Canh Bi Dao Nhoi Thit (Winter Melon Soup with Pork), Made with Monk Fruit Sweetener

Method

1. Rinse 150g pork, drain, then chop or grind it finely.
2. Peel 1 shallot and 1 garlic clove, mince them and set aside.
3. Marinate the pork with 1 teaspoon fish sauce, 1 teaspoon seasoning powder, half the minced shallot and garlic and 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper. Mix well and leave for 10 to 15 minutes.
4. Peel the 600g winter melon, wash off the sap and cut it into rounds about a finger joint thick.
5. Hollow out the seeds with the tip of a knife or the handle of a spoon, then pack about 1 teaspoon of the seasoned pork into each ring.
6. Bring 800ml water to a boil over high heat, then lower in the stuffed melon rings.
7. Cook for 5 minutes until the melon starts to soften, then season with 1 tablespoon seasoning powder, 1/2 tablespoon salt, 1 teaspoon kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and 1 teaspoon MSG, and cook for another 5 minutes over medium heat.
8. Once the melon and pork are cooked through, add 1/2 tablespoon fish sauce, stir, taste again and turn off the heat.

Tips

• Bright green skin, taut and full, still carrying fine down and white flecks, means a young sweet melon.
• Avoid the very large ones, as an old melon turns the broth sour.
• Hollow the rings out completely before stuffing, so the pork holds in place.
• The fish sauce goes in at the very end, with the heat off straight after, to keep its aroma.
• One teaspoon of pork per ring is the limit, as an overfilled ring pushes its filling out once the pot boils.