Stuffing

• ½ pound pork, ground
• 4 fresh water chestnuts, peeled and finely minced
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger root
• 2 tablespoons minced scallion
• 1½ tablespoons Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon thin soy sauce
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 2 large bitter melons, about ¾-1 lb.

Sauce

• 2 tablespoons peanut oil
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1½ tablespoons fermented black beans
• 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
• ¾ cup chicken broth
• Salt to taste
• ½ teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 1 teaspoon cold chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil

Steaming

1. Combine the stuffing ingredients in a large bowl.

   

2. Mix them thoroughly. The hands are the best tool for this job.

   

3. Cut the bitter melon into 1-inch slices; discard the end pieces.

   

4. With a paring knife, trim out the insides.

   

5. Lift them out.

   

6. Stuff the cavity of each slice with a generous spoonful of stuffing.

   

7. Arrange the stuffed pieces of vegetable on a plate, and set the plate on a trivet in a wok over enough hot water to come within 1 inch of the plate. Cover the wok and steam the food for 20 minutes. Remove the platter and the trivet.

   

8. In a separate wok or pan, prepare the sauce. First heat 2 tablespoons peanut oil. Add the garlic and fermented black beans, stir for a minute, then add the Shaoxing wine, chicken stock, and salt. Add the liquid that results from the steaming of the melon. Bring the mixture to a boil. Thicken with the dissolved cornstarch and flavor with sesame oil.

   

9. Pour the sauce over the bitter melons and serve.