Wai San, Carrot & Red Date Soup

This is a soup that I made one day while trying to clear up leftover vegetables in the fridge.

I had half a carrot and some fresh wai san. So I made this soup which I think tastes infinitely better than plain old wai san with pork ribs.

Carrots in soups make soups taste a lot "sweeter".

For this soup, you will need:

1/2 carrot, cut into chunks

Fresh wai san, peeled and sliced

2 dried red dates, pitted

300gm of blanched pork bones

1 liter water

Bring water in a pot to boil and add in all the ingredients. Boil on high heat for 10 minutes before putting the lid on your pot. Reduce fire to a mere simmer. Simmer soup for 2 hours. Add salt to taste.

You must let your soup "sit" and have the flavours develop once your soup is ready. I noticed that if I immediately serve the soup, it won't taste as good.

Let it "sit" for 30 minutes or so before serving. The soup is flavourful and of course you must eat up the carrot and wai san - they're good for you!

Speaking of red dates, I recently managed to buy some huge dried red dates. They're about 4 times larger than most dried red dates and costs three times as much. I got these from my regular market where the herbalist recommended these to me. It is said that three dried red dates a day keeps one healthy with a promise of long life!

This packet of dried red dates cost me RM26. Below I compare the red date with a regular lime. See how large the red date is?

Comments

Goji Berry, Chrysanthemum & Red Date Tea

I've been making this simple tea for a few times already. Not sure if I had shared this before but all it needs are 3 ingredients - dried goji berries, dried red dates and dried chrysanthemum bulbs. This sugar-less concoction is good for health especially if you want to maintain immunity. It's even more important these days what with the pandemic and Covid-19. But it is also a pleasant brew - no boiling needed. All you need is a handful of goji berries (washed and soaked for 5 minutes in water), 3-5 large dried red dates and a teaspoon of dried chrysanthemum flowers (these are the small heads of flowers, not the usual type for making chrysanthemum tea). Put all the ingredients in a teapot and pour in boiling water. Let it sit for 10 minutes and voila, you have made yourself a healthy tea without sugar. It has a natural sweetness from the red dates and goji berries. And once you have drunk all the tea, you can continue adding more boiling water for a second b...

The Remarkable Nut of Nuts

In this recipe, walnuts and dried red dates are combined to make a healthy and life-giving dessert. And with honey added, it packs a punch. A truly simple dessert which is used to prevent the usual flu magnets - colds and coughs. It helps too with your kidneys and with bowel movement. Walnuts are much revered in Chinese medicine, not least because the nut resembles the brain! Again, the Chinese believe that walnuts are good snacks for children as they help boost brain power which is true because of the high amounts of Omega 3 fats (good for the brain). Walnuts are of course a good source of essential omega-3 fatty acids and in Roman times, considered the food of the gods. Walnuts are a 'yang' tonic and useful for toning up weak kidneys. It also warms lung Qi while acting as a laxative, moistening the intestines (hence encouraging bowel movement if you are constipated). Walnuts are called Hu Tao Ren (juglans regia) in Chinese medicine. Walnut & Red Date Dessert 150 gm walnut...

Corn Silk That You Should Never Throw Away

The next time you buy fresh corn still in its husk, you should never throw away the corn silk. Most people throw away the husk and silk, thinking that they're useless but I can tell you, corn silk is great for your body. Save the corn silk to make a healthy tea. Just place all the silk into a pot, cover with 500ml of water and simmer for 10 minutes on low heat. Turn off the heat and pour yourself a steaming cup of sweetish corn silk tea that tastes a little like corn. Corn silk or Yu Mi Xu is a natural corn fibre that is also used in Native American medicine. It contains flavonoids that give corn silks their colour and have antioxidant properties. I t is considered an important medicinal plant, able to induce diuresis and excrete dampness according to TCM. Corn silk is helpful towards Kidney, Bladder, Liver and Gall Bladder. meridians Therefore it clears damp heat, bloating, rheumatism, skin eruptions, gout, wasting and thirsting disorder, hepatitis, cholelithiasis, ch...

The Soup Queen

Search This Blog