TJTILIZATIOX AND COMPOSITION OF ORIENTAL VEGETABLES 33 
To serve plain. — Wash 1 bunch white-mustard cabbage well and 
cut it in 1-inch or 2-inch lengths. Put in heated pot 2 teaspoons 
peanut oil, 1 slice ginger, one-half tablespoon salt ; add the vegetable 
and fry for one-half minute. Add one-half cup water and cook until 
the vegetable is tender. 
To cook with meat. — Mix one-half pound finely sliced lean beef 
or pork with 1 teaspoon cornstarch, a little pepper, and 1 teaspoon 
soy sauce. Put in heated pot 2 teaspoons peanut oil, one-fifth tea- 
spoon garlic, and one-half teaspoon salt. Add the meat, stir, and fry 
to light brown. Then add the vegetable and one-half cup water. 
Cook until the vegetable is tender. Season to taste and serve. 
GROUP 2. FRUIT AND POD VEGETABLES 
Balsam-Pear (Momordica charantia). (Fig. 29) 
Chinese name : Fu-qua 
Japanese name : Tsuru-reishi 
Shape: Long, oblong, oval, many-ribbed, and covered with blunt warts or 
tubercles ; tapering at apex ; smooth throughout. 
Size: Six to twelve inches long; 2 to 2 1 /£> inches in diameter. 
Color: Light to dark green. 
Taste: Bitter. 
Balsam-pear, also known as bitter melon, is an annual plant which 
grows eight to twelve feet long. In some of the oriental gardens 
in Hawaii it appears as a dense matlike covering of green foliage 
grown in long, vertical rows with newspaper envelopes attached 
here and there. The envelopes are used to protect the young melons 
from the attacks of the melon flies. 
The balsam-pear is picked for the market before maturing. The 
fruit, however, is at its best when it is beginning to ripen. The 
interior of the melon is pithy and has many flat seeds in pulplike 
coverings. The seeds are white to brown, with a peculiar pattern 
on the surface, depending on the degree of ripeness. The rind is 
bright yellow to orange, and the pulplike seed covering becomes 
bright red at maturity. 
To prepare for chop suey. — Slice two medium-sized balsam-pears 
lengthwise and remove pulp and seeds. Wash pears and cut in 
%-inch slices; then place them in boiling water for five minutes; 
drain. Slice thinly one-half pound lean beef and mix with 1 tea- 
spoon flour or cornstarch. Put in heated pot or frying pan iy 2 
teaspoons peanut oil, a little salt, some soy sauce, and 1 slice ginger. 
Add the meat and fry for about one minute ; then remove from the 
container. Fry the boiled vegetable separately for another minute, 
then mix with the cooked beef, adding enough water to make gravy. 
Cook one-half minute and serve. 
To stuff. — Cut two large balsam-pears crosswise in 2-inch lengths; 
remove pulp and seeds with handle of spoon and wash. Run 
one-half pound finely chopped lean pork through meat grinder. 
Wash 2 teaspoons small, dried, shelled shrimps and run through 
grinder. Mix shrimps and pork and again run through grinder. 
Soak three soda crackers in cold water, then mix them with a little 
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