Description
A quick pork meatball soup with winter melon (bi dao), a gourd that adds cucumber-like texture and sweetness. Enjoy this comforting side dish with steamed rice, perfect for cold winter days.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Pork Meatballs (Moc)
- 1 lb fatty ground pork (chill in freezer until semi-frozen such that you can break apart into big chunks by hand)
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 garlic cloves (peel; leave whole)
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons tapioca starch
- 4 tablespoons cold water
- 1 teaspoon Alsa baking powder
Equipment Needed
Soup
- 2 quarts water
- 1 lb winter melon (peel, remove core if not tender and cut into chunks or slice thin)
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 4 green onions/scallions (remove end; cut into 2-inch segments)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Prepare pork: Break apart ground pork into small chunks and add to a high-power food processor. Add sugar, salt, fish sauce, black pepper, garlic cloves and oil. Blend for 5 minutes on the highest setting.
- Prepare slurry: In a small bowl, mix together tapioca starch and water until dissolved. Add baking powder to the slurry. Add slurry to pork and blend on high again for another 5 minutes. Pork should be a light pink paste. Set aside.
- Prepare broth: In a large pot, heat water (2 quarts) on high. Once you reach a rolling boil, form golf-ball size meatballs from the pork paste and drop them into the boiling water. Lower heat to gentle simmer and cook for 8 minutes.
- Add winter melon: Cook the melon for about 4 minutes until tender. Avoid overcooking as melon will break apart into many pieces.
- Finish: Season soup with sugar, fish sauce and sea salt Turn off heat and garnish with scallions and black pepper before serving.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Asian, Vietnamese