“Nourishing and Polarising’: Thanh Truong’s recipes to bitter melons

Kids of Vietnamese parents may feel strongly regarding the gourd’s bumpy appearance. However, the fruit-loving Thanh Truong, AKA Fruit Nerd, is a fan of the fruit.

My favorite dish that was that my mother cooks is the stuffed bitter melon soup. It’s a nutritious home-style food which isn’t available in Vietnamese eateries. The food itself is significant healthy, nutritious and even it’s polarising.

Why is it that people are polarised? If not cooked properly, The uninspiring bitter flavor could turn off many kids, and the majority of kids grow to dislike it, especially when their parents love the bitter flavors. There’s even a popular meme within the Vietnamese community that talks about being required to have bitter melon with some disliking it, while others embracing it. It takes a lot of skill to cook it properly so that the flavors are balanced. the bitter taste of Mom’s bitter melon soup are balanced by pork and rice and accompanied by a plethora with fresh, fragrant herbs.

There are a variety of varieties of bittermelon, cooked in a variety of methods: Chinese, Indian and Japanese cooks all utilize the vegetable. Photograph: Mark Roper/Plum

In the West, the bitter melon is considered a strange vegetable as it is an “exotic vegetable” not as popularly accepted as bok-choy. In the eastern dietetics field however, bitter melon is considered to be an extremely “cooling” vegetables available. Ingestion of excessive amounts of “heating” foods creates an imbalance of yin and Yang within the body, resulting in adverse physical reactions. One example is eating too many lychees or sweets in one go, and you may experience nausea or get pimples!

I have traveled Asia extensively as a part of my job I’ve eaten a variety of kinds of bitter melon in various ways. In Kyoto, Japan, I had a fried white, bitter melon that was spiky, known as goya, at an stall on the street; at Shenzhen, China, I received finely sliced Ku Gua bitter melon, dipped in sugar, then served on a bed of ice, sprinkled with carrots and peanuts as well as at my favorite local Indian restaurant, I’ve tried Karela, a deep-fried mini bitter melon in green that was served along with biryani.

In the meantime, put the vermicelli noodles as well as dried wood ears in separate heatproof bowls. Then, cover both with freshly-boiled water. Leave them to sit for 7 minutes, and the mushrooms for fifteen minutes. Drain. Cut the noodles into lengths of 7cm and cut the mushrooms.

The bitter melon can be cut in 4cm long cylinders. Use the knife or spoon to scrape out and discard the fleshy inside while leaving the solid green flesh and edges unharmed. Transfer the melon that has been hollowed out to a large bowl filled with salted water and allow it to sit at least 15 minutes. Drain.

Put the minced pork into a large size, then add the noodles and wood ear mushroom, as well as garlic, ginger, sugar, salt white pepper, and fish sauce. Use your hands to mix the ingredients. With a spoon or fingers, pack the pork neck mixture into hollowed-out bitter melon cylinders. pressing the mixture between the ends of both sides to stop any air pockets from developing. (Roll any remaining ingredients into tiny balls before adding into the soup.)