How to cook chayote soup with pork skin and sweet carrots, cooling
Chayote soup combined with carrots and pork skin results in a sweet and refreshing taste, very easy to eat, and has a great cooling effect. The way to cook this soup is not difficult, just pay a little attention to the preparation of the pork skin to make it chewy and crunchy.
Ingredients
- 3 chayotes
- 1 carrot
- 150g fresh pork skin
- 3g wood ear fungus, shiitake mushrooms
- 3 dry onions
- Green onions, Vietnamese coriander
- Spices: soup powder, seasoning powder, MSG, fish sauce, ground pepper
Instructions
Preparation
Peel and quarter the chayote, removing the core and seeds. Rinse thoroughly and cut into bite-sized pieces, approximately 1-1.2 inches thick.
Chayote secretes a sticky substance, so to avoid getting your hands stained, you can wear gloves while peeling or peel it under running water.
Peel the carrots and cut into pieces similar to the chayote. The carrot slices can be a bit thinner as they are harder and take longer to cook. You can also carve them into flower shapes to make the soup more visually appealing.
Once the carrots and chayote are prepared, marinate them with 1 teaspoon of seasoning powder to enhance their natural sweetness.
Soak the shiitake mushrooms and wood ear mushrooms in water until soft, rinse thoroughly, and finely chop. Mix them with the ground pork.
To make the ground pork chewy, crispy, rich in flavor, and prevent it from drying out, add 2 teaspoons of fish sauce, 1/2 teaspoon of ground pepper, and 3 teaspoons of cooking oil to the mixture. Mix well.
Thinly slice or finely chop the shallots to your preference.
Rinse the spring onion and Vietnamese coriander thoroughly and chop finely. You can replace Vietnamese coriander with Chinese chives.
Cooking the Chayote Soup
Add a bit of cooking oil to a pot and sauté the shallots until fragrant. Avoid using too much oil, as it could make the soup greasy.
Next, add the chayote and carrot, stir quickly and add water for the soup. If you're cooking for 3-4 people, use about 1.5 liters of water. Turn the heat to high to bring the soup to a boil quickly.
When the soup begins to boil, reduce the heat to medium. Use a teaspoon to form the pork mixture into small balls and drop them into the pot.
After adding the pork balls, continue cooking for about 7-8 minutes on medium heat until the vegetables and meatballs are cooked. The vegetables should be tender but not mushy.
After nearly 8 minutes, adjust the seasoning to taste with soup powder, seasoning powder, and fish sauce. Adjust the seasoning according to your family's taste.
Finally, add the chopped spring onion and Vietnamese coriander, stir well, turn off the heat, and ladle the soup into bowls.
The chayote soup with pork balls and carrot is incredibly flavorful. The sweetness of the chayote and carrot, combined with the chewiness of the pork balls, makes for a delightful meal. In addition to pork, you can also make chayote soup with fresh shrimp or dried shrimp for an equally enticing variation.
