Conch, Dried Scallops, Mushrooms Herbal Soup

CONCH (pronounced 'konk') is a common name for certain large marine snails. Conch meat has a mild, sweet clam-like flavor, and the sliced dried conch meat is exceptionally delicious in soups.  The meat will taste like abalone after it has been cooked for a long period of time.

DRIED SCALLOPS or Conpoy is a type of dried seafood product made from the adductor muscle of scallops Conpoy is a loanword from the Cantonese pronunciation of gonbui (乾貝, Cantonese: gon1bui³; Mandarin: gān bèi ; Hakka:gorn boy), which literally means "dried shell(fish)".Its taste is rich and umami due to its high content of various free amino acids, such as glycine, alanine, and glutamic acid. It is also rich in nucleic acids such as inosinic acid, amino acid byproducts such as taurine, and minerals, such as calcium and zinc.

 MONKEY HEAD MUSHROOM is called hóu tóu gū.in Chinese, in Japanese it is called yamabushitake and in Vietnamese it is called nấm đầu khỉ.  In traditional Chinese medicine this mushroom has long been considered a medicinal mushroom and a study on rats in 2005 showed that some compounds in the mushroom, like threitol, D-arabinitol, and palmitic acid may have antioxidant effects, may regulate blood lipid levels and may reduce blood glucose levels. 


DRIED SHITAKE MUSHROOMS  have a wonderful smoky flavor and a meaty texture. They are one of the most culinarily versatile mushrooms for their economical price.Shiitake are not only a delicious addition to just about any recipe, they are also a healthy one. These mushrooms are not only a source of high quality protein because they contain all essential amino acids, but shiitake also are a good source of minerals and vitamins. Having high fiber and few calories makes these mushrooms a close to perfect food! All these dietary attributes are part of the reason the shiitake mushrooms has long been a symbol of longevity in China. In fact, a growing body of evidence show that the health benefits of eating shiitake do not end at the mushroom's nutritional benefits.


STRAW MUSHROOM gets its name from being cultivated on straw that has been used on a paddy. They are also known as paddy-straw mushrooms and grass mushrooms Straw mushrooms are cold in nature and is especially good for summer, they clears Heat, benefits "Yin" energy and promotes the production of body fluid. They contain protein, fat, iron, zinc, various amino acids and large amount of vitamin C. They have healing function for hypertension patients and those with high blood cholesterol level. They have been used as an auxiliary treatment for cancer and diabetes patients.


WOLFBERRY is the most commonly used English name, while gǒuqǐ (枸杞) is the Chinese name,  has been used in China for thousand of years.  Wolfberry was considered as Yin and its health benefits, include strengthening the eyes, liver and kidney and nourishing the blood. Chinese people have been using wolfberry to make tea, soup, stew and wine or chewed them like raisins.


YUK CHUK akaYu Zhu (Solomon's Seal Rhizome, Polygonatum) nourishes Lung and Stomach Yin, Moistens Dryness, Treats dry cough, dry throat, irritability, and thirst. Also for cough with scanty, sticky sputum or chronic respiratory disorders with a consumptive cough.

The above ingredients are used to make a pot of nutritional soup.

Ingredients:

Dried Conch
Dried Scallops
Monkey Head Mushrooms
Dried Straw Mushrooms
Dried Shitake Mushrooms
Wolfberry
Yuk Chuk
1 whole chicken - cut into 8 - 10 pieces

Method:

Soak the dried conch, dried scallops until they are reconstituted.

Soak all the mushrooms.
Put chicken pieces in a pot and cover with enough water to cover the chicken pieces, bring to the boil and continue to boil until all the scums float to the top.  Turn off heat and discard the scumpy water and wash the chicken pieces with cold water.

Return clean chicken pieces to the pressure cooker, add in the reconstituted conch, scallops, mushrooms, wolfberries, yuk chuk and enough water to cover the ingredients.  Close the lid of pressure cooker and when pressure builds up to 15 lb, reduce heat to maintain pressure for 45 minutes.

Release pressure before opening lid of pressure cooker.

Adding more hot water(according to how many servings you need) to the soup and bring back to the boil.

Using a gravy separator, remove the oil from the soup.

Serve soup while it is hot.

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Snow Fungus Sweet Soup

Snow fungus, also known as white tree ear fungus, silver fungus and silver ear is quite similar to wood ear but it is white in color and almost transparent. Good-quality snow fungus has a pale and yellowish-white color. It is often used in soups and desserts.

White fungus contains much iron, vitamin C, calcium and phosphorus. The fat and gum-like protein in it is especially nourishing to the body. It is considered a good supplement to the body. Stew white fungus with rock sugar lubricates the colon and stimulates peristalsis. Thus, it is a mild laxative for constipation patients. White fungus is also said to be effective in nourishing the lungs, healing dry cough and clearing heat in the lungs. Those who have weak lungs catch cold easily. Eating stewed white fungus with rock sugar and red dates helps strengthen the respiratory system and thus, helps prevent cold.
But take this sweet soup before catching cold or after healing. Do not take it while having a cold

INGREDIENTS:
SNOW FUNGUS

ROCK SUGAR

METHOD:-

Soak snow fungus in cold water

Put soaked snow fungus, rock sugar and enough water to cover the snow fungus in a slow cooker and cook until snow fungus has turned soft and jelly-like.

Serve warm

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Cooling Herbal Tea

Chinese Wisdom..."When you are calm and stable, careful of attention, the celestial design is always clear,open awareness is unobscured;then you have autonomy in action and can deal with whatever arises."The Book of Balance and Harmony.Cleary, T. (trans.), p.3.

However wise we might be, it was inevitable that i will get what the whole family was experiencing - down under the weather. What i learned from my 'Ah Po' was, when we are not well, our body must not be balanced, and out will come the huge pot to make 'herbal tea'. She would ask me to go to Eu Yan Sang, The chinese medicinal shop to get her the concoction she wanted - i would repeat the names of the herbs again and again and strangely enough, everytime, without fail, as i stood in the counter and the guy ask "Ah Mui, yew mat yeh?" - I would just open my mouth and nothing came out - blank, not a word. Then i would be questioned from left to right, what sickness? how many of us were sick? etc, Watching him collect the herbs from the drawers marvelled me as he had never opened a wrong one at all and there were so many drawers that it was unaccountable when i was at that age. Another fantastic feat was seeing him pack those leafy herbs onto a tiny piece of pink 1 foot square paper - he was like a magician at work, fast and efficient - 'nah' he would say and handed me the nicely wrapped pink packet on a string - '20 cents'. A lot has changed since then, no more 20 cents, it must be at least 2.00RM and it comes in plastic bags.

Ingredients:

Pak Chee chao

Har Fui Chao(Zi Cao (Xia Ku Cao Prunella vulgaris)(Gromwell Root or Arnebia or Lithospermum))

Thong Thoong Kua- Candied Melon

Kum Cho - Liquorice

Method:

Wash and soak the herbs, remove the herbs from the water and throw away the water, this way you will not disturbed the sand and grit that have sunk to the bottom.

Put washed herbs and the remaining ingredients in a large pot, fill with enough of water - amount does not matter - the more water you have, the tea will only be more diluted.

Bring to the boil and continue to boil for another 10 - 15 minutes. Strain and take this drink for cooling purposes.

Use the herbs again and reboiled with more water, this consumption will not be as cooling as the first pot, anyway you need a lot of liquid when you are well.

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