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Kudzu root, rice bean and hyacinth bean soup with dace

Name: Kudzu root, rice bean and hyacinth bean soup with dace
Cook time: 2 h
Total time: 2 h
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Cantonese
Ingredients: Kudzu root 600 g (1 catty); Rice bean 60 g (2 taels, as given in the source); White hyacinth bean 60 g (2 taels, as given in the source); Mud carp 1, about 400 g; Lean pork 300 g; Carrot 1; Candied honey date 3; Aged dried tangerine peel 1 piece; Fresh ginger 3 slices

粉葛赤小豆扁豆鯪魚湯

clears heatdispels dampnesscools internal firestrengthens the spleenrelaxes sinews and jointspromotes water metabolismSpringAll year slow-boiled · 2 hours

“The pot for damp weather.”

Ingredientsone pot, serves 4

街市Kudzu root· cut into pieces with the skin on. Boiling it with the skin is traditionally held to work better against damp600 g (1 catty)

百子櫃Rice bean60 g (2 taels, as given in the source)

百子櫃White hyacinth bean60 g (2 taels, as given in the source)

街市Mud carp· pan-fry until fragrant first, then put it in a fish soup bag; or use pork bones instead. Mud carp is not sold in Australia, so pork bones — the recipe’s own swap — is the steady answer; for the fish flavour, pan-fry a silver perch and bag it1, about 400 g

街市Lean pork· or pork bones300 g

街市Carrot1

百子櫃Candied honey date3

百子櫃Aged dried tangerine peel1 piece

街市Fresh ginger3 slices

Method

Soak and wash the 赤小豆 (small red beans) and 扁豆 (hyacinth beans). Wash the 粉葛 (kudzu root) and cut it into large pieces with the skin on. Wash the rest of the ingredients.
Clean and gut the 鯪魚 (mud carp), wash it and pat it dry, then pan-fry it in an oiled wok with the ginger until golden on both sides. Put it into a fish soup bag.
Cut the lean pork (or pork bones) into pieces and blanch (飛水, a quick boil to clean off blood and scum).
Bring 2 to 2.5 litres of water to a rolling boil over high heat, then add everything.
Once it returns to the boil, turn the heat low and simmer for about 2 hours. Anywhere from 1.5 to 2.5 hours is fine.
Season with salt and it is ready.

Who it suits

heavy damp
aching muscles
feeling heaty (骨火, heat in the bones)

Who should take care

people with cold, weak digestion (脾胃虛寒) who are prone to loose bowels should drink only a little
pregnant women take care (赤小豆 is draining and slippery)
people with gout or high uric acid should drink only a little, long-boiled meat soups are high in purines (general warning across this collection)

Soup stories

The archetype of the Cantonese damp-clearing soup. The 鯪魚 is pan-fried until fragrant first and then goes into a fish bag, so the soup comes out milky white and lightly sweet with no bones in it. HK01 notes that boiling the 粉葛 with its skin on is traditionally held to work better against damp. It is also taken all year round for 骨火 and aching muscles.

From the same family

Five-finger fig root (hairy fig) and carrot soup with pork ribs

Winter melon, Job's tears and lotus leaf soup with pork ribs

Black-eyed pea and tangerine peel soup with common carp

Lo Fo Tong is cultural food-heritage reference, not medical advice. If you are pregnant, unwell or on medication, talk to your doctor or registered practitioner before changing what is in the pot.