A recipe as surprising as it is comforting for a traditional bitter melon soup that’s different from what we’re used to eating in restaurants
Here’s a recipe you won’t often see on Instagram! While others show you super spicy or cheese-filled noodles, on my site we savor bitter melon, also known as bitter gourd or bitter cucumber. Appealing name, isn’t it?
More seriously, if you’re familiar with this vegetable, I don’t need to introduce you to this classic of Vietnamese cuisine, but if you’re discovering it, you’ll be really surprised by the subtle flavors of this dish. Honestly, it’s worth it, and the time investment isn’t huge either. The only caveat is that the younger members of our families might be put off by the bitterness of this Asian soup.
But otherwise, go for it without hesitation, dear culinary adventurers!
What is bitter melon soup?
Stuffed bitter melon soup is a typical dish from southern Vietnam, but it has conquered the entire country. So if you’re passing through the region, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding the dish.
That said, it’s an integral part of the southern Lunar New Year tradition, Tet, where people let go of the misfortunes of the previous year so that the new year will be auspicious.
To come back to the dish itself, it consists of pieces of bitter melon stuffed with a pork and shrimp filling that are placed in a quick chicken broth. What’s great is that the aroma of the filling cooking in the broth will be released during cooking and really bring out the umami flavors of the entire dish.
You can find equivalents of this soup all over Asian cuisine, and even a fried version in Taiwan. As with ramen, the broths can vary infinitely, as can the toppings. The only limit is your imagination, although we generally prefer something quick
The main ingredients of stuffed bitter melon soup
Bitter melons: Hard to do without in this recipe, opt for a medium size (about 15cm). You’ll find them in Asian supermarkets, in the fresh produce section
Ground pork: opt for 30% fat content
Shrimp: they should be peeled and raw
Glass noodles: Here, take any kind of glass noodles (made from mung beans or potatoes) and if you really have no choice, rice vermicelli will do. With shredded dried pork rind, it’s also very good. Basically, it’s just important that they are very thin vermicelli
Black mushrooms: As with spring rolls, they bring a delicious taste. In fact, some people simply reuse leftover spring roll filling for this dish
Fish sauce: brings a salty and umami taste to the broth
Stuffed Bitter Melon Soup – Canh Khổ Qua
Ingredients
- 400 g ground pork
- 200 g of shrimp raw, minced like meat
- 30 g of black mushrooms dry weight, rehydrated
- 1 package of glass noodles
- 5 bitter melons medium size (15cm)
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- 1.5 L of chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon of fish sauce
Toppings
- Cilantro
Procédé
- Wash the bitter melons5 bitter melons
- Cut off the ends
- Remove the seeds with a spoon
- Cut everything in half
- Boil the black mushrooms for a few minutes and rinse30 g of black mushrooms
- Boil the noodles for a few minutes, rinse in cold water and drain1 package of glass noodles
- Cut the mushrooms and noodles into small pieces (about 5 mm, roughly)
- Mix with the shrimp and pork, add salt and pepper400 g ground pork, 200 g of shrimp, Salt, Pepper
- Stuff the pieces of bitter melon. Make small balls with the excess, freeze them for another time.
- In a large pot, bring the broth to a boil1.5 L of chicken broth
- Add the bitter melons and let them boil covered for 50 minutes
- Add the fish sauce and serve in small bowls with some pieces of bitter melon, garnish with a little chopped coriander1 tablespoon of fish sauce, Cilantro
