Why does bittergourd lose its bitterness when soaked in salt solution?

Question

Why does bittergourd lose its bitterness when soaked in salt solution?

Answer 1

Don't know.

Hey...while searching i came across a rare article about Mr bittergourd ...

http://www.rain-tree.com/bitmelon.htm

Answer 2

Soaking this vegetable in a salt solution will extract the bitterness out because salt tends to draw out the moisture in any fruit/vegetable.

Try adding a little bit of brown sugar when preparing bittergourd. My dad uses this trick and I must say that the bitterness is reduced, but not completely gone.

Out of curiosity, what attracted you to bittergourd? Very few people in America even know of this vegetable.

Answer 3

Water (H2O) is chemically attracted to sodium (Na+). The sodium in the salt water is going to naturally start drawing into the gourd, and liquid inside the gourd is going to be drawn into the salt water. If it soaks long enough, the liquid inside the gourd and the water outside the gourd are going to be pretty much the same, so some of the bitter tasting juice is going to become part of the salt water. Pour out the salt water, and the gourd is going to be less bitter than it was before.

It's an example of osmosis, or water moving along a pressure gradient.  

I'm probably not getting all of the details exactly right, but that's the basic idea.

Answer 4

HEY!  i actually know what veggie you are talking about!  have some in fridg right now!  and i have heard that some folks do that soak in salt water thing - i have tried it once and every one in my family thought there was something wrong with it!  have never done that again!  i usually just cook in ghee and lightly salt while cooking and serve with a twist of lemon or lime - we like the bitterness.  been eating it for oh 25 plus yrs regularly.mmmmmmm  :)

as far as why - it is some sort of alchemical reaction that happens.

Answer 5

Water usually follow where sodium goes. Thats exactly why when you put salt to bittergourd, alot of water/juices comes out from it. Salt extracts the bitter juice in it.

Answer 6

It's like when you salt aubergines. The salt draws out the juices, and in doing so also draws out the bitterness.

As an aside WTF is Bittergourd please?