The Soup Queen

I recently got to know of a simple recipe while browsing in the bookstore. This is very simple but very beneficial to everyone especially if you are prone to tiredness or generally feel out of sorts and need a pick-me-up that's gentle and soothing. It's a tea made using a Chinese herb called Huang Qi (which is a root). It is sold cheaply in chinese herbal shops as strips of dried root, sliced thinly. Just put some into a liter of water, bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. That's it. Sip throughout the day. Despite the simplicity of this drink (which you can drink throughout the day), this herb is full of health benefits (In English it is known as milk vetch root). It is a herb that helps with your Qi, Spleen, Blood and Stomach. I read that it is also good for the Heart. It is used to tonify one's defensive Qi and as such, drinking huang qi tea helps to boost one's immune system. If you are prone to colds (it means your lungs are weak), Huang Qi is the herb ...

We Chinese pay particular attention to the yin and yang balance of our bodies. Our concept of eating has to be balanced with the changes in weather. Although in Malaysia , the weather is tropical all year round and we don’t experience snow or fall, the fluctuations between hot, humid and warm can take a toll on how we feel and taxes our bodies too. It must be global warming because the weather in Penang right now is very hot! The mornings start off extremely warm and the heat increases during noon . My skin literally burns when I get out into the sun. It’s a searing heat that can be quite lethal. The sun keeps this dry heat going on the whole day until dusk sets. When evenings come, the day’s heat has become heavy rain clouds, pregnant with rain and thunder. The evenings are stormy and rain comes often. It is these two very extreme ends of the weather that causes many people to feel uncomfortable. Hot in the day and cold in the night. To combat this hot weather, I remember the...

This week I am going to talk about a Traditional Chinese Herb in the form of a root. We Cantonese call it “wai san” but it is also known as “shan yao ”. It is a root that is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine – dried white slices which are added to soups. It is also called Chinese yam, Japanese mountain yam and Korean yam ( Radix Dioscoreae Oppositae ) . The wai san that I usually know is in the form of dried slices which is not very tasty even though it has been boiled and simmered in soups. When I was in the wet market, I chanced upon the fresh version of wai san when I asked my vegetables-seller what this funny-looking root was. Here’s a little bit about this humble herb which actually is very good for the body. Wai san is an anti-ageing herb (that should be enough to get you scrambling to your nearest wet market in search of this root) and is particularly beneficial for the stomach, spleen and lungs. According to Alternative Healing http: //al ternativehealing.org/huai_...

This week, I made a super easy soup. This soup is beautifully delicious and soothing because of the natural sweetness of corn and carrot. Dried oysters are added to give more oomph or body to the soup. Carrots are a good source of betacarotene and good for the eyes. Definitely a soup for people who often work in front of computers. Dried oysters help increase milk in nursing mothers and is a blood tonic for those suffering from anaemia. To make this soup, you will need the following: 3 chicken carcasses 10 dried oysters, soaked and softened in water 1-2 whole corn, washed and cut into large segments 1 large carrot, washed, deskinned and chopped into large chunks 5 - 7 dried red dates to harmonize and balance the soup 1. Bring a pot of water to boil, around 1.5 liters. 2. When the water starts to boil, put all the ingredients in. 3. Let it boil furiously for 10 minutes. 4. Turn fire down low, place cover on pot and let soup simmer for 2 hours. 5. After 2 hours, add 3 teaspoons of salt a...

This is a simple and quick soup and can be ready in 30 minutes. Yes, it is that easy. This soup does not qualify as a slow simmered soup as it needs a fast boil. Very suitable for moms who are home late and need to whip up nutritious yet fast soups. This soup needs two major ingredients - matrimony vine and wolfberry fruits. Actually they are both from the same family! Matrimony vine leaves are the leaves from the tree which bears the wolfberry fruits (lycium chinense or L.barbarum). Wolfberry or "kei chi" or "gou qi zi" is a staple in many Cantonese homes/kitchens. I used to grow up drinking soups which contained these little sweetish red berries or what my yoga teacher calls "chinese raisins". They're also known as Duke of Argyll's tea tree. I wonder why! Wolfberry fruits are usually dried, wrinkled berries which can be bought from any good Chinese medical hall or herbalist. Quality berries are large and plump, not shrivelled beyond recognition. ...

