Pork Bone Soup with Lotus Roots and Peanuts

Purpose:

To stop bleeding and nourish blood.  To thicken stomach and intestine walls and fortify jing and qi.  To direct drainage of water and clear heat of intestines.  To nourish and lubricate muscles and skin.  To improve jing and marrow, and promote skeletal growth.     

Material:

Pork bones for soup （煲汤骨）                    500 g
Lotus roots (莲藕）                                      500 g
Peanuts （花生）                                           50 g
Salt                                                              some
          

Note:

Pork bones for soups are available from Chinese grocery stores.  These are bones (neck bones, shoulder bones, or spinal cords) with plenty of meat still attached.  You can ask the butcher to cut them into about 2 to 3 inches pieces if it is not already done.  Check to see if grocery stores other than Chinese ones have this kind of pork bones, as I am not quite aware of them.  The bones need to be boiled first in order to remove white foam and scum.  Fresh, frozen or dried lotus roots are available from Chinese grocers.  Dried lotus roots need to be soaked before cooking.  Peanuts with skins are to be used for full therapeutic effects.  If you just want the good taste of the soup, you can use peanuts without skins.  Lotus roots and peanuts in soups taste best when they are cooked enough to become loose and soft, so expect to cook for more than 3 hours. 

Procedure: 

a.   Rinse clean peanuts. Peel lotus roots and cut to about 1 inch pieces.

b.   Boil at high heat about 8 cups of water.  Add pork bones and boil for about 5 minutes.  Remove and rinse clean the bones.  Pour away the water.  Bring to boil at high heat another 9-10 cups of water in a clean pot.  Add bones, lotus roots, and peanuts.  

c.   Bring to boil at high heat and then reduce to low heat and let simmer for about 3 hours until lotus roots and peanuts are well cooked. 

d.   Add some salt to taste.  Ready to serve. 

        

Comment:

This is a tasty pork bone soup with an amber color, a light sweet taste, and a great aroma of thoroughly cooked peanuts.  The meat is ready to fall off the bones after cooking.  Both lotus roots and peanuts are delicious.  Stretchable silky threads can be seen when you bite on the well cooked lotus roots.  You can eat the soup right after cooking, or keep it in the refrigerator and eat later.  If you need to reduce fat intake, remember to leave the soup in the refrigerator for a few hours, and then take it out and see if there is any solid fat that can be removed from the top layer.  From my experience, these bones are usually quite lean, and there is little fat to be removed.  Microwave to warm up before serving.  Meat and bone soups always taste better when they are hot.

Lotus roots （莲藕）

 Peanuts （花生）

Pork bones for soup （煲汤骨）

Beef Liver Soup with Sweet Yam and Tomato

Purpose:

To strengthen spleen and enhance appetite; to nourish liver and improve vision.  This soup can be used as food therapy for weak liver and spleen, and deteriorated vision, and for dizziness, low spirit, poor appetite, dry mouth and abnormal thirst.
       
Material:

Beef liver （牛肝）                                           150 g
Beef tenderloin (牛里脊肉)                          150 g
Sweet yam （薯仔）                                        300 g
Tomato （番茄）                                              250 g
Ginger                                                             5 g
Salt                                                                 some
     For marinade
       Soy sauce （酱油）                                  20 g                                                                              
       Cooking wine （料酒）                            10 g
       Corn starch                                             10 g
       Salt                                                           5 g
       Sugar                                                       2 g
          

Note:

Like pork liver, the thinner part of beef liver has less large vacuoles (tubes which are tough to cook and chew), so choose to buy the thinner part if you could.  In this recipe, beef liver and beef tenderloin slices are to be marinated before use, so it is very important that blood residues be thoroughly removed by rinsing from the liver and meat.  Make sure the rinsing is gentle, so that it does not break the liver or meat slices.  The marinade in this recipe is a very good tenderizer.  It is good not just for beef and beef liver, but also for pork and pork liver - after treating with this marinade, the cooking time can be a bit longer without the worry of meat or liver becoming dry and tough.    

