Bitter melon soup is not only a refreshing, healthy dish but also has many special meanings during Tet.
Send many wishes
Every Tet holiday, bitter melon soup is an indispensable dish on the family dinner table of Ms. Nguyen Thi Lan in Hong Chau street, Le Thanh Nghi ward (Hai Duong city). She said that this dish carries many good wishes of people every time Tet comes and spring comes.
"Tet, Tet! / Cakes, jams, pickles, and eggplants, plus red parallel sentences / Happy children, close-knit family / After all the hardships, good luck is coming"...
Ms. Lan read the poem to talk about the meaning of dishes on Tet holiday. According to her, this soup is quite familiar but when it appears on the Tet tray, it becomes meaningful.
In Chinese, "khố" means bitter, "qua" means melon, squash. From here, "khố" also has a metaphorical meaning: all hardships will pass. "It seems that with a bowl of stuffed bitter melon soup, everyone feels more secure, that all the bad things of the old year have passed, hoping that better things will come in the new year," said Ms. Lan.
For those who enjoy the soup for the first time, the bitter taste of the soup is not easy to eat. But for those who eat it for the second or third time, it is easy to get addicted to its sweet aftertaste. Not only that, through the bitter crust is a layer of delicious, fatty and fragrant filling. "Eating a bite, people can also relate to the flavors of life. Like the saying: after the bitterness, sweetness comes, after the bitterness, sweetness and good things will come", Ms. Lan shared.
Those who are used to it will find the bitter taste of the dish pleasant. The meat filling inside combined with shiitake mushrooms, onions, etc. creates a very unique flavor.
Bitter melon soup used to be a popular dish for people in the South, but today, this dish has become familiar to people in the North, especially during Tet.
Mr. Pham Trung Lai, Deputy Head of the Faculty of Culinary, Restaurant, Hotel, College of Tourism and Industry said: "In addition to the good meanings, bitter melon soup is also a cooling, refreshing and nutritious soup during Tet holidays". Bitter melon has a lot of fiber, vitamins and minerals, has the effect of reducing belly fat, enhancing immunity, improving cardiovascular health, supporting eyesight, antibacterial, antiviral, lowering blood sugar...
Easy to prepare
To cook delicious bitter melon soup, Ms. Lan goes to the market to find small, spiky bitter melons. “This type is more bitter than hybrid bitter melons, has a stronger and more aromatic flavor, but is very rare, usually only available in the countryside market. If this type is not available, I will look for dark green, long, easy-to-stuff bitter melons,” Ms. Lan said.
After washing, the bitter melon is soaked in water to remove impurities. For those who do not like bitter taste, this is also a way to reduce the bitterness of bitter melon. Leave the bitter melon whole, cut one end diagonally and use a spoon to remove all the seeds and pulp inside. "The purpose of doing this is to keep the flavor of the stuffing inside when stewing or steaming," Ms. Lan revealed the secret.
Bitter melon stuffing is quite diverse, can be made from snakehead fish, shrimp... However, the most delicious and flavorful dish that many people love is still bitter melon stuffed with meat. Ground or minced pork. Wood ear mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms soaked, washed with chopped green onions. Beat eggs and mix well in a bowl. For a rich flavor, the stuffing is marinated with fish sauce, seasoning powder and a little pepper.
According to Ms. Lan, when preparing bitter melon soup, the cook should not use sugar because the bitter taste mixed with the sweet taste will make the bitter taste even more intense. "You should keep the original flavor because bitter melon has a bitter taste but the aftertaste is naturally sweet," Ms. Lan noted.
The ingredients are marinated for about 10-15 minutes to absorb the spices. To make the bitter melon look beautiful, the stuffer must be skillful and have just the right amount of filling. If you put in too little, the filling will break, and if you put in too much, the fruit will crack.
There are two ways to cook bitter melon soup: stewing with water or steaming. If stewing with water, just add enough water to cover the fruit, bring to a boil and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the skin is soft when you poke a chopstick into it. This way the soup will be more flavorful.
With the second method, use a steamer. After pouring water underneath, the bitter melon is placed on top of the steaming tray. With this method, the water boils for about 25 minutes, check to see if the bitter melon skin is soft. This method takes longer but helps the dish retain its rich flavor compared to the first method.
Ripe bitter melon, served in a large bowl, sprinkled with a few fresh onions and a little pepper will awaken the flavor of the dish once again. The bitter melon still retains its green color, when eaten, you can feel its softness, the inside retains the sweetness of the meat, the aroma of mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms... In the cold weather, take a bite of bitter melon, sip the hot soup, sigh, to feel the slight bitterness and then the sweet aftertaste gradually spreading in the mouth... and wish for the good things of a new spring coming to everyone, every home...
LE HUONG