Lotus Root, Pork and Date Soup

Lotus root soup (Lingau Tong), an all time favorite in many chinese homes all over Malaysia. This soup is a regular and definitely a favorite at our dinner table. And boy oh boy, did I miss it when I was away in Australia. 

At the wet market yesterday, I managed to pick up a beautiful looking lotus root and since we had a bag of pork bones and ribs sitting in the freezer, I thought it was about time I had my favorite soup. You might think soups are a bother to make, but I will tell you this could be one of the easiest out there. And once its done, this hearty and heartwarming soup which bursts with flavor and will definitely leave you begging for more. Make this soup for your future mother-in-law, and you'd definitely be winner in her book!

"So how do you make this soup?" you ask. Do not fret, cause here comes a step by step recipe below.

What you will need 

1- 1.5kg of pork ribs or bones

1 lotus root (peeled and sliced to a thickness of about 2 inches)

1 large piece of dried squid

10 -15 pieces of dried Jujubes/ Red Dates/ hong zao jiu (红枣酒)

2 tablespoons of Wolfberries/ Goji berries

Soy Sauce

Some salt to taste

Steps:

• First, blanche the pork bones and ribs in hot water to get rid of the fats and scum.
• After you see all the scum rise to the surface of the water, pour it all out. You don't want any of those things floating in your soup because its not healthy and will make your soup murky.
• Pour fresh water into your pot and dump in the red dates, Goji berries, dried squid and sliced lotus roots, put the lid on, crank the fire up to medium heat and leave it to boil. I'd recommend that you boil the soup for about 3 hours to achieve maximum flavor. 
• Every now and then, try removing any fats or oil that appear on the surface of the soup to get a truly healthy soup. 

As the soup boils, your kitchen will be filled with the most wonderful aroma that'll make your mouth water

• After about 3 hours your soup should have all the flavors from the dried squid, berries and pork bones. Add some salt and soy sauce to your desire, give the soup a stir and turn off the stove.
• Next, serve it up in a bowl and tuck in!

Remember, don't be too fast to throw away the pork and lotus root left in the pot because the pork and lotus root should be really tender and perfect for eating.

By: Jasmine S(that's sister #1 for you)

❤