Procedure:

a.   Soak beef liver in cold water for about half hour, and change water 2-3 times.  Combine and mix even the ingredients for the marinade.  Set aside for later use.

b.   Cut beef into thin slices.  Quickly and gently rinse beef slices 3-4 times with cold water to remove blood residues.  Drain water as much as you can each time.  Cut beef liver into thin slices.  Rinse with cold water a few times to remove some white turbid material and blood residues.  Stop rinsing when water is clear and the color is light pink (no longer turbid or bloody).  Let water drain as much as you can.  Combine beef and beef liver slices in one bowl.  Add the marinade.  Mix even and let sit for at least 10 minutes.   

c.   Peel sweet yams and cut into large chunks.  Peel ginger and cut into slices.  Rinse clean tomatoes and cut into pieces. 

d.   Bring to boil about 7-8 cups of water with high heat.  Add sweet yam, tomato and ginger.  Bring to boil, and then reduce to medium heat to cook until yam and tomato are well done - yam is soft and the soup has a tomato flavor.   

e.   Bring back to high heat.  Add beef and beef liver slices.  Cook 5-10 minutes until beef liver is ready.

f.   Add some salt to taste.  Since the marinade contains salt and soy sauce, you should make sure not to add too much salt at this step.  Ready to serve. 

        

Comment:

This is a colorful soup with a light touch of sweet and sour flavor.  The liver and beef slices are soft and tasty.  Yam pieces cooked in this soup seem to cause no trouble for people who would otherwise have heart burn sensation after eating yam cooked in other ways.  You do not need to finish the soup all at once.  Refrigeration does not affect the taste of the soup.  Microwave to warm up the soup before serving.  I would definitely recommend eating this soup when it is hot.

Sweet yam （番薯）

Beef tenderloin （牛里脊）

 

Tomato （番茄）

Beef liver （牛肝）

Pork Rib Soup with Potato and Tomato

Purpose:

To nourish and supplement qi and blood.  To improve appetite and remove stagnation of the digestive system.
       
Material:

Pork ribs (back or country)                         650 g
Potato （马铃薯）                                          500 g 
Carrots （胡萝卜）                                        150 g
Dried squid （鱿鱼干）                                 50 g
Tomato （番茄）                                            25 g
Cooking oil                                                  1/2 tbs             
Salt                                                               some
          

Note:

Baby ribs or country ribs are both good for this soup.  The ribs need to be boiled first in order to remove the white foam and scum before adding other ingredients.  Use freshly peeled potato, carrots, and tomato.  Dried squids are available from Chinese grocery stores.  The quality of the dried squid makes a big difference in the smell and taste of the soup, so you must be able to select good dried squid.  Dried squids usually have a tightly attached white powder-like thin coating.  When the squid is turning bad, the white coating starts to turn pink; also, the comfortable aroma of dried squids starts to turn fishy.  

Procedure:

a.   Cut ribs into about 1 inch pieces.  Peel potatos and cut into large chunks.  Peel carrots and cut into large triangular-shape pieces.  Scald tomato with boiling water, so to remove the skin.  Cut tomato to small pieces.  Soak the dried squid with warm water (or cold water) until soft.  Use a pair of kitchen scissors to cut squid into strips of about 1.5" to 2" long and 4 mm wide.

b.   Add cooking oil to a pot.  Stir fry tomato until cooked.  Remove and save aside for later use.

c.   Boil about 9-10 cups of water with pork ribs.  When water starts to boil, use strainer(s) to remove white foam and scum.  After the soup becomes clear, add all other ingredients except the salt.  

d.   Bring to boil with high heat and then reduce heat and let simmer for about 3 hours. 

e.   Add some salt to taste.  Ready to serve. 

        

Comment:

This is a clear, delicious pork rib soup with a light orange color.  All ingredients contribute significantly to the overall great taste - starch-flavored, slightly sour and sweat, seafood-fresh rib soup.  After cooking, the meat is ready to fall off the bones, and potato and carrot pieces melt in the mouth.  The squid pieces are still a bit tough, but manageable and worth chewing.  You can eat the soup right after cooking, or keep it in the refrigerator and eat later.  If you need to reduce fat intake, remember to leave the soup in the refrigerator for a few hours, and then take it out and remove the top layer of solid fat while it is still cold (there is not much to remove based on my experience).  Microwave to warm up before serving.  Meat soups always taste better when they are hot.  This soup is good to eat anytime - as a snack or with a meal.

 

Potatos （马铃薯）

Pork ribs ready to cook （排骨）

Tomato （番茄）

Carrots （胡萝卜）

Dried squids （鱿鱼干）

 


 

Black Boned Chicken Soup with Danggui and Huangqi

Purpose:

To adjust and supplement qi and blood.  To nourish kidney and regulate menstruation.       

