Soup Name: Quick Boil Wintermelon, Lotus Seeds and Beef Soup
Traditional Chinese Name: 牛肉冬瓜熬湯 (niú ròu dōng guā áo tāng)
Introduction:
In a rush but still want to make tasty, healthy Chinese soup? There is this thing going around Hong Kong where people say that “old fire” soups aren’t always the healthiest thing. They can be heavy in ingredients and potentially an overkill on herbs, especially when boiled for so long. The latest soup fad? Quick boil soups – so lately, that’s all I’ve been making! This beef and winter melon soup is simply delicious, refreshing and super easy to make. You don’t even need the Chinese herbs to keep it simple, especially when you’re in a location where you can’t get them or they are not readily available. I ended up making this soup for lunch and used the soup base to go with noodles, perfect!
An Asian take on a Western soup, this is one of those perfect soups that naturally flow from a Christmas or Easter party (using the left-over turkey or ham bones). In this case, we had the ham bone (and extra bonus ham meat on the bone) and everything went into the soup and we boiled it up Chinese style. The soup was naturally salty and sweet from the ham and required very little to flavor it. We added carrots and onions to round it out and up the flavor and nutrition and it was good to go as a meal with a side bowl of rice. Easy peasy and delicious! If you are lucky, your ham bone may still contain some marrow which can add additional flavor and nutrition to your soup. Also great for kids; my 4 year-old loves this soup.
Soup Name: Night Blooming Cereus and Figs in Pork Broth
Traditional Chinese Name: 霸王花無花果瘦肉湯 (bà wáng huā wú huā guǒ shòu ròu tāng)
Introduction:
This unique soup is ideal for removing heaty phlegm and nourishing the lungs. It is best for those with pathological heat and fire in their bodies, which makes it ideal to be consumed at the beginning of the autumn season to help clear heatiness from the body from the summer. The soup is slightly sweet, very refreshing and creates a clear broth that is easy to drink – however it is an old fire soup and requires quite a length of time to boil.
A bean-filled vegetarian soup that packs a punch in proteins. With seven different types of “beans”, it is a hearty meal that is easy to make and light to drink. By adding a Japanese pumpkin, it makes it slightly sweet and refreshing. The soup itself is very clear and slightly sweet. You can also add other vegetables such as corn, carrots, and onions to make it an even heartier broth.
