Ginisang Ampalaya (Sautéed Bitter-Melons with Egg)

This one is for the bitter melon lovers out there. (You know who you are.)

It's a straightforward Filipino breakfast dish. You sautée some bitter melon rounds with onions, patis (fish sauce), garlic, black pepper and eggs.

You can add ground pork, or not. You can add bell peppers, or not. You can add tomatoes, or not.

There's a lot of that "or not" in Filipino cooking.

Only constant here seem to be that it wouldn't make any sense to have a sautéed bitter melon dish without bitter melons, would it now?

Also, the eggs are key. They act as counterpoint.

The eggs were lightly scrambled because that's the way the CC rolls.

You may want to roll differently, or not.