Chinese Winter Melon Soup Recipe

(dong qua tang)

Ingredients :

1	Large winter melon
1 1/2 liters	Chicken stock
125 g	Straw mushrooms, halved
50 g	Chicken breast, cooked and shredded
50 g	Duck meat, cooked and shredded
50 g	Shredded cooked liver of duck, chicken or pork
50 g	Asparagus tips, canned (please drain)
25 g	Crabmeat, cooked
6 pieces	Dried lotus nuts, soaked, peeled and hard core removed
1 tsp	Salt

Method :

Large sized winter melon is one that would hold approx. 6 cups of water.
Cut of the top and carved the skin decoratively (optional).
Remove central fiber and seeds and scrape some of the flesh if necessary so the about 2 cm of flesh is still clinging to the skin of the melon.
Sprinkle the inside with salt and put the whole melon in a large deep pan with boiling water to cover.
Simmer for 30 minutes, drain and then put the melon in a large steamer and proceed to steam for another 30 minutes.
In the meantime, bring chicken stock to a boil and pour into the hollowed melon, cover and steam for another 20 - 25 minutes.
Add all other ingredients and serve.

TIP: When serving the soup in individual bowls, add some of the melon flesh scraped out with a spoon earlier.