Homemade Fish Ball Soup

Ingredients for Making Fish Balls:

1 Spanish Mackeral (about 600gm)

Solution A: 1 tbsp water + 1/2 tsp salt

Solution B:

100ml water

1 tsp salt

a dash of pepper

1 tbsp cornflour

Method:

1.  Clean fish, wipe dry and fillet with a sharp knife.

2.  Scrape out the flesh from the skin and bones with a metal spoon.

3.  Place the fish flesh on a wooden chopping board.  Pound the fish flesh with the back of a chopper until very fine, adding the salt solution A, a little at a time.

4.  Place the fish paste in a big bowl, stir in one direction under very sticky, adding Solution B while stirring.

5.  Take handfuls of the fish paste and throw it against the sides of the bowl till the paste becomes springy.

6.  Grease hands and fingers with a little oil.  Take a lump of fish paste and gently squeeze paste out between thumb and index finger to form small balls. 

7.  Scoop out the balls of fish paste with a spoon and drop them into a bowl of  water salted with 1 tsp salt.  Leave fish balls to soak in salt water for 1/2 hour. 

Ingredients For Soup:

Bones and skin of fish

Fish balls

1500ml water 

1 small head Iceburg lettuce

1 stalk spring onion, shredded

1 tbsp preserved radish ‘tong choi’

Seasoning:

1 tsp salt

2 tsp light soya sauce

Method:

1.  Pan-fry the fish bones and skin till golden brown.

2.  Bring 1500ml water to a boil, add the fried fish bones and skin and simmer over low heat for 1 hour. 

3.  Strain the fish stock into a pot and bring to a boil.  When boiling, add the fish balls and cook over a slow fire till they float to the top.  Add seasoning to taste. 

4.  Add ‘tong choi’ and shredded lettuce.  Sprinkle with shredded spring onions.

Kai Choy Soup

Ingredients:

500g Kai Choy (Leaf Mustard)

500g pork ribs

8 red dates, stoned

3 dried scallops

2 litres water

Seasoning:

1 tsp salt

1 tsp light soya sauce

Method:

1.  Soak red dates till softened, wash and drain.  Wash dried scallops.

2.  Wash and cut leaf mustard into 3 sections.

3.  Blanch pork ribs in boiling water, wash and drain.

4.  Bring 2 litres of water to a boil.  Add pork ribs, red dates and dried scallops.  Cover pot and boil over high heat for 15 minutes. 

5.  Add leaf mustard, lower heat and simmer soup for 1 hour.  Add seasoning to taste.

Pig’s Tail And Peanuts Soup

Ingredients:

1 pig’s tail

150g peanuts

15-20 pieces red dates, stoned

2 slices ginger

2 litres water

Seasoning:

1 tbsp rice wine

1 tsp salt

Method:

1.  Rinse pig’s tail, cut into pieces and blanch in boiling water.  Wash and drain.

2.  Soak peanuts in water for 1 hour and rinse.  Stone red dates and rinse.

3.  Bring 2 litres water to a boil.  Add in the pig’s tail, peanuts, red dates and sliced ginger.  Bring to a boil again.  Lower heat and simmer soup for 2 hours or until pig’s tail is tender.

4.  Season with salt and rice wine to taste.

Brown Marrow With Red Dates Soup

Ingredients:

1 brown marrow

500g pork ribs

10-15 dried red dates

2 litres water

Seasoning:

1 tsp salt 

1 tsp light soya sauce

Method:

1. Scrub the skin of brown marrow gently with a soft brush to remove any dirt. Wash and cut into 4-cm wide rings. Discard pith and seeds.

2. Scald pork ribs with boiling water for 3 minutes. Rinse and drain.

3. Bring 2 litres of water to a boil. Add in the marrow rings, red dates and pork ribs.

4. Boil over high heat for 15 minutes. Lower heat and simmer for another 1 hour.

5. Season with salt and light soya sauce to taste.

Bitter Gourd With Dried Oysters Soup

Ingredients:

1 big bitter gourd

500g pork ribs

6 dried oysters

8 red dates, stoned

2 litres water

few slices ginger

Seasoning:

1 tsp salt

2 tsp light soya sauce 

Method:

1.  Cut bitter gourd into half and remove the seeds.  Cut each half into big slices.  Rub bitter gourd slices with some salt.  Wash and rinse.

