Vietnamese Malabar Spinach & Ground Beef Soup (Canh Mồng Tơi Nấu Thịt Bò Bằm)

Malabar spinach, known as Rau Mong Toi in Vietnamese is commonly found in Asian supermarkets. They grow on vines with heart-shaped leaves and white blossoms. They are also known as vine spinach, ceylon spinach or Chinese spinach. The leaves have a mild taste with a somewhat slimy texture when cooked. In this recipe, I’m cooking malabar spinach with ground beef (canh mong toi nau thit bo bam). It’s a quick and easy soup recipe to go along with steamed rice and other side dishes for a traditional Vietnamese family meal. Recipe below. Video on top. Enjoy!

Other Soups You May Enjoy

Vietnamese Chicken Soup with Baby Spinach
Vietnamese Mustard Green Soup with Shrimp Balls
Vietnamese Ground Pork & Chrysanthemum Greens Soup
Vietnamese Sweet & Sour Shrimp Soup with Pineapple

Popular Dishes to Complete the Meal

Mongolian Beef Stir Fry with Bell Peppers
Crispy Salt & Pepper Beef
Vietnamese Caramelized Pork
Vietnamese Ginger Chicken

PRINTABLE RECIPE

Vietnamese Malabar Spinach & Ground Beef Soup (Canh Mong Toi Nau Thit Bo Bam)

Serves 5-7

Ingredients

Beef

10 oz ground beef
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon chicken or mushroom bouillon powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon fish sauce

Soup

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic (mince)
1-3/4 quarts water
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon chicken or mushroom bouillon powder
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1-1/2 lbs malabar spinach (remove woody stems if any and cut into bite-size pieces)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

Marinate ground beef with salt, sugar, chicken/mushroom bouillon powder, black pepper and fish sauce for 10 minutes.
In a medium-size stock pot, heat vegetable oil on medium high. Add garlic and saute until fragrant (about 10 seconds).
Add ground beef and stir to mix with garlic. Cook for one minute.
Add water and bring the pot to a boil. Reduce heat to low simmer. Skim off any impurities that float to the top. Continue to cook for 5 minutes.
Season stock with salt, fish sauce, chicken/mushroom bouillon powder and sugar. Add malabar spinach and cook until tender (5 minutes).
Sprinkle the top of soup with black pepper and serve with steamed rice and a protein side dish (see below) for a complete and traditional Vietnamese meal.

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