Recipe Ingredient
- 175g bittergourd
- 4 slices ginger
- 5 fish balls
- 2 dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked and shredded
- 1 tbsp shallot crisps
- 200g thick rice vermicelli, soaked for 15 minutes to soften
- Stock ingredients 1.5 litres fresh chicken stock
- 1½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- Chicken and prawn balls
- 200g minced chicken fillet
- 150g minced prawns
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 1 tsp egg white
- 1 tsp garlic oil
- 1 tbsp cornflour
Instructions
- Halve the bitter gourd and remove the seeds. Cut slanting thin slices. Rub salt into the bitter gourd. (This is to lessen its bitter taste. Rinse and drain well before cooking.)
- Put stock ingredients in a deep pot and bring to the boil. Put in mushrooms, bitter gourd, ginger and fish balls. Let it boil for 1-2 minutes.
- To prepare the chicken and prawn balls: combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Beat until texture of the meat is sticky. Scoop mixture into balls using a metal spoon. Drop the balls into the boiling soup stock and cook for 5-6 minutes.
- Scald vermicelli in boiling water for 2-3 minutes or until cooked. Drain and place in a deep serving bowl. Pour the hot soup over the vermicelli and serve sprinkled with shallot crisps.