Old Cucumber and Carrots in Pork Broth

Old Cucumber and Carrots in Pork Broth

Old Cucumber and Carrots in Pork Broth

Soup Name:

Old Cucumber and Carrots in Pork Broth

Traditional Chinese Name:

老黃瓜胡蘿蔔湯 (lǎo huáng guā hú luóbo tāng)

This soup is slightly cooling in nature, sweet to taste, and helps clear excess water from the body.

 

For videos, visit us on YouTube.

Another soup for the damp, wet spring season! You’ll find a recurring theme within Spring soups, mainly consisting of an assortment of beans and certain vegetables that are diuretic. This is a simple soup with a pretty strong “bean” taste – so use less beans if it’s for kids. Mine found it a bit too “beany” and didn’t really like it that much. Consider adding corn to sweeten it up, but the adults lapped it up. It’s an easy to drink soup that is excellent for our health during this time of the year, especially when it’s wet and humid. You can also use chayotes, onions and fish for variation.

What’s involved?

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 2 hours

Total time: 2 hours 10 mins

Serves: 8 bowls

Ingredients
Cooking Instructions
  1. In a small pot of boiling water, blanch your pork for 5 minutes. Scoop out and rinse of any excess foam.
  2. Start boiling your soup water.
  3. Prepare old cucumber and carrots. Keep the peel for the old cucumber to prevent disintegration.
  4. Soak the dried tangerine peel in warm water for 5 minutes and with a sharp knife, scrape the outer peel (where it’s darker in color) to remove the outer layer of the skin (which is most bitter).
  5. When you soup water boils, add all the ingredients together
  6. Boil on high for 30 minutes and reduce to a medium boil for another 1.5 hours.
  7. Salt to taste – enjoy!
Any benefits?
  • This soup is perfect for Spring or humid conditions when there is a lot of moisture in the body
  • It is great for clearing damp heat since it’s cooling in nature
  • Fit for the whole family, this soup eats like a meal!

For videos, visit us on YouTube.

EQUIPMENT USED

To answer your questions on what equipment I'm using, I've built a section here where you can find and explore what I'm using to make soups.  Ingredients are a little harder, but I will do my best as I source them around.  However, you can always message me on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or Facebook, and I will reply and try to point you in some direction!  

A great help for fish or small bones in soups, including small ingredients such as barley, fox nuts, spices just to keep everything together.

A MUST HAVE in the kitchen!  Energy saving, cost effective, and perfect for busy chefs!  Check out my article here that explains it.

Another MUST HAVE in the kitchen for soups!  It's so fine that it will scoop off the top oil and foam layer when using meats in your soup!

I use these types of stove top safe tea pots to make most of my herbal teas!

EXPLORE MORE

Did you know rice water is amazing for your skin?

Did you know rice water is amazing for your skin? Integrate it into your skincare routine today! Rice is known to be antiaging, anti-inflammatory, whitening, photoprotective, and moisturizing!One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang...

Amazing soup making and kitchenware on Temu! Come unpack with me!

AMAZING SOUP MAKING AND KITCHENWARE FINDS on TEMU!I've recently discovered Temu and the shopping experience is AMAZING!  Their kitchenware, soup making, and cooking equipment is vast, affordable, and some innovation products!  Come explore haul #1 with me.  I've...

Post run wind expelling and lung healing Chinese tea

Tea Name: Post run wind expelling and lung healing Chinese tea Traditional Chinese Name: 红枣甘草羅漢果薑茶 (hóng zǎo gān cǎo luó hàn guǒ jiāng chá) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and slightly bitter For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.The tea is warming!  It's got...

Is your fish too fishy for soups? How to use fish in Chinese soups

Is your FISH too fishy for your soup?  HERE's How to use Fish in CHINESe SOUPS Thank you for your questions!  These make great topics for me to explore further and share my love of making soups and the best way to do it!  So if you have any comments or questions, or...

Sweet and sour snow fungus and cucumber salad

Tea Name: Sweet and sour snow fungus and cucumber salad (with garlic and red dates and goji berries) in a tart delightful mirin vinegrette dressing Nature:  Slightly warming (due to the garlic, red dates, and vinegar) Taste: Sweet and sour For more videos, you can...

Post run wind expelling and lung healing Chinese tea

Tea Name: Post run wind expelling and lung healing Chinese tea Traditional Chinese Name: 红枣甘草羅漢果薑茶 (hóng zǎo gān cǎo luó hàn guǒ jiāng chá) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and slightly bitter For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.The tea is warming!  It's got...

How to meal prep Chinese soups in batch (for rice cooker or stove top)

I have no time! I still want delicious Chinese soup! I want something easy! You got it!  When I did my initial "experiment" on testing the rice cooker to make Chinese soup, I honestly didn't know what to expect - BUT... it turned out amazing!   And then, it got me...

Warming Chinese Herbal Tea for Menstruation and Menopause

Tea Name: Warming Chinese Herbal Tea for Menstruation and Menopause Traditional Chinese Name: 女士茶 (nǚ shì chá) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.This warming Chinese herbal tea is designed to heal, promote stagnant Qi in the...

Red Dates, Longan, and Wolfberries Warming Chinese Herbal Tea

Tea Name: Warming red dates, longans, and wolfberries Chinese herbal tea Traditional Chinese Name: 红枣茶 (hóng zǎo chá) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.This is one of the most common warming Chinese herbal teas available. ...

A Chinese Herbal Tea to Nourish, Heal, and Strengthen the Lungs

Tea Name: Nourishing, Healing, and Strengthening Chinese Herbal tea for the lungs (and cooling) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅漢果雪梨茶 (luó hàn guǒ xuě lí chá) Nature:  Cooling Taste: Sweet and sour (You can read this article on the impact on your body of different food...

