Ginseng Herbal Chicken Soup

Ingredients
Serves 3-4

1/2 chicken*, chopped to small pieces and skin removed
40g American Ginseng “Beards” 洋参须**
1.6 litres of water
25g Huai Shan 淮山
10 red dates
1/2 tbsp wolfberries
a pinch of salt* (optional)

* You can also substitute with 1 small black chicken or 250g lean pork, sliced thickly. Skip the blanching part (step 1 below) if using lean pork. I personally prefer using chicken.
** If you are ‘scared’ of the ‘bitter’ taste of ginseng, reduce to 30g. Similarly, if you want a richer ginseng taste, you can increase the amount to 50g.

Directions

1. Blanch chicken pieces in a pot of boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Place the blanched chicken and the rest of the ingredients (except wolfberries) into a pot with the water. Bring to a boil, continue boiling over high heat for 10 minutes.
3. Reduce heat to a lower flame and simmer for at least another 40 minutes (and longer if you can). Add wolfberries at the last 15 minutes of cooking. You can also slow cook, or use a thermal pot (or whatever you have) to prolong the cooking (at a gentle pace) to bring out the tastes. Add salt to taste.

Kimchi Stew

Kimchi JjiGae (Kimchi Stew) 
Serves 2-3 
Ingredients:

• ½  Lb. Pork Belly, (OR READ the notes)
• 1 Tbsp. Garlic, finely minced
• 1/4 Onion, chopped
• 2 Cups Fermented Kimchi, chopped
• 1.5-2 Cups Stock/chicken, beef etc. 
• ½ Cup Kimchi juice 
• ½ tsp. Sugar 
• 1 Tablespoon Red Hot Pepper Paste (gochujang) or to your taste
• ½ teaspoon Hot Pepper Powder (gochugaru)
• ¼ teaspoon Ginger, finely minced (or powder) 
• ½ Cup Green Onions + 2 chopped for garnish
• ½ Pack Tofu, cubed
• Salt to taste
• Drizzle of Sesame Oil

Directions:

1. Cut the bacon into bite size or 1 inch size. Discard the skin if any. 
2. Preheat deeper saute-pan on medium high and drop the bacon in. After a few minutes, drop in garlic and onion. Stir and let it cook for a few minutes.
3. Chop fermented cabbage (kimchi) into bite size pieces, and drop in the saute-pan. Stir fry it for 2 to 3 minutes on medium high. 
4. Pour in broth and fermented cabbage (kimchi) juice, stir. 
5. Add red hot pepper paste, red hot pepper powder, ginger and scallions; Stir again and cook on high temperature until boiling point, then turn down the heat and let it simmer, covered for 15 minutes. 
6. Add in the stew cubed tofu, salt to taste if necessary and drizzle of sesame oil. 
7. Garnish the stew with more chopped scallions, chilies and crunchy bacon bits.

Serve it hot and with rice and other banchan{side dishes} 
Enjoy! 

NOTE*

• I am sure some of you don't eat pork. You can use instead: chicken, beef(ground also good), tuna or keep it meatless and use mushrooms as a sub. Most authentic recipe I would say uses pork belly, but you are more than welcome to use whatever is your personal preference. I like adding the pork, and smoked sausages (meat) with pork belly or smoked bacon. It adds so much more flavor. 
• As for Tofu, you can use soft or firm, it's up to your likes, you will not go wrong either way, but it is optional.   
• Also, you can add gochujang (hot pepper paste) and/or gochugaru (hot pepper powder/flakes) half the measurement that I added in the recipe if you cannot handle or tolerate spicy food. OR simply add a little bit at the time until you reach what you like. 

Origami Puffy Hearts

Minced pork steam egg

Chinese Pork Ribs with Daikon

Recipe: Chinese Pork Ribs with Daikon and Dried Oysters (白萝卜蚝干焖排骨)

Ingredients:

1/2 pound pork ribs
1 daikon/turnip (medium-sized)
6-8 dried oysters (rinsed and soaked in water for 15 minutes)
1 tablespoon wolfberries/goji berries
1 1/2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 cup water
Salt to taste
Sugar to taste
1/2 tablespoon oil
6 cloves shallots (peeled)

Method:

Heat up a wok or claypot (preferred) and add in the oil. Sauté the shallots until slightly aromatic, then add in the dried oysters and daikon. Do a few quick stirs, follow by the pork ribs, rice wine, soy sauce, and water. Lower the heat to between medium and low, and then cover it up with a lid. Braise for about 20-30 minutes or until the water reduces and thickens. Add salt and sugar to taste and serve hot immediately.

Cook’s Notes:

Apple Pork Ribs Soup

Apple Pork Ribs Soup 苹果猪骨汤

Printable recipe 

By Pig Pig's Corner 

Prep time: 15 mins 

Cook time: 45 mins 

Yield: serves 4 

Ingredients: 

• 500 g pork ribs
• 6 dried red dates 红枣
• 3 medium sizedapples (I used pink lady)
• 1 onion
• 1 dried honey date 蜜枣
• 1.5 L water
• 1 tsp salt (more or less to taste)

Directions: 

• Blanch pork ribs. [Place pork ribs into a large pot, add enough water to cover. Bring to boil. Once water comes to a boil, remove from heat, drain and wash.]
• Place all ingredients into a pot and cook under pressure for about 40 mins. [Or simmer on low heat for 1 1/2 to 2 hrs)

Prayer for Sleep

O heavenly Father, you give your children sleep for the refreshing of soul and body: Grant me this gift, I pray; keep me in that perfect peace which you have promised to those whose minds are fixed on you; and give me such a sense of your presence, that in the hours of silence I may enjoy the blessed assurance of your love; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.