Shark Fin Melon Soup

 

 

Ingredients (Serves 4)
600g to 700g of shark fin melon (鱼翅瓜)
4 to 5 pieces of pork ribs
1 small red apple
a few red dates
1 small handful of wolfberries
1300ml of water
salt and pepper to taste

Method
1. Blanch the pork ribs with boiling water. Drain and set aside.

2. Peel the apple and cut into small pieces. Set aside.

3. Bring about 1300ml of water to boil. Rinse the dates and wolfberries and add to the boiling water. Add pork ribs and apples.  

 

4. Steam the shark fin melon (with skin)  for about 20-25 minutes or till soft. Use a fork to scrap out the flesh , removing the seeds at the same time. Add the flesh to the soup.  

5. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 2-3 hours.

6. Season with salt and pepper. Serve warm.

Burdock Root Soup ( 牛蒡汤 )

 Nourishing Soup  

Ingredients (serves 3-4)
2 pieces of burdock roots ( 牛蒡)
1 small carrot
a few pieces of red dates
a small handful of goji berries (wolfberries)
2 pieces of chicken bones
about 1.4 litre of water
salt and pepper to taste

 

Method
1. Scrub and peel the burdock roots. Cut into thick slices or chunks. Soak them in water for about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

2. Peel and cut the carrot into thick slices

3. Rinse and drain the red dates and goji berries.

4. Bring the water to a boil.

5. Add all the ingredients. Bring the soup to a boil, then simmer for at least 2.5 hours.

 

6. Season with salt and pepper. Serve warm.

Salmon Belly Miso Soup

This is a quick soup which takes less than 30 minutes to prepare. Very flavourful with no additional seasoning required. Best served with steamed rice.

Ingredients (serve 4)

1 heap full tablespoon of miso

(amount and taste may vary depending on type of miso as some are more salty)

about 300g salmon belly

7g dried seaweed 

1 box of silken tofu, cut into cubes

1 litre (1000ml) of water

1 teaspoon of roasted sesame seeds

spring onions for garnish

 Method

1. Soak the dried seaweed in some water for about 10-15 minutes. It will soften and expand. Rinse and cut into smaller pieces if necessary. Set side.

 2. Remove any scales and bone on the salmon belly if any. Cut into bit-sized pieces. Set aside.

3. Add water to a pot on medium low heat. Add miso and stir to dissolve. 

4. Add seaweed, tofu and sesame seeds. Cook for about 8-10 minutes or till the seaweed is cooked.

5. Lastly, add the salmon belly and cook for about 1-2 minutes as salmon belly cooks rather quickly.  

6. Garnish with chopped spring onion and sesame seeds and serve immediately.   

Bitter gourd Fish Soup (苦瓜鱼片汤)

This is my mum's recipe. It is a quick soup which takes only about 20-25 minutes. Best with steamed rice and i always serve it with sliced chilli and soy sauce as dipping sauce for the fish. I used red greasy grouper today, you can use other fish like batang. 

苦瓜鱼片汤 ( Bitter gourd Fish Slices Soup ) 

Ingredients (serves 2) 

700ml water

1 block of  silken tofu, cut into large cubes

1 mini bittergourd, thinly sliced

1 big handful of mini tomatoes

1 large slice of old ginger

300g of red greasy grouper fillet, sliced

Coriander for garnish

Seasoning

Soy sauce

Pepper

Dipping sauce

Fresh red chilli, sliced

Soy sauce

Method

1. Bring 700ml of water to boil. 

2. Add ginger slice, tomatoes, tofu, and bittergourd into the boiling water. Bring to boil again and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the bittergourd is cooked. Season with soy sauce and pepper.

3. Slice the fish fillet and season lightly with salt and pepper.

4. When the bittergourd is cooked, add the sliced fish. It takes only 1-2 minutes to cook the fish.  

5. Garnish with coriander and serve immediately with steamed rice and dipping sauce. 

Peanut Root Soup

I cook this soup regularly for my children. The roots of the peanut plants are known to be very strengthening. Traditionally, many mothers believe that regular consumption of this soup can help growing kids grow taller and give them strong muscles.
  

Cleaning the roots is the time consuming part for the preparation of this soup. Soil clings to the roots and you will need to soak and scrub them. I use a toothbrush.