2.  Soak dried oysters in warm water for 30 minutes.  Remove grit, wash and drain.

3.  Scald pork ribs with boiling water for 3 minutes.  Rinse and drain.

4.  Bring 2 litres of water to a boil.  Add all the ingredients and boil for 15 minutes over high heat.  Lower heat and simmer for 2 hours.

5.  Add seasoning to taste.

Pig’s Tripe With Peppercorn Soup

Ingredients:

1 pig’s tripe

1/2 chicken, cut to pieces

300gm pork ribs

20 gingko nuts, blanched

1 tbsp white pepercorns, crushed

1 whole garlic bulb

3 slices ginger

8 water chestnuts, skinned

2.5 litres water

Seasoning:

1 tsp salt 

2 tsp light soya sauce

Method:

1.  Wash inside and outside of pig’s tripe with a handful of salt and 5 to 6 pieces of cut limes.  Wash till it is not slimy.  Wash and repeat process with salt and limes until it is clean.  When done, blanch with boiling water and drain.

2.  Bring 2.5 litres of water to a boil.  Add  the ginger slices, garlic bulb and blanched pork ribs.  Stuff pig’s tripe with crushed peppercorns and add to the boiling water.  Cover and simmer for 1 to 11/2 hour till tripe is  tender.  Add chicken pieces and simmer for another 1/2 hour or till chicken is tender.

3.  Remove tripe and cut into bit-sized pieces.  Return tripe slices to the soup and add in the gingko nuts and water chestnuts.  Boil for another 10-15 minutes.

4.  Season with salt and light soya sauce to taste. 

Chicken With Fish Maw Soup

Ingredients:

1 chicken

10 dried Shitake mushrooms

1 bulb garlic (do not remove skin)

2 pieces fish maw (about 30g )

3 slices ginger

1 tsp white pepper corns, crushed

2 litres water

Seasoning:

1 tsp salt 

1 tsp light soya sauce

Method:

1.  Cut chicken into serving pieces.  Wash and drain.

2.  Remove stems from mushrooms.  Soak mushrooms in hot water for 15 minutes till softened.  Wash and squeeze dry.

3.  Soak fish maw in hot water to remove excess oil.  Wash and squeeze dry and cut into small pieces.

4.  Bring 2 litres of water to a boil.  Add in chicken, mushrooms, ginger, garlic and crushed peppercorns.  Boil  over high heat for 15 minutes.  Lower heat and simmer for 1 hour  then add in fish maw.   Add seasoning  to taste.

Lotus Root Soup

Ingredients:

1 section lotus root

500g pork ribs

a handful of peanuts

20  red dates, stoned

2 litres of water

Seasoning:

1 tsp salt

1 tsp light soya sauce

Method:

1.  Remove mud from lotus root.  Wash clean and cut into slices.

2.  Blanch pork ribs in boiling water.  Rinse and drain.

3.  Blanch peanuts in boiling water, wash and drain.

4.  Bring 2 litres of water to a boil.  Add in the sliced lotus root, peanuts, red dates and pork ribs.  Boil on high flame for 15 minutes.  Lower flame and simmer for 2 hours.

5.  Lastly, add seasoning to taste.

Black Kidney Beans With Pork Soup

Ingredients:

200g black kidney beans

200g preserved turnip (‘Dai Tou Choi’)

500g pork ribs

10 dried red dates

3 tbsp medlar seeds

3 litres water

salt to taste

Method:

1.  Soak preserved turnip in water for about 1 hour so that it will not be so salty.  Rinse and and cut into slices.

2.  Soak black kidney beans in water for an hour.  Boil the beans with some water and discard the tainted water.  Rinse and drain.

3.   Blanch pork ribs in boiling water for a few minutes.  Rinse well and drain.

4.  Bring the 3 litres of water to a boil and add in all the other ingredients.  Bring to a boil again,  then lower heat and simmer soup for 2 hours.  Season with salt to taste.

Pig Trotter With Soya Bean Soup

Ingredients:

1 pig trotter

150g soya beans

3 pieces bean curd sticks

3 litres water

salt to taste

Method:

1.  Cut pig trotter into pieces.  Blanch in boiling water for 5 minutes.  Rinse and drain.

2.  Soak soya beans for 1 hour till softened.  Cut soya bean curd sticks into smaller pieces and soak in water till softened.

3.  Bring 3 litres water to a boil.  Add in pig trotter and soya beans.  Boil soup for 1 hour.

4.  Add in the soya bean curd sticks and boil for a further 45 minutes till meat is tender and bean curd sticks are soft.

5.  Season with salt to taste.