GIVE YOUR LOVE OF SOUP.

FOLLOW US AND SHARE.

Old Cucumber

Old Cucumber

Old Cucumber

Ingredient Name: Old Cucumber

Traditional Chinese Name: 老黄瓜 (lǎo huáng guā)

Nature:  Cooling

Taste:  Sweet

Looking to build your Chinese soup pantry?  Watch this video on “7 Basic Chinese Soup Pantry Ingredients” to help you get started!

 

Thank you to a follower who asked about what “kind” of cucumber is an “old cucumber”!  After some research, it’s basically, the aged on-the-vine-regular-cucumber.

The key is to keep it aging ON THE VINE until the skin is a dark orange brownish hue.

Old cucumbers are usually yellow, brown, and orangey in color and have quite a thick and wrinkled skin (makes sense given that it’s aged).  The inner flesh is almost white, but slightly yellowed as well.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, old cucumbers are cooling and help clear heat and moisture, and eliminate toxins from the body.  They are best used in spring soups where the weather is damp and humid.

Generally, old cucumber soups found in the Cantonese cuisine are made with beans (yellow, mung, red, black eyed) or barley or lentil.  These ingredients also help dispel moisture and are perfectly suited as spring soups when days are getting warm and humid.

 

 

 

How do I prepare it?
    I will gently wash the outside skin with warm running water.  I tend to keep the skin ON when using old cucumbers so it doesn’t disintegrate as it softens in the soup.  The skin is quite tough and hard, so it does the job in holding the cucumber flesh together in the soup.
    Alternatively, you can remove the skin and cut into smaller squares for quick boil soups as well.
Where can I buy it?
      • In most Asian supermarkets, you will find this unique type of cucumber
      • In wet marts in Hong Kong, simply ask the produce vendor and they will point you to it
      • Be sure to buy large, firm and heavy in weight cucumbers
Where can I buy it and cost?
      • Old cucumbers cost around $20-25 HKD each
Any benefits?
      • Old cucumber is good for clearing heatiness (cooling effect) and has a diuretic effect
      • They help dispel moisture and clear toxins in the body
      • Extremely high in dietary fibre, Calcium and Iron
      • It is also a good source of Vitamins A, B6 and C
Any precautions?
      • Old cucumbers are known to be a “cooling” food
      • Women who are pregnant or menstruating should take caution when consuming this

EXPLORE MORE

Did you know rice water is amazing for your skin?

Did you know rice water is amazing for your skin? Integrate it into your skincare routine today! Rice is known to be antiaging, anti-inflammatory, whitening, photoprotective, and moisturizing!One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang...

Amazing soup making and kitchenware on Temu! Come unpack with me!

AMAZING SOUP MAKING AND KITCHENWARE FINDS on TEMU!I've recently discovered Temu and the shopping experience is AMAZING!  Their kitchenware, soup making, and cooking equipment is vast, affordable, and some innovation products!  Come explore haul #1 with me.  I've...

Post run wind expelling and lung healing Chinese tea

Tea Name: Post run wind expelling and lung healing Chinese tea Traditional Chinese Name: 红枣甘草羅漢果薑茶 (hóng zǎo gān cǎo luó hàn guǒ jiāng chá) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and slightly bitter For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.The tea is warming!  It's got...

Is your fish too fishy for soups? How to use fish in Chinese soups

Is your FISH too fishy for your soup?  HERE's How to use Fish in CHINESe SOUPS Thank you for your questions!  These make great topics for me to explore further and share my love of making soups and the best way to do it!  So if you have any comments or questions, or...

Sweet and sour snow fungus and cucumber salad

Tea Name: Sweet and sour snow fungus and cucumber salad (with garlic and red dates and goji berries) in a tart delightful mirin vinegrette dressing Nature:  Slightly warming (due to the garlic, red dates, and vinegar) Taste: Sweet and sour For more videos, you can...

Post run wind expelling and lung healing Chinese tea

Tea Name: Post run wind expelling and lung healing Chinese tea Traditional Chinese Name: 红枣甘草羅漢果薑茶 (hóng zǎo gān cǎo luó hàn guǒ jiāng chá) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and slightly bitter For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.The tea is warming!  It's got...

How to meal prep Chinese soups in batch (for rice cooker or stove top)

I have no time! I still want delicious Chinese soup! I want something easy! You got it!  When I did my initial "experiment" on testing the rice cooker to make Chinese soup, I honestly didn't know what to expect - BUT... it turned out amazing!   And then, it got me...

Warming Chinese Herbal Tea for Menstruation and Menopause

Tea Name: Warming Chinese Herbal Tea for Menstruation and Menopause Traditional Chinese Name: 女士茶 (nǚ shì chá) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.This warming Chinese herbal tea is designed to heal, promote stagnant Qi in the...

Red Dates, Longan, and Wolfberries Warming Chinese Herbal Tea

Tea Name: Warming red dates, longans, and wolfberries Chinese herbal tea Traditional Chinese Name: 红枣茶 (hóng zǎo chá) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.This is one of the most common warming Chinese herbal teas available. ...

A Chinese Herbal Tea to Nourish, Heal, and Strengthen the Lungs

Tea Name: Nourishing, Healing, and Strengthening Chinese Herbal tea for the lungs (and cooling) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅漢果雪梨茶 (luó hàn guǒ xuě lí chá) Nature:  Cooling Taste: Sweet and sour (You can read this article on the impact on your body of different food...

GIVE YOUR LOVE OF SOUP.

FOLLOW US AND SHARE.