This week I made pinto bean soup because my vegetable-seller at the Lip Sin market told me that these beans were good nourishment for the back. A small packet of the pinto beans cost RM2. I didn't know the name of this bean but a quick check online using Google and Google Images search did the trick. These pinto beans are white but freckled and part of the kidney bean family. Pinto means 'painted' in Spanish which is quite accurate as the beans are white and mottled. These beans are a favourite in Mexican dishes. Similar to other beans, the pinto bean contains iron, potassium, selenium, molybdenum, thiamine, vitamin B6, and folic acid. For me, I made these beans into soup. The soup is deliciously sweet and clear. The ingredients are: 1 packet of pinto beans (available fresh from your wet market) 5-8 dried longans 5-8 dried red dates 300gm of blanched meat/ribs 1.5 liters of water Bring the water to a boil and add all ingredients into the pot. Boil furiously for 10 minutes. ...

This is a lovely dessert for anaemic women especially for those who often feel dizzy. It is also good for women who have just given birth. It's basically a tonic for the blood. Men can also drink this as the two ingredients are good for promoting general well-being. Dried longan is warming but it is recommended as a titbit/snack for expecting moms. It also helps with people suffering from insomnia, forgetfulness and anxiety. It contains iron, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium, and large amounts of vitamins A and C. In traditional Chinese medicine, longan is associated with the Heart and Spleen meridians. It is helpful for calming the spirit. Dried red dates as I have mentioned before are a must-have in the Cantonese kitchen. It's a blood tonic and helps to balance or harmonize soups. The concept of Yin-yang balance is reflected in the way we cook. Remember to remove the stones as the stones create dampness and phlegm. Red dates replenishes the Qi, nourishes blood and reliev...

I hesitated in making this soup because white radish tends to stink up the whole kitchen when it is simmering. The stink, as one little girl admits, smells like very bad gas! But white radish or daikon makes good soups because the soups are very 'sweet'. When Cantonese use the word 'theemm' for soups, it doesn't mean they are sweet like sugary sweet. 'Theemm' is a single word which means a lot - it denotes deliciousness that's deeper; when Cantonese mention 'cheng theemm', it translates loosely as 'clear and delicious'. Anyway, white radish or 'lor pak' (in Cantonese)is purportedly good for breastfeeding mothers. If you add dried cuttlefish to the white radish soup, it encourages lactation. The white radish is also good for clearing heat because of its cold nature. As such, the elderly should not take too much of this soup. And if you are on medication or taking herbal tonics, you certainly do not want to drink this soup as white ...

Here are some links to Chinese related sites with a herbal glossary or index where you can click to find out about individual herbs. If you know any great site, please share your links too! http://www.acupuncturetoday.com/herbcentral/c.html http://www.foodsnherbs.com/the_superior_herbs.htm http://www.senhealth.com

This is a favourite soup of mine. It's clear and very soothing. And when you're simmering this soup, your neighbours would probably know you're having Old Cucumber (Lou Wong Kua in Cantonese) Soup. Old cucumber is actually matured cucumber. It has a brownish hard skin on the outside. It looks like a melon because it is fat and squat. My vegetable-seller tells me that the older the cucumber, the better it tastes! Many people shy away from using pork ribs for this soup; they prefer to use chicken thighs without skin. But I like my soups to be robust and flavourful so I tend to use pork ribs. Chicken-based soups taste completely different from pork-based soups. I am fundamentally Chinese in this aspect. Old cucumber is not only cooling for blistering hot days but is also good for the skin. I read somewhere that it helps to prevent aging! Now that's enough reason for us all to run to the nearest wet market to get some old cucumbers! Anyway, some people prefer to cut the cuc...

