flour.
• Do not overcrowd the pan. They will stick to each other and will not cook uniformly.
• If you like the bitter taste, then remove it before it turns crispy.
• If the oil is too hot, it will become dark soon, and if it's too cold, it will absorb excess oil.
• To check if the oil is hot, add a piece of melon and check if it sizzles and comes up. (frying temperature is approx 350 degree F). 
• For Mangalorean rava fry, instead of coating it with rice flour before dropping it in oil. Coat with semolina or sooji (check out pagila podi video). 
• In a similar way, you can fry kantola (pagila), yam (suran), drumsticks (mashingasanga), banana(kele), sweet potato (kanang), pointed gourd (goint), etc. Check our post on popular konkani podi fritters, seasonal pagila podi, kadgi podi, jeev kadgi podi. 
•  

Nutrition

Calories: 83kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 2gFat: 0.5gSaturated Fat: 0.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.1gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.1gSodium: 11mgPotassium: 163mgFiber: 2gSugar: 0.1gVitamin A: 368IUVitamin C: 39mgCalcium: 13mgIron: 0.4mg

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Note: We originally posted this vegan crispy bitter melon fritters recipe in Dec 2015. It has now been modified in Sept 2024 with Expert Chef Tips, FAQs, Storage Instructions, etc.