Malaysian Bone Tea Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Ingredients
1 lb
baby back pork ribs
8 c
water
4 tbsp
angelica root
2 tbsp
Sichuan lovage rhizome
1
head garlic, peeled and lightly smashed
1
cinnamon stick
1
star anise
5
whole cloves
2 tbsp
goji berries
2 tbsp
dark soy sauce
2 tbsp
light soy sauce
1 tsp
salt
1 tbsp
salt
8
dried shiitake mushrooms, rehydrated
Malaysian Bone Tea Soup
This herbal, pork-rib soup is made with medicinal herbs such as goji berries, cloves, cinnamon, angelica root, and Sichuan lovage rhizome—plants that are heavy with healing properties as well as earthy flavor. The soup is dark—almost like a steeped black tea—thanks to the addition of soy sauce. It’s also a favorite tonic of mine when I am looking for a magical elixir. The soup is widely popular throughout Singapore and Malaysia, where many chefs challenge one another with their proprietary recipes.
For a simple, nurturing meal, serve this soup (in a tea pot, perhaps!) along with a simple plate of wok-fried greens.
6 servings
- Place pork ribs and water into a soup pot, and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 15 minutes, removing the scum from the surface. Add the angelica root, lovage rhizome, garlic, cinnamon, star anise, cloves, goji berries, and shiitake mushrooms. Add the soy sauces, salt, and sugar. Cover lid and simmer for about an hour or more, until the pork is cooked and tender.
- Before serving, fish out the herbs and any residual debris with a slotted spoon.
Recipe by Danielle Chang