The Soup Queen

Do you like mulberries? I find them rather fascinating fruits because they're a cross between raspberries (in look) yet with the tartness of lemons. My friend, Don, once offered me a tiny mulberry that he plucked off his mulberry plant. As we live in Malaysia where the weather is hot, the mulberry was prized indeed. It was barely red enough. It tasted tart. But I like tart fruits so that was all right.  When I was in Hong Kong last year, I managed to buy some fresh ones and they were much larger than the tiny one grown by Don. For about HK$15, I bought a box (see below) at the local Hong Kong evening market. Looks like a lot of fruits right?  Mulberry fruits or mulberry berries? Bought these from a market in Hong Kong. Don't be fooled by the overflowing basket. The berries are propped up by lots of foam! Sneaky HK fruit sellers prop their baskets with foam so that you just get a handful but it seems like a lot! I think that is really cheating. I'd prefe...

This is an updated post where I've added more information and photos. Sometimes it's a revelation to know that certain herbs I thought to be Chinese actually has been in use in the Western world for a long time too. Self Heal or Prunella Vulgaris - a great liver tonic! One particular herb called Self Heal or Prunella Vulgaris is just that. I grew up with this herb. Mom used to make Xia Ku Chao tea (a dark tea which looks just like Lo Han Guo tea ) for us when we were little. It helped to cool down the body. And Xia Ku Chao or Self Heal (flower spikes) is cheap and plentiful. With RM1, you could buy a fairly large packet. Just put this dried herb into a pot of water and boil away. Add rock sugar and you can drink it the whole day. For a robust taste, substitute with brown cane sugar. For a pot of 1.5 liter water, I add about 1 to 2 pieces of the brown candy sugar. Brown candy sugar is made from sugar cane juice. Available at all Chinese shops and herbalist...