READY IN 50 mins

Winter Melon Meatball Soup

Read Reviews (14)

"This soup is very warming. I love to make this during the winter months when it's chilly outside." — mal

Directions

Sprinkle pork with cornstarch, cilantro, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, and ginger. Mix eggs into pork until completely incorporated and the mixture becomes sticky.
Combine water, winter melon, ginger, salt, and sugar in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, form 1 teaspoon-sized meatballs out of the pork mixture. Gently drop meatballs into simmering soup; simmer 8 to 10 minutes more until meatballs have cooked.

Kitchen-Friendly View

PREP 30 mins
COOK 20 mins
READY IN 50 mins

Reviews More Reviews

Most Helpful Positive Review

Jan 26, 2009

I enjoyed this winter soup but the second time I made some adjustments: Used 1 egg as found the meatballs didn't stick together well. I also added chopped water chestnuts to the meatball mixture as I enjoy a little crunch. Used half the amount of salt as I found it too salty the first time or you can add more water. I also added dried chinese mushrooms soaked in water, drained & sliced.

—sunny888

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Most Helpful Critical Review

May 03, 2012

only good if you like ginger...we ended up not finishing it because the ginger was overwhelming

—vonessa

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14 Ratings

Feb 22, 2010

My first attempt at cooking with bitter melon! The soup is very good - I used lean ground pork and only 1 egg in the meatballs, and followed the suggestions of others and added sliced rehydrated dried Chinese mushrooms, tofu and dried shrimp in during the initial phase of cooking, and then cracked in a salted duck egg (chopped the yolk up first, as it was hard) after I added the meatballs. Just before serving, I stirred in 3 sliced green onions. Everyone thought it was delicious, though I agree with a previous reviewer that it might be a tad too salty. Next time, I will try adding chopped water chestnuts to the meatball mixture to add crunch. I found that the meatballs themselves were very very soft and somewhat hard to form - any suggestions on how to make firmer meatballs?

—Sair Fair

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Jun 03, 2007

I've been trying to find a winter melon soup recipe like mom makes and this one is very good. Thanks for sharing! The broth is missing some complexity of flavour however, and I'm not sure what it is. Perhaps next time I will try adding some dried mini shrimp and crack a salted duck egg into the broth. Since I like "stuff" in my soup, I also added some cubed medium-firm tofu during the last couple minutes of cooking. This was a very healthy meal. Thanks again!

—maplebook

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Dec 13, 2010

I was a little surprised when I came home with my winter melon from the Asian market. I opened it up in the morning, expecting a melon, but instead got this. So thinking of what I would do with this, I went on this website and found this website. i had all of the ingredients and it was very simple to make. I was still afraid about how this would come out because of the cucumber smell and taste of the squash. But I love this! It is absolutely delicious. I recommend it to everyone, even if you don't like cucumber because it ends up tasting like potatoes and broth with meatballs. I will probably make this again with my other half of my melon.

—garythefemalecat

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Sep 24, 2010

Thanks for bringing back memories of my parents cooking this when I was growing up! I used Chinese turnip instead of winter melon (couldn't find any at the store this week). I halved the meatball ingredients to 5 servings, keeping the soup base at 10 servings. I also threw several sprigs of cilantro into the soup base toward the end. Very flavorful and delicious!

—Minx in a Jinx

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Jun 03, 2011

I am from Japan and we have different ways of cooking Winter Melons. However, being in the US, I decided to try this Chinese version. I changed the recipe slightly by substituting the cilantro with minced green onion, omitted sugar from both the meat balls and the soup, and omitted garlic from meat balls. I also added Chinese soup bouillon (do not use American soup stock because they use different spices) and sake in the soup to add more taste, added sliced fresh Shiitake and frozen taro potatoes (satoimo in Japanese) in the soup. The result was delicious. My son who does not usually like vegetables (if Winter Melon is considered a vegetable) ate two servings. I boiled the cut Winter Melon and the frozen taro potatoes for 10 - 15 minutes and drained the water before putting them in the soup stock because I like softer melon and potatoes. I will definitely make this soup again.

—RYNBASKETS

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Mar 21, 2011

I didnt like the sweetness and i used only 1/2 the sugar called for in the meatballs. I will make it again but i think i will omit the sugar all together and use only egg whites in the meatballs.

—pr2006

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Nutrition

Calories
173 kcal
9%

Carbohydrates
9.4 g
3%

Cholesterol
75 mg
25%

Fat
10.8 g
17%

Fiber
1.1 g
4%

Protein
9.8 g
20%

Sodium
1111 mg
44%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Winter Melon Meatball Soup

Serving Size: 1/10 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 10
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 173
Calories from Fat: 98

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 10.8g 17 %
Saturated Fat 3.9g 20 %
Cholesterol 75mg 25 %
Sodium 1111mg 44 %
Potassium 189mg 5 %
Total Carbohydrates 9.4g 3 %
Dietary Fiber 1.1g 4 %
Protein 9.8g 20 %
** Sugars 4g
Vitamin A 5 %
Vitamin C 19 %
Calcium 5 %
Iron 11 %
** Thiamin 35 %
Niacin 34 %
Vitamin B6 16 %
Magnesium 9 %
Folate 7 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.