Material: 

Black boned chicken （silky fowl，竹丝鸡）     1 (400 - 500 g) 
Danggui （当归）                                               15 g 
Huangqi （黄芪）                                             30 g 
Salt                                                                 some 

Note:

All three ingredients are available from Chinese grocery stores.  Black boned chicken (silky fowl) have snow white feather and dark skin, claws and beaks.  They are usually cleaned and frozen, and sold in individually sealed packages.  Before cooking, the skin of silky chicken is a bit bluish, while after cooking the skin, meat and bones all appear black - to be more accurate, the skin is black, the bones has a partial coat of a thin black film, and the meat has a tint of black.  There are many varieties of danggui and huangqi, so it is better that you buy both herbs from a Chinese herb shop if therapeutic effects are important to you.  Silky fowl, danggui, and huangqi are highly valued ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).  Black boned chicken in combination with other herbs are often prescribed for gynecological problems.

Procedure:

a.   If you start out with a fresh chicken, you need to remove the organs first.  If you have a frozen one, first defrost the chicken, then rinse clean and cut into small pieces ( 1-3 inches).  Rinse clean danggui and huangqi.

b.   Add about 5 cups of water and bring to boil with high heat.  Add the chicken and cooked for about 5 minutes.  Use a strainer to remove chicken pieces from the pot.  Rinse the chicken clean.  Pour away the water.  

c.   Add the chicken and herbs to a clean pot.  Add about 6 cups of water.  Bring to boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 2 hours.    

d.   Add some salt to taste.  Ready to serve. 

        

Comment:

This is an excellent soup.  Huangqi has a sweet taste that goes well with meat, while danggui has a special aroma that feels great when it is not too strong.  Silky fowl is famous for its delicate texture and delicious taste.  After cooking, the chicken meat can be easily separated from the bones.  You can eat the soup alone, or with a meal.  Eat the meat and drink the soup.  Some people also eat cooked danggui and huangqi.  My suggestion is that you can eat them if you find them tasteful; but you are not wasting much if you just discard them.  The useful components of the herbs have gone into the soup after such a long period of cooking.
 

Silky fowl （竹丝鸡）

Danggui （当归）

Huangqi （黄芪）

Black boned Chicken （竹丝鸡）

Pork Heart Soup with Dried Longan Fruits

Purpose:

To heal weak qi of the spleen and lungs; to benefit qi and blood; to nourish the heart and calm the spirit.  This soup can be used as food therapy for sleepless dreams, heart murmur, weakness and low spirit, and insomnia due to weakness and disturbance.  It is useful for patients who have thready and weak pulses and white furred tongues with a slightly red tongue proper.       

Material:

Pork heart （猪心）                                        1 (about 300 g)
Dried longan fruits （龙眼干）                        30 g 
Dangshen （党参）                                         30 g 
Dried red dates （红枣）                                 5
Salt                                                               some
          

Note:

All the four main ingredients are available from Chinese grocery stores.  Longan fruits grow only in tropical or subtropical climates - southern China or south eastern Asia.  Freeze-dried longan fruits have a lighter color than sun-dried or oven-dried.  Dried red dates are produced mostly in northern China.  There are many varieties of dangshen; for better therapeutic effects, you might want to buy this herb from a Chinese herb shop.  All these three ingredients are revered nourishing herbs.  Pork heart is considered as neutral and sweet, and has a calming and sedating effect.  

Procedure:

a.   Remove fatty tissues from the pork heart, and cut into about 1 inch pieces.  Rinse clean dried longan fruits, dried red dates, and dangshen.

b.   Put the pork heart into a pot.  Add about 5 cups of water and bring to boil with high heat.  Remove foam and scum if there is any.  Add the herbs.  Bring to boil.  Reduce heat to simmer for 2 hours.    

c.   Add some salt to taste.  Ready to serve. 

        

Comment:

This is a soup with an amber color and a sweet  taste.  It is easy to imagine that pork heart muscles are somewhat tough since the heart serves as a pump to push blood circulation.  After cooking, the meat is slightly chewy, but already quite manageable.  Cooked longan fruits and red dates are edible.  Some people also eat cooked dangshen.  My suggestion is that you can eat it if you find dangshen tasteful; but you are not wasting much if you do not eat it.  The useful components of dangshen have already been extracted into the soup after such a long period of cooking together with other ingredients. 

Dried longan fruits（龙眼）

Pork heart （猪心）

Dangshen（党参）

Dried red dates（红枣）

About Soups - Part one

Many people love soups, especially soups prepared by our love ones - soups at the dinner table that bring the whole family together for a warm and hearty meal.  Soups are comforting.

We are water based organisms.  We have and need plenty of water in our bodies.  Water is the main component of blood.  Water and blood bathes our organs and every cell.  Water carries nutrients to all parts of the body, and it also carries waste out of the body.  There is plenty of water in a soup, soups can be made in all flavors, and soups can be prepared with all kinds of effects and benefits.  Now, if you have the choice of drinking a tasteful soup, would you prefer to drinking plain water or some soft drinks?

