Mung Bean, Winter Melon and Kelp Sweet Soup

Mung bean, also named Green bean, kelp and winter melon, also called wax guard, these three are essentials of Cantonese or even most of Chinese, especially in humid hot summertime. They can eliminate ‘wetness’ and ‘heat’ in the body according to Chinese herbal medicine theory. They can be cooked together or separately in various soups, sweet soup as dessert, or congee. Cantonese love to have a bowl of chilled sweet soup in any hot summer afternoon or night.

It’s Dragon Boat Season and split mung beans can be easily seen in the market, since it’s one of the key ingredients of Zongzi, rice dumpling wrapped by bamboo leaves. So I would use split mung bean, instead of the regular type. The sweet soup would be even smoother and take much lesser time cooking. Split mung bean is wildly used all over the world in many cuisines, Asian particularly.

Serve 4

Ingredients –
Split mung bean, 1cup. Usual mung bean is good as well, only takes a bit more time cooking;
Kelp, 50g when dry;
Winter melon, 500g;
Ginger, 30g;
Rock sugar, or any sugar without colour;

How to do –
1. Kelp cleaned and soaked in water till soft; mung bean roughly washed in running water; ginger peeled and sliced thickly;

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2. Winter melon seeded and peeled, also removed the white spongy part, sliced into half inch’s thick;

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3. Soaked kelp cut into mouth-size pieces;

4. Put all ingredients, except sugar, in a big pot, put in water, about twice amount of the ingredients, lid on, and bring to boil then simmer in medium heat for 15 minutes. Skim off any scum;

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5. When the mung beans are mashy, then it’s time to season;

6. Sweeten with rock sugar according to your preference. Put in the sugar, then lid on, heat off, let it melt. Don’t add sugar too early otherwise the soup will turn a little sour. Eat it hot or I always make a big pot and keep in fridge, cold is even tastier.