Traditional Chinese Name: 冬瓜雞腳湯 (dōng guā jī jiǎo tāng)
Introduction:
The feet of the chicken are one of the Chinese’s most interesting “unwanted” parts of the chicken (after the bottom parts). It’s so versatile that the Chinese use chicken feet in soups, stews, dim sum and other dishes. I remember back in the days when I was a young lad that my parents would go to the Western super markets and get chicken feet by the bags for a whole dollar. It’s definitely not as cheap anymore because of the influx of demanding chicken feet eaters, but still an affordable, tasty and collagen packed ingredient. This wintermelon soup is simple to make and if you’re a single gal (or guy) you can make it in a one person pot. My husband really liked this soup and gobbled all the feet. Thanks for the clean up job, sweetie!
Amount serves: 5-6 large soup bowls (around 300 mL each)
Soak the gingo biloba and lotus seed in warm water for 10 minutes
Rinse and cut off the nails on your chicken feet
In a small pot of boiling water, blanch your chicken feet for 5 minutes
Remove chicken feet from boiling water, strain and set aside
Boil your soup water
When the soup boils, throw all the ingredients together
Boil on high (covered) for 30 minutes, reduce to a medium boil for another 30 minutes (you can continue to boil or use a thermal cooker to keep it hot, as some people love their chicken feet super soft)
Serve and enjoy!
Any benefits?
This soup is excellent for cooling down the body and heat from hot summer days
Chicken feet is an excellent source of collagen and is low in fat
Any precautions?
Women in their first trimester of pregnancy should avoid as it is an extremely cooling soup and may cause contractions (you can add more ginger slices to “heat” up the soup)
Melon soups are best consumed within same day as keeping melon soups overnight or over an extended period will make the melons sour (and so will your soup!)
Soup Name: Sweet Potato, Corn and Chinese Yam in Fish Soup
Traditional Chinese Name: 蕃薯玉米魚湯 (gān shǔ yù mǐ yú tāng)
Introduction:
This simple and slightly sweet soup is really ideal for kids and children. I originally made this as a base for a lunch (consisting of fish balls and macaroni) and the kids loved it! Soups are so diverse in that you can use it as a base for stews, congee, noodles and other Chinese dishes. Keeping it simple will allow you to diversify your “final” dish and get really creative!
Soup Name: Chinese Yam with Apples and Corn in Chicken Broth (with Ginger)
Traditional Chinese Name: 蘋果玉米淮山雞湯 (píng guǒ yù mǐ huái shān jī tāng)
Introduction:
A simple, clean chicken broth with just a hint of sweetness and a tang of spice (from the ginger). Depending on who your consumer is, add less or more ginger. For confinement, don’t be scared to throw it all in! This soup is easy to make, it’s got basic neutral ingredients and is great for the whole family!
What Ingredients are required?
1 fresh whole chicken, quartered 4-5 whole apples, cored and quartered 2 fresh corn, quartered 2 fresh pieces of Chinese Yam about 1 foot in length, peeling is optional, quartered 150 g of sliced fresh ginger (for confinement purposes) 2 L of water salt to taste How do I prepare it?
Clean, prepare and blanch chicken in a pot of boiling water for 5 minutes
Set aside to cool
Wash, prepare apples, corn and Chinese Yam
Slice ginger thinly
Boil your soup water, when it boils, add all the ingredients together
Boil on high for about 30 minutes and reduce to a simmer for 1 hour
Serve and enjoy!
Any benefits?
With ginger, it’s a slightly warm soup, but without it, it’s neutral
Pregnancy, confinement and child friendly
Sweet and fresh to the taste
Excellent source of Vitamins and hearty to eat
Any precautions?
For children, go easy on the ginger because that can really spice up the soup!
Be sure to clean, peel Chinese Yam with gloves as the outer skin of the Chinese Yam can make your fingers itchy (if you opt to peel the skin)
This simple, clean and very sweet soup is great for people with sore throats or heaty bodies. You can actually drink it cold or hot and it’s ideal for all seasons. I’ve decided to go meatless because I wanted to drink it cool and it turned out fabulous. Fat free, oil free and made with all natural ingredients, it’s great for kids and adults alike.
Any benefits?
Meatless soup is great for vegetarians and is fat and oil free
This is basically vegetables and water, but to think that a combination of the right vegetables can be so tasty! You really don’t need to add any additives such as salt, sugar or meat because it really is delicious as it is. Consider using a variety of vegetables as well, such as red beets (which I will try as a recommendation from a friend), potatoes, yams, Chinese yams and more. This soup is ideal for any age group, condition and individual!
What ingredients are required?
3 fresh carrots, cut into large pieces 2 fresh corn, cut into large pieces 1 whole Japanese pumpkin, largely sliced with skin 3 whole red onions, sliced 2 fresh sweet potato, cut into large pieces 3 fresh tomatoes, cored and quartered 2 L of water
How do I prepare it?
Rinse and prepare all vegetables and set aside
Begin to boil your soup water
When soup water boils, add all the ingredients together
Boil on high for an hour
Serve and enjoy! NO SALT NECESSARY!
Any benefits?
Oil free soup
Excellent source of protein and vitamins (especially beta-carotene)
Easy to make soup
Ingredients are readily accessible and available in most supermarkets
Any precautions?
Serve soup with tomatoes to children one year and older
