Recipe: Dried jujube and pork soup
Try it! It's umami and sweet!
A bowl of dried jujube pork soup. Source: ztore.com
If you’ve never had dried jujubes you’ll be in for a delightful surprise. These tiny little candies lend such a subtle, floral sweetness to the soup that they pair perfectly with the umami pork and even sweeter carrots.
However enjoyable its flavor impact may be though, don't mistake it for being only an accessory to the soup; jujubes are packed with a myriad of different antioxidants and nutrients, from sappoins and polysaccharides (which promote healthy sleep) to substantial doses of fiber (which promotes good digestive health) to the always beneficial vitamin C and potassium.
Jujubes have long figured prominently in Chinese medicine, and nowhere do they make more of an impact than this soup right here.
紅棗豬肉湯 (Red Date/Jujube Pork Soup)
Ingredients (serves 3 to 4 people):
-1 whole carrot
-2 lbs. pork shank/chicken
-1 candied date
-4 dried longans
-two tsp. goji berries
-4 dried jujubes
-1 whole chinese yam (shanyao, 山藥), or three pieces of dried chinese yam
-4 to 5 cups of water
Place the pork into a caldron of boiling water and boil for several minutes. Empty the water after you’re done.
Rinse and soak all of the dry ingredients for several minutes (dried jujube, goji berry, dried longan, and dried chinese yam).
Peel and chop the carrots into bite-sized pieces.
Place everything into another cauldron boiling water, and then let simmer for 3 hours.