Wednesday, December 09, 2009

Loofa Luffa Tomato Soup of the Day,丝瓜番茄汤

I know this is not a very pretty dish but it can make you pretty. Do you know? This plant is characterized by ten ridges that run its length along the entire gourd. Look below and count them if you don't believe me.

This gourd vegetable or plant is Loofah/luffa or Silk Gourd/Ridge Gourd/Angled Gourd also known as 丝瓜 (SiGua in Chinese). Typically used in stir-fries and soups, this gourd has a slightly spongy texture and a mildly sweet flavor. It contains amounts of calcium, phosphorus, iron, vitamin A, B and C.  The theme for Monthly Mingle is "Soup for the happy soul", and I have prepared soup for the beautiful you.

Angled Gourd with Tomato Soup 丝瓜番茄汤   
Ingredients: 2 ridge or angled gourd(luffa/loofah), peeled and cut the flesh to bite size; 1 tomato, cubed to bite size; 2 cloves garlic, lightly crushed; 2 thin slices of ginger; salt and white pepper to taste

Directions: Heat some sesame oil in a pot. When heated, add the garlic, ginger and tomatoes and fry till fragrant and tomatoes softened. Add the luffa/loofah and lightly fry with the tomatoes, garlic and ginger. Add in warm water to make soup and allow soup mixture to simmer at low-medium heat till loofah softens and cooks through.  Pinch of salt and white pepper to taste.



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13 comments:

Cindy. Lo. said... [Reply]

I never made these melons before, maybe it's time to give it a try since this soup looks so good!

SandyCarlson said... [Reply]

That looks absolutely delicious.

Anncoo said... [Reply]

I usually stir fried SiGua with meat, must try to make this soup version. Looks good :)

Sunshinemom said... [Reply]

This is a quick cooking and delicious soup. We have it with rotis! Thanks for participating:)

Rachel said... [Reply]

I don't know if we can even buy them here! I'll have to look into growing them- I actually didn't realize people eat them. :-) Thanks!

Selba said... [Reply]

We called it as "O-yong" and usually my mom will cook it with mee-sua :)

Cheah said... [Reply]

This is my first time visiting. There's a very popular restaurant dish in Ipoh, Perak where I come from, their specialty is si gua with homemade tofu, very delicious,esp the tofu, melts in the mouth.

Little Inbox said... [Reply]

Usually just stir fry it with prawns, haven't try use it to make soup. A healthy dish!

noobcook said... [Reply]

It looks pretty when cooked. I definitely need to try this out :D

Chien said... [Reply]

Now I know ... these are loofah. How SUAH-GU of me, I have only known them as "ketola". My mum makes a soupy version of this with "hae bee" and omelette ... delish! Sometimes she'd throw in mee-suah for a simple one-dish meal.

Little Corner of Mine said... [Reply]

Thanks for showing the raw gourd picture, I think I saw it selling here too. I hardly ever buy any gourd for my cooking, don't know what is what and how to cook it too.

~~louise~~ said... [Reply]

Oh my, I've seen these in the grocery store and never knew what they were. Thank you so much for posting the picture of them, tigerfish, now I know.

I think it's a very pretty dish and worthy of exploring, so simple too!

Ayie said... [Reply]

definitely good with soups or i like it in misua.

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