Canh (Pork and vegetable soup)

My mom made some of this when she visited several months ago and put the leftovers in my freezer. I was feeling a little under the weather one day and didn't think I could finish the whole cup myself, so I shared some with my roommate. She loved it, so I asked my mom to make a fresh batch for us when she visited again. My roommate happily declared "I could eat this every day!". It's so easy and is a great way to eat vegetables.

Ingredients:
2 lbs pork shortribs (ask the butcher to cut them small if possible)
4 cups water
4 carrots and 3 cheyotes (you can substitute with a bag of mixed cut vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, and carrot)
1/2 of an onion
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 green onions
salt, pepper
Cooked rice for serving

1. Salt and pepper the meat. Mince the onion and mix this in with the meat.

2. Boil water and add meat and onion mixture. Turn heat down to medium and simmer for 1 hour or until meat is cooked through.
3. Chop carrots and cheyotes into bite-sized pieces, about 1 inch. Add to pot and cover. Let cook for 1 more hour.

4. Add 1 tablespoon of fish sauce if desired, and top with chopped green onion and fresh cracked black pepper.

5. Serve hot with rice!

Edit: I just made this with pork neck instead of short ribs and zucchini instead of cheyote, and it turned out great! Pork neck gives the broth great flavor but is harder to eat. Even my meat-lover boyfriend said he didn't need meat pieces because the soup had so much flavor already.