Friday, February 25, 2011

Stuffed Fuzzy/Hairy Melon


Fuzzy melon  is one of the names for an Asian vegetable that resembles a large hairy zucchini and is related to the winter melon. Fuzzy melon is also known as fuzzy squash, hairy gourd, hairy squash, hairy melon and chinese called this melon " mo gwa ' .  My mom's favorite veggie and she used to cook them in soup , stir fry or stuffed them with mince meat fillings with a combination of salted fish ( tenggiri ) and dried shrimps....awwww this brings back sweet memories for me.


Each time I cook this dish, stuffed fuzzy melon with mince meat , it reminds of my sweet mama. My siblings and I squealed with joy each time she cooked this dish. The aroma of this dish wafting out from the kitchen greeted us when we come back from school , each time she cooked this . We never get bored with this dish . The secret is .... the salted fish she added to the minced meat that makes this dish a signature dish in our household. My mom was a wonderful cook and I thank God I inherited her interest in cooking and thus inherited this recipe too. The preparation of this dish is simple and I could whip this up in less than an hour. Believe me , this is dish that can make me take two bowls of rice :p The only thing to take note is the salted fish....get the ' mui heong ' ( ikan tenggiri ) type for this meat filling :)






Stuffed Fuzzy/Hairy Melon


Ingredients :-


2 medium size fuzzy melon -
peel off skin and cut into 1.5 inch ring as shown in my photos,
remove the center pulps/seeds but keep it for later use

Mince meat fillings:

300 gm minced meat
1/4 piece salted fish ( ikan tenggiri - ' mui heong ' type ) - chopped
2 tbsp of dried shrimps - soaked and chopped coarsely
bird's eye chillies - to taste
3 pips of garlic - chopped
1 tbsp of light soy sauce
1.5 tbsp of corn flour
1 tsp of sesame oil

5 pips of garlic - slightly crushed for braising

thickening:-

1tbsp of corn flour
3 tbsp of water

enough grapeseed oil for frying

Method:

Stir the above ingredients together in a bowl with a pair of chopsticks till they become sticky. Rest it for 10 minutes. Stuff the fuzzy melon with the meat mixture . When all is done, heat up a wok with enough grapeseed oil for frying the stuffed melon. Slightly fry the stuffed melons with the meat filling facing down to the oil as shown in the photo above and fry till it is lightly brown . Dish up , remove excess oil in the wok and leave behind 1 tbsp of oil. Saute the crushed garlic til fragrant, add in 1 tsp of sea salt and let it sizzles in the oil for a second, add in 2 cups of water and a dash of white pepper and when the water boils, add in the stuffed melon . Cover with a lid and braise the melon till it turns soft and tender - about 25 minutes under medium low heat.  Add thickening and dish up .  Serve hot.



Enjoy !




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15 comments:

  1. ooo...my mom called it "Jit Gua". We tanam outside our old hse last time.She made soup with it. Nver made YTF with it before. good idea wor. will try this recipe. Hmm...if the inti mixed a bit with chopped water crest nut maybe will aste sweeter?

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  2. Elin, I love to eat hairy melon too! Thanks for reminding, must cook this for my family.

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  3. Never cook this way before, bookmarked and will prepare for one of the dinner soon.

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  4. So cute, Elin. I'm glad that this dish brings you back such fond memories of when you were a kid. I hope that someday when I have kids I'll be able to give them those kinds of memories too.

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  5. elin, i think i will also love this dish..and i also want to cook your taro with kai lan soon...must remember to get that 'mui heong' salted fish!

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  6. I made stuff bitter gourd two days ago. Never try it with Hairy Melon. I have to see if our little Asian store sell it. Thanks for the idea Elin.

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  7. Oh, we call it 'jit kua' ... so now I know what you mean. Looks yummy, must try!

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  8. Yeah, we call it Jit Kwa too! But I can understand it being called Mou Kwa (Mou meaning hair/fluff).
    My mum does the same thing but with courgettes/zucchini as they are found all year round in western supermarkets. Don't eat that much salted fish anymore but I know what you mean about the mui heung.....making me have a craving for it now! Will have to call mum.....

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  9. The dish is much more appetizing than what the name of the veggie would suggest! I don't think I've ever seen fuzzy/hairy melon but will definitely look out for it. Thanks for sharing this delicious tidbit about your mom, too! 8-)

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  10. Salted fish adds so much flavour to a dish! Another yummy and homey dish!

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  11. hi Elin

    I have never seen a fuzzy melon, I definitely need to get to my Asian store to see if they have them, you make them look so good!
    thanks for another wonderful recipe
    Dennis

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  12. Arthur....hahaha this stuffing is versatile...you can use them on bitter gourd or any veggie you desire but on this hairy melon, the taste is very very different :) Try it if you dun believe me :p


    Kathy....yup I guess you may add in chestnut but for me I prefer it with salted fish...hahaha yummy no doubt and appetizing for me :p


    Anncoo....I hope your family will love this dish :)


    Sonia...hope you will like it too :)


    Roxan....yup this dish do brings back fond memories of my beloved mom and we always link it to her :)


    Lena..do try it for your family..it is delicious :)


    Gertrude....your are welcome :) this filling should be great on bitter gourd too :) as you know salted fish in the minced meat will taste great on anything veggie :) even on green and red bells...mmmm yumm yumm


    Cheah...they are many vernacular names for this melon :)


    Lynne...take care and rest well :) hahah yup I am sure your mom will cook this for you with zuchinni or courgettes :)


    Tangled Noodles ....you are welcome and I hope you love it too :)


    Ann...yup , it adds flavor to the meat :)


    Chef Dennis...you are welcome. I hope you can find this hairy melon in your Asian stove. You will love it :) If not you can use courgettes/zuchinni :)

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  13. I don't think I have heard of hairy melon but the way you cook it makes it look very delicious. Thanks very much for sharing. Hope you have a great day.

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  14. Mary...same to you too. If you have the opportunity to see this in the asian store , do try this out ? It taste better than the zuchinni :)

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