Home cooking: Double-boiled winter melon soup with pumpkin and black truffle

Making soup is almost as comforting as eating it – having a pot of it simmering on the stove is one of life’s small pleasures. 

Among the many Cantonese-style soups, the one that most locals find themselves craving when temperatures start heading south is a simple one: winter melon. This large gourd is perhaps one of the most acclaimed, yet humblest, ingredients in the Chinese soup repertoire. When combined with a double-boiling cooking method, it makes for a comforting, easy-to-make starter, or even a meal on its own.

This traditional recipe is given a touch of luxury by the addition of grated black truffles and a flashy presentation method.

Ingredients (serves two):

200g winter melon

40g millet         

20g carrot         

20g spring cabbage stalks

20g dried lily bulbs    

4g truffle

300g pumpkin      

100ml pure water     

Preparation:

1) Cut the winter melon into a 200-gram piece, then peel and core. Put it in hot water to boil for about 10 minutes or until soft.

2) Soak the millet in a bowl of water for 20 minutes. Place in a pot and boil until soft.

3) Peel carrots and cut into small slices. Boil the carrots until soft.

4) Slice the spring cabbage stalks into thin portions. Blanche in hot water for a few seconds.

5) Cut the dried lily bulbs into smaller segments. Boil until soft.

6) Turn the boiled winter melon into an upright, standing position and fill it with the millet, carrots, spring cabbage stalks and lily bulbs. Set aside.

7) Skin the pumpkin and cut into small pieces. Put these pieces in a pot to boil. Once soft, mash it to a liquid-like texture.

8) Return the pumpkin into the pot and add the water to boil into a thick soup.

9) Once the soup is ready, arrange the layered winter melon in the middle of a clean plate. Ladle the hot soup around it.

10) Grate some truffle on top and serve immediately.

// This recipe is courtesy of Chef Yap Poh Weng of the W Guangzhou. Photos by Claire Zheng.