Lotus Root and Rib Soup
Lotus root and rib soup is a traditional Hubei dish. The soup is boiled on a slow fire for hours until the meat completely falls off the bone. The lotus root tastes glutinous and also crisp. One spoonful of this fragrant and sweet soup will make you sigh at its perfection!
Lotus Root and Rib Soup
Lotus root and rib soup is a traditional Hubei dish. The soup is boiled on a slow fire for hours until the meat completely falls off the bone. The lotus root tastes glutinous and also crisp. One spoonful of this fragrant and sweet soup will make you sigh at its perfection!
Ingredients
- 2.5 l chicken and pork stock / 10.5 US cup
- 500 gr lotus root / 1.1 lb (we get it from the Asian supermarket)
- 1 tsp salt (or to taste)
- 1 tbsp chicken bouillon powder
- 20 gr ginger / 0.04 lb
- 4 cloves garlic
- 3 1/2 tbsp red adjuzi beans
- 2 1/2 tbsp blanched peanuts
Instructions
How to Make Lotus Root and Rib Soup:
- Peel then wash and cut the lotus roots into 5mm (0.2") slices.
- Bring the stock to a boil and add in the lotus root, blanched peanuts and adzuki beans as they take longer to soften.
- Remove the skin off the garlic and gently crush it using a flat utensil like a cleaver, then put them into the broth.
- Use a cleaver (or any other flat utensil) to slap at the ginger until it starts to flatten. Add it to the broth.
- Season the broth with the salt and chicken bouillon powder, bring it to a boil and immediately turn the heat to low-medium to gently simmer for 1 hour with the lid partially on. Skim the floating scum and oil every 10-15 minutes as it cooks.
- Note: If you are using a homemade bone stock, remove any chicken after it has softened. Generally this is about 3 hours after a low simmer.
- Serve hot as is!
Notes:
- Add pork bone in your broth. Not only will there be extra flavor from the marrow, you'll also have pork pieces to munch on as you enjoy the soup!
- Use fresh ingredients. Fresh root vegetables tend to be softer than old ones and more likely to absorb the broth essence.
- Resist overseasoning. The dish might taste bland after 10 minutes of simmering, but keep it on a low-medium heat for another 20 minutes, then taste test before rereasoning. You may be surprised at how much the flavor changes in a short period of time!
- All the dried and fresh ingredients used in this recipe can be found in Asian supermarkets.
- Our homemade stock calls for a combination of chicken and pork, but this recipe works well with more pork bones.
- Variations: Some families like to use cuttlefish for a subtle seafood flavor or Chinese dried herbs for added health benefits.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
