Oxtail Winter Melon Soup

Oxtail Winter Melon Soup

1. The oxtail section is ready;

2. Rinse with cold water to separate the adhering oxtails, which can be defrosted naturally, or you can continue to rinse with cold water to soften them;

3. Put the oxtail section into a pot of cold water and select the soup program;

4. Prepare the seasonings. You don’t need too much, just a few flavors: ginger slices, grass fruit, and I can’t tell which one is which. In short, they are all used for braised pork. Put a few pieces to add a bit of flavor;

5. As the water temperature rises, the blood foam in the oxtail gradually comes out. Use a spoon to remove the foam. This process lasts about 3 minutes;

6. There is a little froth on the surface, no need to skim it, pour the seasoning into the soup, cover the lid, and simmer for about 2 hours until the chopsticks can easily penetrate the thick meat;

7. The winter melon is ready and processed just before entering the pot;

8. Peel and remove seeds and cut into thick slices;

9. Add the winter melon to the soup, sprinkle a little salt, simmer for 10 minutes, and take it out of the pot.

Tips:

1. The tail section of the ox has more bones and tender meat. Because there are more blood vessels, there are more blood foam. It can be quickly boiled with a high fire, and a part of the blood foam will be hidden near the bones in the soup. Make blood foam float up; it is not recommended to blanch the water before boiling, which will cause the loss of some water-soluble vitamins and other nutrients;
2. Winter melon is easy to ripen and rotten and should not be put out early, just put it in 10 minutes before it is out of the pot, the remaining temperature will make the winter melon further mature;
3. In addition to the soup, the oxtail can also be braised in brown sauce. For the braised oxtail, please read my other recipe.