Soup always have a prominent place on dinner tables in most traditional Asian households. I boil chinese soup very often, in fact almost everyday. My better half and I need to have a bowl of warm nourishing soup everyday and the day will end right :).

Soup, aids digestion and improves circulation and we usually have it with other dishes during our meals.

This soup is suitable for those who often stays up late at night, suffers from cold and chronic cough, and with weak body constitution. It is extremely flavourful.

My photo does not do justice to this recipe. When I manage to capture a better one, I will update. But this should not stop you from trying this recipe.

Ingredients:
3 apples
1 snow pear
3 dried scallops
5 taels (approx 18.9g) white fungus
1 tael (approx 37.5g) lily bulb
1 tael (approx 37.5g) red lotus seed
1 piece dried tangerine peel
1/2 catty (approx 300g)lean pork

Directions:
1. Soak the dried tangerine peel until soft. Scrape off the white pith and set aside
2. Soak white fungus until soft, rinse and set aside
3. Soak dried scallops until soft and break them into shreds
4. Rinse the apples, remove steams and cores. Cut them into pieces and set aside
5. Rinse the snow pear, remove cores. Cut into half.
6. Scald lean pork in boiling water for 5 mins without cutting into pieces (can also use pork ribs or chicken bones). Rinse and set aside.
7. Rinse lotus seed and lily bulbs. Set aside.
8. Place all ingredients in a pot with 3000ml of water. Bring to a boil over high heat.
9. Turn to low heat and simmer for 3 hours. Turn off heat and season with salt according to taste.

Using the Pressure Cooker
When I am in rush for time and can’t spend 3 hours simmering the soup, I use the pressure cooker. It is almost god send as it helps expedite the process.

From step 7, Put all ingredients in the pressure pot, add just enough water for amount of soup you want (eg: 3 bowls for 3 bowls, this is because with pressure cooker very little water is evaporated, they are kept as steam within the system instead)
boil in pressure cooker for 30-45 minutes.

8. Turn off the heat, and leave the pressure cooker alone until the needle drops indicating that all steam had been release before you open the cover.

Benefits of soup
Dried scallops nourishes liver and kidneys
Apple promotes digestion.
Snow fungus nourishes yin and moistens dryness
Lily bulb moisten lungs and clears heart.
Lotus seeds augments heart and calm spirits.
Dried tangerine peel regulates qi circulation and strengths spleen.