Soups are wholesome, because eating a soup is drinking the whole soup.  The loss of vitamins or other water soluble components due to cooking: stir fry, grill, or baking, is not a problem for a soup.  If you can eat some cooked wholesome food - a soup, would you rather eat raw food for all your meals?  

Most soups in my posts are aimed at improving body functions and adjusting the balance of organs so that diseases would be cured at an early stage - at the stage that discomforts and early symptoms are experienced but true disasters have not happened.  In most recipes, there are herbs and some of them are just common spices and fruits, such as ginger, pepper, and dates.  Herbs and nutrients in the soup together provide the therapeutic effects in a very comforting way.  If medicine can be made so unobtrusive, so tasteful and delightful, would you rather choose something uncomfortable - bitter, hard to swallow, or painful?

Oh, soups are good.  I wish there are soups in my refrigerator to choose from when I get home after a day's work.  Yes.  You could have them.  These soups in my posts are not difficult to prepare.  Most ingredients are common and available.  For those less common ingredients, I always point out the sources and provide relevant information.  I also post their pictures together with their names in both English and Chinese - I hope these can be used by you in shopping for the ingredients in case you do not speak Chinese.  Some of the less experienced readers (in terms of cooking) might worry about the lengthy cooking time in the recipes.  Two to three hours or even four to five hours of cooking?  You might be wondering why, or how would you have so much time to do it?

I would discuss about why in a later post, but let me give some suggestions as to how to cook for a long time without spending a long time using a slow cooker.  A slow cooker is the answer - it is one of the modern cooking utensils that renders cooking soup much easier and simpler.  They are available in most department stores and are not expensive at all.  A slow cooker has a ceramic interior that is the closest thing to a clay pot used in tradition Chinese soup making or herb cooking.  Most important of all, a slow cooker cooks so gently that it does not need venting or attention - yes, you can take a nap or go shopping while a slow cooker is cooking for you.  How do you adapt a recipe to using a slow cooker?  First, follow the steps in the recipe until when you need to reduce heat and start the hours-long cooking.  At this step, transfer the soup components to a slow cooker, set the slow cooker at the highest energy level, and then cook.  The length of cooking time you will need using a slow cooker can be roughly estimated this way: if the recipe requires "simmering" or "low heat", you use the same amount of time; if it requires "medium heat", you use 1/4 longer time - that is for every hour, you use 1 hour and 15 minutes.  

In this hectic modern society, we need better brains and stronger bodies, and we have better equipment.  So, lets modernize our age-old art of soup cooking and enjoy super soups for our bodies and souls.

    

     

Pork Tenderloin Soup with Dried Scallops

Purpose:

To nourish yin and supplement kidney.     

Material:

Pork tenderloin （里脊肉）                      200 g 

Dried scallops （干贝）                            30 g

Green onion （葱）                                   some
Cooking oil                                             1 tbs

Salt                                                         some

Note:

Dried scallops are available from many Chinese grocers; some of the best quality ones are sold in Chinese nutrition supplement stores.  Depending on the size and quality, dried scallops are priced at from $10-20/lb to more than $500/lb.  For this soup, dried scallops at about $75-100/lb are good enough.  Refer to footnotes in a previous post for an explanation of yin and footnotes in another previous post for the concept of kidney in traditional Chinese medicine.

Procedure:

a.     Rinse clean dried scallops.  Soak in cold water for about 0.5 hour.  Clean and cut pork tenderloin to bite-size slices.  Rinse clean and cut green onion into small pieces.

b.    Put cooking oil into a pot.  Heat the oil and add about 5 cups of water.  Add soaked dried scallops.  Bring to boil at high heat, then cook at medium heat for about 0.5 hour.  Break up the scallops when they become loose.  At this point, the soup has a slightly milky color.  You can cook for a little longer if you like the scallops soft.   

c.     Add pork slices.  Bring to boil at high heat.  Remove white foam and scum if there is any.  Let cook at medium heat for about 10 minutes or until the meat is cooked. 

d.     Sprinkle green onion onto the soup.  Add salt to taste.  Ready to serve.

Comment:

This is a very delicious soup that is simple to prepare.  After cooking, the soup is slightly milky with a light yellow color.  The green onion add a fresh smell and a decorative green color to the soup.  The soup is good to go with a meal or to eat along as a snack.

Dried scallops （干贝）

Pork tenderloin （里脊肉）