Vietnamese Pork Stuffed Bitter Melon Soup Canh Khổ Qua

My mom's bitter melon soup has a distinctive broth and bitter melons stuffed with a rich pork filling, springy cellophane noodles, and crunchy wood ear mushrooms.

Tết or Lunar New Year is the most celebrated holiday in Việt Nam regardless of religion or ethnicity. This special holiday usually falls in late January or early February and heralds the beginning of the new year and coming of spring. It is a week-long celebration for Vietnamese filled with rituals and food. Vietnamese follow many auspicious beliefs like cleaning their house and family altar, a ritual to clear out the old and get ready for the new. Removing dust and dirt symbolizes getting rid of bad luck for the past year. Certain inauspicious foods that sound similar to suffering, sadness, or lack of are thrown out or avoided. People stay away from ducks because they are slow and wobbly believing that eating them can result in a slow and wobbly year. They also believe that shrimp bring bad luck as they go backward when moving and can cause success to go down.

While certain foods are avoided, our whole family gathers to cook many Tết staples. We have a handful of recipes that we always make but my mom’s canh khổ qua or pork stuffed bitter melon soup is one of my favorites. “Khổ” means difficulty and suffering and “qua” means to go away. Bitter melon soup translates to “let the suffering pass.” Southern Vietnamese eat this soup during Tết with the hope that numerous sufferings and problems from the previous year will disappear with the new year. Filled with ground pork, wood ear mushrooms, and cellophane noodles, the bitter melons become soft after simmering in the broth and lend a distinctive bitter taste to the soup.

What is Bitter Melon

Bitter melons are small to medium gourds with long, slender, oblong shapes and slightly tapered ends. The gourd's surface varies in texture ranging from deeply creased, smooth, pale green, and ridged to rough, dark green, and heavily textured with warts and bumps. They are commonly found in Asian and South Asian cooking. Bitter melon is an acquired taste due to its prolific bitterness, hence the name. You can find them in the produce section at your local Asian grocery stores.

Ingredients for Filling

• Ground pork: bitter melons are traditionally stuffed with ground pork. I like to use ground pork butt with a little bit of fat. My mom also uses fish paste when she has some available.
• Cellophane noodles: also known as glass noodles and bean thread noodles, are commonly used in Asian cooking. Made from mung beans, yam, or potato starch, these cellophane noodles are quite versatile. Buy the ones made with mung beans as they hold up better during cooking and taste more chewy compared to their counterparts. 
• Wood ear mushroom: is a common ingredient in Asian cooking known for its crunchy texture and ability to soak in flavors. Wood ear mushrooms are often sold dried, and before cooking with this ingredient they need to be rehydrated.

Tips for Making Bitter Melon Soup

• To prepare the bitter melon for cooking, cut them into 2-3 inches pieces. Scoop out the seeds.
• To decrease the bitter taste, bring a pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the bitter melons and cook them for 10 minutes. Remove the bitter melons and add them to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. Drain and set them aside until you’re ready to fill them. This step is completely optional if you have a high tolerance for bitterness.
• Hydrate the cellophane noodles for 10 minutes in warm water. Snip the noodles into 1-inch length.
• Hydrate the wood ear mushrooms for 10 minutes in warm water. Cut them into small pieces.
• Mix the filling and let it sit in the fridge for an hour to let the flavors develop. You can also make the filling the day before.
• You can use water for making to soup or chicken broth. Chicken broth will have a richer taste but I prefer using just water.
• To check if the bitter melons are done, pierce a chopstick through the filling. If the it pierces easily, they are done cooking. If not continue cooking for another 5 minutes.
• Adjust seasoning at the end with fish sauce, sugar, or more water.

Out of all the soups I had growing up, bitter melon soup is among a handful favorites. I introduced this soup to my boys early and they have grown to enjoy this soup over the years. Bite into a stuffed bitter melon and you get a rich pork filling with tender meat, springy cellophane noodles, and crunchy wood ear mushroom. Add some Jasmine rice and you have a complete meal.

For more Vietnamese home cooking inspiration, you might like these recipes: Vietnamese braised pork and eggs in coconut caramel sauce, Vietnamese shaking beef, Grilled Vietnamese lemongrass pork ribs.