This is a super simple soup to make. Ingredients: A cup of black soy beans, washed & drained Half a cup of pitted dried red dates 10 pairs of chicken feet Blanch chicken feet. Bring water to boil in a 1 liter pot. Put in all 3 ingredients. Let it boil for 10 minutes on high fire and lower fire to simmer for another 3 hours. Add salt to taste before serving (I like to add a teaspoon of brown sugar to balance the taste). Notes: Red dates is a must-have in the Cantonese kitchen. It's a blood tonic and helps to balance or harmonize soups. The concept of Yin-yang balance is reflected in the way we cook. Remember to remove the stones as the stones create dampness and phlegm. I always buy pitted dates so it saves me some time in pitting them! Red dates replenishes the Qi, nourishes blood and relieves fatigue. Black soy beans nourish the spleen and kidney, and expels wind so it is great for people suffering from rheumatism.

This is another yummy soup to make when you feel tired or don't have much appetite. It is called Lok Mei Soup (Luk Wei Tang) because it consists of 6 types of herbs. You can buy the prepacked herbs from the herbalist or Chinese medical hall. And yes, it is even sold in the supermarkets. The 6 types of herbs are: Dried longan flesh Fox nuts Dried lotus seeds Yok Chok/Yuju or Solomon's Seal Wai San/Chinese yam or Dioscorea Lily bulb or 'pak hup' As usual, blanch the meat bones first before you put them into a pot with the herbs. Bring to a rolling boil for 10 minutes before switching to a low simmer for another 2 to 3 hours. Add salt when the soup is nearly ready. The soup tastes even better when it has time to mellow out overnight. Fox nuts are supposed to be good for strengthening kidneys, relieving leucorrhea (which happens to women)and strengthening the spleen, regulating blood pressure. It is even believed to help if you have numbness and aching near waist and knees....

OK, this is not exactly a simmered soup. This soup is so easy to make that it's a laugh. It's almost plebeian. But you see, my husband loves this soup and if I am pressed for time, this is what I whip up. Fast soup. Tastes good too. Szechuan vegetable is a pickled spicy lump of vegetable that goes well in most meat dishes. If I do not cook it in a soup, I'd slice the vegetable and cook it with chicken and tomatoes. One important thing to note: Szechuan vegetable is salty and spicy. I don't like pre-packed ones which I can get at Giant or Tesco. Rather, I go to my neighbourhood Lip Sin market and get it from my trusty grocery woman. She tells me that her version comes in huge containers so they're tastier! But it is true. Nothing compares with her Sezchuan vegetable. I always think this vegetable is our Chinese version of Italian truffles! In fact, Szechuan 'chai' or vegetable is quite cheap! I don't have a photo of this vegetable but you can do a search ...

I know. Chicken congee or porridge is not exactly "soup" and thus, simply does not qualify as a post here. But, hear me out. The weather in Penang can be intolerable. The heat is on. Literally. I sweat oodles and curse oodles too. The rainy season - where art thou? Sigh. While Kuching rains almost every other day, Penang is the complete opposite. I just returned from a short trip to KL and KL is not as warm or muggy as Penang. In fact, I was caught in the rain twice for the 4 days that I was there. Maybe that's why I am feeling plain awful today. Flu? Cold? Whatever it was, my body wasn't up for cooking. Not lunch. Not rice. Oh no. The warm weather makes one lose appetite (or perhaps I've eaten too much while in KL. I practically ate half a roasted duck... only to realise that my uric acid must have shot sky high. That's why I came home and guzzled some apple cider vinegar quickly. Anyway, back to chicken congee. Congee is easy to digest and fast to cook, espe...

