These Remind Me Of Home (2009-01-05)
I haven't seen Buddha's Hands Melons (hayatouri) since we left Sydney almost a decade ago. My parents used to grow them and they would absolutely fruit like crazy and flourish like weeds. My mom would give me some once in a while and I wouldn't know what to do with them. (I wasn't much into cooking back then in Sydney)
I was so surprised to see them in Ueno (
) the other day and without a
thought, I grabbed a bag. I had no idea how I'd cook them when I
was paying for them, I guess it was just an impulse buy brought on by a
bit of homesickness.
My mom used to stirfry them with pork or make soup using pork bones
and meat. I wanted something lighter but substantial for
dinner on a chilly night, so I used them to make a Chinese style
chicken soup. The melons, carrots, shiitake, and chicken impart a
natural "sweetness" in the soup which is delicious. Eaten with
a bowl of steaming white rice, so
satisfying!
Chicken And Hayatouri Soup (serves 2)
Ingredients: 2 hayatouri (peel and halve, remove center seed), one
large carrot (cut into chunks), 2 chicken
maryland (skin and fat removed), 4 small dried shiitake mushrooms
rehydrated in 1/2 c water, 1/2
Tbsp gojiberries (omit if don't have any), 2 slices of ginger
Steps
- Parboil the chicken for 5 minutes, wash off any scum and set aside.
- Bring to a boil about 3 cups of water and the water used in soaking the dried mushrooms, add chicken and the rest of the ingredients, wait for it to boil again, then switch to low heat for 1.5 hours, covered.
- Season with salt.
- Serve the chicken and everything with a dipping sauce made of soy sauce and chopped scallions or your favorite dipping sauce.
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