Fresh chicken (whole or half)

A fresh whole chicken — ideally a free-range bird — cleaned, skinned of excess fat and used whole or halved for double-boiled soups. Blanched and then steamed in a covered pot of just-boiling water for hours, it gives a clear, golden, intensely chickeny broth. The default base of coconut, fish maw and conch tonic soups.

TCM properties

Nature · warming　Flavour · sweet　Meridians · spleen、stomach

Traditional food therapy

In Cantonese food therapy chicken is used to replenish qi, warm the centre and, in tradition, to restore deficiency and essence — the archetypal base of double-boiled tonic soups.

Cautions — read first

• Double-boiled tonic chicken soup is not suitable while a cold is still unresolved (it is said to lock the pathogen in)
• Go carefully if you have gout (long double-boiled chicken soup is high in purines)
• Drink it sparingly if you are hot, dry and flaring up
• Taking off the skin and fat and blanching it cuts the grease right down

Preparation

Chop it into pieces or use half a bird, take off the skin and fat, and blanch it (飛水) to draw out the blood. Put it into the double-boiling pot and pour in just enough boiling water to cover.

Origin

全國雞場飼養（不可進口生禽肉，全屬本地貨） — Supermarket whole birds ~$5.50/kg; Asian soup-grade birds (pullet, old hen) $19-24/kg at grocers

Availability in Australia

Common at Asian grocers · A$5.5–24.49 / kg
Supermarket whole RSPCA/free-range $5.50–5.80/kg (Coles); Asian soup-grade birds $18.95–24.49/kg (Umall Aurum Fook Wong butter pullet 1.2kg $29.39; old hen 2kg+ $37.89)

Pairs well with