This is one of my favourite sweet soups! It is very much a dessert that can be taken hot or cold. Clockwise from right: Buddha Fruit, dried lotus seeds, dried red dates and dried longan. The Buddha Fruit or Lo Han Gua (actually I think it should be called Lo Han Fruit instead of Buddha Fruit) is a fruit from China that helps to reduce coughing. It supposedly aids longevity. You can read more about this amazing fruit by going to http://www.itmonline.org/arts/luohanguo.htm It is usually dark brown and very light. Its sizes range from as small as a golf ball to as big as a tennis ball, any Chinese medicine hall or herbalist would have this available. It's not too expensive either, about RM1 per fruit. To use it, just wash it and light crack it open. I use one medium size fruit for one pot of water (about 1.5 liters of water). Besides the Buddha Fruit, I use a handful each of dried longan, dried red dates and dried lotus seeds. The red dates are already pitted so it saves me time (yes,...

I know, I have not been updating this blog for some time now although I have been simmering soups! The weather here in Penang has turned mild - less sunny but a total 180 degree change. It is now rainy and cloudy! Not cold but a lot cooler. It also signals the coming of the Chinese Qing Ming Festival - something like All Souls' Day. Rains are more frequent and the ground is wet and splotchy each year as I make the climb (or hike) towards my great-grandfather's grave. So, news and weather aside, what soups have I been concocting? A few familiar soups come to mind. But one that I love for its simplicity is watercress and pork rib soup. It's great for clearing heat in the body and sputum in the lungs. I know that watercress is used raw in salads and sandwiches in the West but for the Chinese, nothing is more comforting than a bowl of watercress soup. It's also popular in Chinese restaurants and roadside stalls. Sometimes the soup is steamed instead of simmered over a stove...

The weather's becoming crazily warm these days. It's to be anticipated as the run-up to Chinese New Year, which falls on 29 January this year, is often hot and dry in Penang. The sun is really high in the sky and the heat penetrates through walls, literally! On days like these, I am reminded of my childhood where the day's menu would feature cooling soups and sometimes, porridge or congee. One of the best (and again, easy... if it isn't easy, it won't find its way into my kitchen) soups for warm days when the appetite is waning is a bowl of lotus root soup. Lotus root soup cures heat in the body, relieves dizziness and heatstroke. It also relieves constipation and improves appetite. Lotus root comes from the lotus plant, from which you get the beautiful lotus flower. You can also get lotus seeds from lotus pods. The seeds have medicinal value and often the dried seeds (with the green pith removed) are used in herbal soups. The fresh seeds can also be eaten ra...

Made this soup just the other day when I managed to buy some black-eyed beans (see pic on the left) from the Lip Sin market. My Hokkien is just enough to get me by in Penang so I had to resort to asking my husband to translate for me (he's Hokkien so that's not a problem for him!). The woman we buy from said it's called "pek dao" in Hokkien. Anyway, black-eyed peas or beans (or known as cow peas sometimes), whichever way you call it, is an easy and digestable type of bean very much suitable for the elderly and the young. It's considered neutral in terms of yin and yang (some are considered 'warming' or 'cooling' and therefore certain people with certain body constitutions might react to the food). They are also a good source of fiber and helps to get rid of cholesterol in the body. As with all beans, they are also a good source of folate, potassium, copper, phosporous and manganese. Plus I heard that these beans help reduce blood pressure. Well...

For the Cantonese, there is a firm difference between 10-minute soups and 4-hour soups. 10 minute soups are not encouraged but it makes it easy for harried homemakers to quickly boil a pot of soup for dinner. That's why in terms of semantics Cantonese call it "kwen tong" = boil soup. The 4-hour soups are real soups. Full of goodness because of the 4 hours of simmering the soup over a low fire. We call it "pow tong" = simmered soup. There is a major difference between "kwen tong" and "pow tong". It's in the taste. Soup connoisseurs might turn their noses up at 10 minute soups but sometimes, when I am in a rush, I would not mind a bowl of boiled soup. Boiled soups are usually for vegetables where they do not need much boiling or they'll wilt completely. Simmered soups are usually for herbs where a longer simmering time allows the full extraction of their goodness. And then there is "thun tong" or double-boiled soups. This is e...