Wintermelon and Scallops, 冬瓜干貝

A simple nutritious dish full of antioxidants

“There's more wintermelon in my front yard than grass.” We love growing wintermelon. Before they became all the rage in milk tea shops for wintermelon lattes, they’ve been a delicious melon used in all sorts of Chinese cuisine. My aunts grow them and try to outdo each other each year by bringing bigger and bigger melons to family holidays.

Ingredients

• wintermelon

• dried scallops

• garlic

• cooking oil

• salt

Steps

Peel the garlic and crush

Peel the wintermelon and then cut into square slices

The dried scallops can be purchased at any Chinese grocery store, which will predominantly be used for flavoring.

Wash the scallops and soak in water

Heat up a wok with some cooking oil. Add the crushed garlic. Then stir-fry the wintermelon briefly for 60 seconds.

Add the scallops

Then add a half bowl of water.

Stir fry the mix together for another 30 seconds.

Cover the wok with a lid and let it steam and for 7 minutes. Make sure there is enough water so that the melons don’t burn.

Open up the lid and stir

Once the wintermelon has softened, salt to taste and serve!

If you’re curious what the grow operation looks like, here’s a small part of it