In This ArticleView AllIn This ArticleWhat Is It?What Does It Taste Like?What Are Its Nutrients?Does It Help with Blood Sugar?How to Use It
In This ArticleView All
View All
In This Article
What Is It?
What Does It Taste Like?
What Are Its Nutrients?
Does It Help with Blood Sugar?
How to Use It
Close
Photo: Getty Images / Thu Thai Thanh / EyeEm
If you aren’t familiar with bitter melon, it’s time to change that. Typically grown in Asia, Africa and the Caribbean, bitter melon is increasingly available in the U.S. With its crunchy texture and savory, bitter taste, it’s one of those foods that’s technically a fruit but is used more like a vegetable. Also called bitter gourd, it’s known for both its flavor and its impressive nutrient profile.
Recently, there’s been some exciting research suggesting that bitter melon could be helpful for blood sugar management. Whether you’re trying to keep your blood sugar stable or just looking to add new fruits and vegetables to your repertoire, here’s what you need to know about bitter melon.
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What Is Bitter Melon?
Also known as bitter gourd, “bitter melon is technically a fruit of the gourd family,” saysVandana Sheth, RDN, CDCES, FAND, a Los Angeles-based registered dietitian nutritionist and author ofMy Indian Table: Quick & Tasty Vegetarian Recipes. This puts it in the same family as other fruits and vegetables like melon,zucchini, cucumbers and pumpkin.
There are two main varieties of bitter melon, Chinese and Indian. Both are long and round, with green skin and have pale, whitish flesh like a cucumber. “The Chinese variety is long and light green with bumps, and the Indian variety is narrow and has a rough and spiky rind,” says Sheth.
The fruit is widely used in Asia and the Middle East, and you’ll likely be able to find it at Asian markets and other specialty grocers here in the United States.
What Does Bitter Melon Taste Like?
Unlike most melons, bitter melon has a strong, bitter taste and no sweetness. In fact, the fruit gets more bitter as it ripens. Both its green husk and its white insides are edible, and while you can eat bitter melon raw, many people prefer it cooked, because cooking tones down the bitterness.
What Are Bitter Melon’s Nutrients?
Here’s the nutrition information for 1 cup of cooked bitter melon, per theUSDA:
In addition, bitter melon is an excellent source ofvitamin C, with 1 cup providing about half of the recommended dietary allowance. According to theNational Institutes of Health (NIH), vitamin C is a nutrient that plays a key role in collagen production—which is necessary for wound healing and keeping skin springy—and has antioxidant properties to quell damaging free radicals. There’s also some evidence that vitamin C may be useful for blood sugar and blood pressure management for people who have type 2 diabetes, per a 2021 review inDiabetes Care. Bitter melon also provides vitamin A, a fat-soluble vitamin important for immune health, per theNIH.
Then, there’s the 2.5 grams of blood-sugar-stabilizing anddigestion-friendly fiberin a serving of bitter melon. “As a high-fiber, low-calorie food with a high level of the antioxidants vitamin A and C, bitter melon can be a great addition to the plate for anyone looking to increase their overall fiber intake to benefit gut health, as well as those looking to add more volume and satiety to their meals,” saysErin Palinski-Wade, RD, CDCES, a New Jersey-based dietitian and author of2 Day Diabetes Diet.
Does Bitter Melon Help with Blood Sugar Management?
All high-fiber, low-sugar fruits and vegetables can help tokeep blood sugar steady, because they provide valuable nutrients as well as fiber that slows the absorption of glucose into your bloodstream.
Bitter melon may be particularly good at keeping blood sugar stable. “The key nutrient in bitter melon that may be beneficial for blood sugar management is a chemical called polypeptide-P that acts like insulin,” says Sheth.
So, what does that mean? “Bitter melon appears to contain insulin-like properties that help your cells utilize glucose and transport it around your body, while also helping to promote insulin secretion,” explains Palinski-Wade. “Several small studies indicate it may be beneficial at reducing overall blood glucose levels and A1C in individuals with type 2 diabetes.”
In a 2023Food Science and Biotechnologystudy, researchers gave participants bitter melon extract for 12 weeks. Compared to the placebo group, the group who received the bitter melon extract displayed significant improvements in their glucose levels after 12 weeks.
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How to Start Using Bitter Melon
If you’ve never cooked bitter melon and are looking to try it, you could start withCaraili (Sautéed Bitter Melon), a Trinidadian dish that balances its bitter flavor with spice and saltiness. Bitter melon is also used as a soup ingredient, so in colder months you might try thisYeo Joo Ggori Tang (Oxtail & Bitter Melon Soup), which is packed with flavors bitter, sweet and savory.
The Bottom Line
Although more research is needed to determine if and why bitter melon seems to help with blood sugar management, the studies that have been done are promising. Next time you see bitter melon at your market or grocery store, pick some up and get cooking.
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