ingredients:
1 white fungus
4 drumsticks
24 red dates
2 tbs wolf berries (gou qi zi)
salt and pepper to taste
method:
1. soak the white fungus til soft (ard 30 minutes will do). Trim the yellow bits and cut into bite sized chunks.
2. Scald the chicken in boiling water and discard the water. (this is to remove the raw chicken taste)
3. Put all the ingredients into a slow cooker with 2 liters of boiling water. Cook on low for 4 hours (or on high for 2).
4. Season with salt and pepper.
comments: white fungus is supposed to nourish the lungs, wolf berries good for the eyes and dates...good for the blood?? Traditional chinese folklore is interesting..anything red..they will say it's good for the blood. ;P
oh yeah...and the secret to a 'sweet' / tasty broth is not too much water relative to bones....errmmm...say a chicken drumstick to 500ml or one kg of chicken bones to 2 liters of water. If you do not have a slow cooker, just use a normal pot and allow the soup to simmer for an hour or so. I think the time/ heat facilitates protein breakdown in the bones n flesh, releasing glutamates and impart the 'sweet' taste that is so charactistic of good chinese soups. The correct term would be 'umami' and it's exactly what mono sodium glutatmate (msg) tastes like..it enhances the flavours of the other ingredients and leaves you wanting more...glutamates also occur naturally in cheese, milk and mushrooms..and soy sauce...learnt something new today?? :)
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