Recipes for hami melon soup, watermelon salad and winter melon soup
While the season for summer produce is almost over, one versatile crop is still going strong
The time for summer fruits and vegetables is coming to an end - we'll probably have to wait until next year to enjoy cherries and lychees again (although they make the occasional appearance in the winter months). Melons are still readily available, though, and their cooling flesh is refreshing in sweet and savoury dishes.
Chilled hami melon soup with lemon-lime sorbet
The hami is a large, oval melon with pale orange, sweet, perfumed flesh. If you like, substitute cantaloupe or honeydew for the hami melon.
Start making the sorbet first because you need to allow time to make the syrup and let it and the lemon and lime juices chill before processing in the ice-cream machine. Once churned, it needs time to harden in the freezer. The fruit soup also needs at least a couple of hours to chill.
For the sorbet:
150 grams granulated sugar
150ml water
Rind of one lemon
4 kaffir lime leaves (optional)
125ml fresh lemon juice
125ml fresh lime juice
A pinch of fine sea salt
20ml vodka
For the soup:
1 kilo ripe hami melon (rind and seeds removed; you'll need approximately half a melon, depending on size)
A pinch of fine sea salt
About 45ml Grand Marnier or Cointreau
About 30ml fresh lime juice
For the garnish:
Finely julienned fresh mint leaves
Raspberries
Use a vegetable peeler to remove the zest (coloured skin only) of a lemon in wide strips. Place the zest in a small saucepan with the sugar, water and salt. Use a paring knife to remove the thick vein running down the middle of each kaffir lime leaf. Finely julienne the leaves and add them to the pan. Place over a medium-low flame, stir to dissolve the sugar and bring to the boil. Turn off the heat and let the syrup cool, then strain through a sieve. Mix 250ml of the syrup with the vodka and lemon and lime juices. (Refrigerate the leftover syrup and use it to sweeten lemonade or iced tea.) Place the sorbet mix in the fridge to chill, then process in an ice-cream machine according to the manufacturer's directions. When the sorbet is ready, transfer it to a container and freeze for several hours.
Make the hami melon soup: chop the melon flesh into chunks and process in a blender (preferably) or food processor. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the salt, lime juice and Grand Marnier or Cointreau. Taste for seasonings - if the melon wasn't very flavourful, it might need more Grand Marnier or Cointreau. Refrigerate for several hours. When it's time to serve dessert, ladle the soup into shallow bowls. Serve with a scoop of lemon-lime sorbet and garnish with mint leaves and raspberries. Serves four to six.
Watermelon, goat's cheese and tomato salad
This is a very pretty, colourful salad, especially if you use small, yellow cherry (or plum-shaped) tomatoes to contrast with the red watermelon.
180 grams fresh goat's cheese
1/2 round, ripe, seedless watermelon
1/2 red onion, sliced into thin rings
150 grams small plum-shaped or cherry tomatoes
Fresh mint leaves
30ml pure sesame oil or extra-virgin olive oil
30ml fresh lime juice
Sea salt flakes, preferably fleur de sel or Maldon
Remove the rind from the watermelon and cut the flesh into bite-sized chunks. Place in a large bowl and add the crumbled goat's cheese, red onion, tomatoes and mint leaves. Mix the sesame or olive oil with the lime juice and drizzle it over the ingredients in the bowl. Use your hands to gently mix the ingredients. Divide between bowls or plates, sprinkle with the salt and serve immediately. Serves four to six as a light starter.
Winter melon soup
Winter melon is used in both sweet and savoury dishes, but probably its most popular incarnation is winter melon soup. Restaurants often serve the soup inside a whole melon, but this requires a large steamer. Although the presentation isn't as dramatic, winter melon soup ladled from an ordinary pot can be just as delicious, especially if you use homemade chicken broth.
The next time you have roast, salt-baked or soy sauce chicken for dinner, save the bones, wings, neck, head and feet. If you're using a salt-baked or soy sauce chicken, rinse briefly with water to wash off the excess salt.
Cover the bones and other parts with water and simmer for 30 minutes.
600 grams winter melon, rind removed
2 tbsp dried shrimp
2-3 large dried mushrooms
1 boneless chicken thigh
10ml soy sauce
5ml rice wine
1/8 tsp sugar
A dash of ground white pepper
1/4 tsp cornstarch
100 grams Yunnan ham
2 thin slices ginger, skin removed
80 grams frozen peas
1 litre chicken broth (if using Swanson's, use
half canned broth and half water)
Salt and white pepper, to taste
Sesame oil
Chopped spring onions
Rinse the mushrooms and shrimp then soak them together in 100ml of warm water for 15 minutes, or until the mushrooms are pliable. Remove the stems from the mushrooms and thinly slice the caps. Strain the soaking liquid and reserve.
Cut the chicken meat into small cubes and mix with soy sauce, rice wine, sugar, a dash of white pepper and cornstarch. Rinse the ham and cut into thin 'matchsticks'. Cut the winter melon into cubes.
Heat the chicken broth in a pot and add the mushroom and shrimp soaking liquid. Bring to the boil and add the ham, shrimp, mushroom, ginger and winter melon. Lower the heat and simmer gently until the melon is tender and translucent. Add the chicken and peas and simmer for about two minutes, or until the chicken is cooked. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if necessary. Ladle into bowls, sprinkle with spring onions and drizzle with sesame oil. Serves four to six.
Styling: Rachael Macchiesi
Recipes first published on 17 September 2006
