Shark?s Fin Melon

While wondering about the supermarket one day, I chance upon this unusual melon, brought it home and made one of the most delicious soups.

The scientific name for this melon is Cucurbita Ficilolia. It is also called by other names such as fig leaf gourd, chilacayote, pie melon, malabar gourd and even thai marrow.

With the movement against the eating of Shark’s Fins, I heard that some have resorted to using Shark’s Fin Melon as a substitute for that stringy textural effect. It has also been used as the vegetarian version of the Shark’s Fin soup. My view on this is that one should eat the real thing – substitutes will always be a poor substitute of the real thing. If it is a matter of conscience, then one should just avoid it totally!

I have included my recipe for this delicious soup as below.

Shark’s Fin Melon Soup

Ingredients

1 whole melon (about 500g), cut into 2 inch pieces, remove seeds with fork

250g pork ribs

2 pieces of dried abalone

a small handful of dried small scallops

3 slices of ginger

water

salt to taste

Method

1. Put melon, ribs, abalone, scallops and ginger into a large pot.

2. Add enough water to cover all the ingredients.

3. Add in 2 teaspoons of salt.

4. Bring soup to a fast boil, and then lower the fire into a gentle simmer. Boil for 1 hour.

5. Add more salt to taste.

6. Serve soup hot with melon pieces, abalone, scallops and ribs.

Enjoy!