Soup Name: Chicken and Dried Longan Soup
Traditional Chinese Name: 雞湯 (jitāng)
Introduction:
This recipe results in a sweet, clear soup that is delicious and great to drink during the winter (cooler) season due to the heatiness of the longan.
What Ingredients are required?
1 whole fresh chicken
20 pieces of dried longan
1 tablespoon of apricot kernals
1 tablespoon of dried wolfberries
20 grams of dried yuzhu
1.5 – 2 L of cold water
How do I prepare it?
- Soak the dried longan in warm water until soft
- Prepare the chicken (see chicken for preparation steps)
- Start boiling your water soup
- In a separate pot, blanch the chicken and strain it removing any dirt and debris from the blanching
- Add the chicken to the boiling water of your soup
- Add the apricot kernals, wolfberries, yuzhu and pre-soaked dried longan
- Boil for at least 45 – 60 minutes until the chicken is cooked (tender and falling off the bone is best) and the soup has turned a wonderful brownish color
Any benefits?
- It is a great soup to regain heatiness in the body and warm your blood during the cold winter months
Any precautions?
- None, unless you are concerned about heatiness. Otherwise, enjoy!
is it okay if I add some ginseng to this soup? thank you !
Dear Trez, ginseng is perfectly OK with this soup. In fact, it’s probably an ideal combination with the chicken! Excellent suggestion. Lisa
dear im loving your site. im a pakistani who just moved to beijing a month ago. i wanted to know about chinese dishes and the different herbs i saw at the market but had no idea what its for. ur site helped me a lot. first i tried your congee dish and now this soup. both were loved by my family and frds here. thanks a bunch for the info
Dear Rubab, thank you! It was the same for me when I moved to Asia – WHAT IS THIS STUFF? But eventually exploring, asking and experimenting, has brought me here. Thank you again for your comments and support! Do let me know if you discover any soups I don’t have while exploring Beijing! Lisa