What every professional kitchen needs to know about winter melon: origin, flavour, preparation and storage.
Winter melon (冬瓜) — also known as ash gourd, wax gourd or white gourd, in Vietnam bí đao, in Indonesia kundur or bligo, botanically Benincasa hispida — is a large Asian fruit vegetable.
The vegetable can grow impressively large, up to 30 kg. For restaurants, smaller specimens or pre-cut pieces are delivered. The flesh is neutral in flavour and prized for its texture in soups and braised dishes.
冬瓜winter melonwax gourddong guaOriginating from Southeast Asia and China, cultivated for more than 2,000 years. Winter melon is available year-round as it stores excellently for a long time after harvest.
In Chinese cuisine, winter melon soup is a classic dish at festive meals, sometimes served in the hollowed-out skin of the melon itself as a spectacular buffet presentation.
The flavour is mild and neutral with a light freshness. The flesh absorbs broth and sauces entirely, making it wonderful in soups and stews. The texture becomes glassy and almost translucent with longer cooking — a characteristic appearance in Chinese dishes.
In Chinese cuisine, winter melon soup with pork ribs is a Cantonese restaurant classic. In Vietnamese cuisine, canh bí đao — winter melon soup with shrimp or pork — is a popular daily soup. In Thai cuisine, fak (ฟัก) is used in clear Thai soups. In Indonesian cuisine it is known as kundur or bligo and is used in sayur bening and sour soups. In Japanese cuisine braised in dashi. In Korean cuisine in clear guk.
Whole winter melon stores excellently at room temperature for up to 3 months. Cut pieces should be stored at 4 to 6°C and used within 4 to 5 days.
Cover cut flesh with cling film to prevent it from drying out.
Peel the hard green outer skin generously. The white flesh underneath is the most tender.
Add winter melon late to soups so it does not become too soft. 10 to 15 minutes of cooking is sufficient.
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