When you buy peanut roots from the market, it comes with leaves and stems which are not required. We only want the roots and peanuts. I usually buy about 800g to 1 kg (including stem and leaves) for the whole family. Adults love this soup too. 

Recipe adapted from The Healthy Family Cookbook by Cecilia Tan 

Peanut Root and Pork Rib Soup (serves 4) 

Ingredients
250g or more Peanut Roots (excluding stem and leaves)
250g Pork Rib
1 handful of red dates
1500ml Water
1-2 tablespoon soy sauce 
Salt and pepper to taste

Method 

1. Soak, scrub and rinse the roots many times to remove all dirt and grit. 

2. Blanch the pork rib in some boiling water to remove bad taste and blood. Discard water. 

3. Bring 1500ml of water to boil, add all ingredients and bring to boil at medium heat. Once it boils, simmer for about 3 hours or longer. 

4. Serve warm. The peanuts can be eaten, but they are rather soft. 

Hot and Sour Soup (酸辣湯)

This thick soup is my family's all-time favourite. It is rather easy to make. The taste of the soup varies slightly depending on the type of stock used. You can make your own chicken stock or use store-bought chicken stock. The heat comes from the pepper, ginger and chilli oil/powder and the sourness from the vinegar. My family prefers chilli powder to chilli oil. This is the chilli powder I am using currently.

Hot and Sour Soup (serves 3-4)

Ingredients
900ml - 1000ml of chicken stock
1 egg, lightly beaten with a fork
1 tablespoon of young ginger, thinly sliced
 
A handful of each of the following ingredients as shown in the picture below :
Carrot , thinly sliced
Tofu , sliced
Boiled Chicken Breast , shredded (optional)
Bamboo Shoot, thinly sliced
Black fungus, soaked and thinly sliced
Mushroom (Shitake preferred), thinly sliced

Seasoning
(Depending on the type of stock (low sodium or regular or homemade) you are using, adjust the seasoning according to your taste)
2-4 tablespoons Vinegar (black preferred)
1-2 teaspoons Sesame oil
Salt and pepper (according to your preference)
1-2 tablespoon of Light Soy Sauce
few drops of Dark Soy Sauce for darker colour
Chilli oil or chilli powder (according to your preference)

Thickening
1-2 tablespoon of corn flour + some water to dissolve

Garnish
Spring onion and/or Coriander, chopped
  

 
Method

1. If you are using fresh bamboo shoot, you need to pre-boil it first.

2. Bring the chicken stock to a boil, if you wish to add chicken breast, you can boil 1 chicken breast in the stock for about 10 minutes till cooked and set aside to cool before shredding.

3. Add carrot, mushroom, bamboo shoot, ginger and black fungus to the boiling stock. Cook on medium low for about 10 -15 minutes.

4. Slowly pour the egg in and use a pair of chopsticks to swirl the soup at the same time.

5. Add tofu and shredded chicken and then seasoning according to your taste.

6. Lastly, use a spoon to stir to dissolve the corn flour well before adding to the soup. Add slowly, stirring at the same until the soup is thicken to your preferred consistency.

7. Garnish with chopped spring onion and/or coriander before serving.

Butternut Squash & Apple Soup

I make this simple 3 ingredients velvety soup quite often as my family loves it. I always keep my leftover stale bread in the freezer and use them to make croutons for soup and salads.

 

Butternut squash & Apple soup (serves 3-4)

 

Ingredients

 

For the Soup

1/2 a butternut squash , about 500g and diced 

1 apple, peeled and  diced 

1 medium yellow onion, diced 

For the Croutons

2 slices of bread, cut into cubes ( best to use stale or frozen bread )

Olive oil

Salt

Oregano

Method
 

For the Soup 

1. Heat up a pot, add a bit of butter or olive oil. Sauté the onions for about 1 minutes till transparent. Add squash and apple. Sauté for about 1minutes.

2. Add water to cover the ingredients. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 20-30 minutes till squash is cooked and soft. 
 

3. Blend the soup mixture using a blender or a handheld blender till smooth. If the soup is too thick, you can add water to adjust to your preferred consistency. 
 

4. Season with salt and pepper.

For the Croutons

1. Heat up a pan. Add the bread cubes and drizzle with some olive oil. Sprinkle some salt and oregano. You could use your favourite herb too. Oregano is my favourite.
 

2. Turn the bread cubes over to brown the other sides.
 

3. Serve immediately with soup.