Ingredient Name: Duck Gizzards Traditional Chinese Name: 鴨腎 What is this? An organ found in the digestive track of certain birds, reptiles, fish and other creatures It is used to grind up food during digestion The gizzard is hard and small and made up primarily of membrane more than muscle The taste of gizzard… Continue reading Duck Gizzards
Watercress
Ingredient Name: Watercress Traditional Chinese Name: 西洋菜 (xīyáng cài) A very popular vegetable used to remove excess heatiness in the body. It’s a versitile plant with uses in a variety of cultures. The one thing that I hate about this plant is the high level of bugs you can find in them. When boiled in… Continue reading Watercress
Wolfberries (Dried)
Ingredient Name: Wolfberry (also known as goji berry, barbary matrimony vine, bocksdorn, Duke of Argyll’s tea tree, red medlar or matrimony vine) Traditional Chinese Name: 杞子(gǒuqǐzi) This ingredient is also a must have in your soup pantry. It is used in soups, stews, porridge, sweet soups, teas and a variety of Chinese dishes. My mom will… Continue reading Wolfberries (Dried)
Apricot Kernals
Ingredient Name: Sweet-bitter Apricot Kernals (also known as bitter almonds or apricot almonds) Traditional Chinese Name: 南北杏 (nán běi xìng) This ingredient is also a must have in your soup pantry. It’s used in a variety of soups that help relieve heatiness and are good for coughs. You can also use this in a few sweet soups,… Continue reading Apricot Kernals
Hawthorn (Dried)
Ingredient Name: Chinese Hawthorn Fruit (Dried) also known as Crataegus Traditional Chinese Name: 山楂 (shānzhā) My mom is a big fan of drinking this as a sweet soup. The Chinese also drink this by the bucket load while doing hot pot as it relieves heatiness and helps with digestion. My children love to… Continue reading Hawthorn (Dried)
Ox-Tail (Fresh)
Ingredient Name: Oxtail (Fresh) Traditional Chinese Name: 牛尾 (niu wei) What is this? Also known as beef tail, it is a bony, gelatinous meat, and is usually slow-cooked, often stewed or braised. It is a good stock base for a soup. The oxtail is usually skinned and cut into short lengths for sale They usually come with… Continue reading Ox-Tail (Fresh)
Euryale Ferox (or Fox Nuts)
Ingredient Name: Euryale Ferox, Fox Nuts, Foxnuts, Makhana, or Gorgon Plant Traditional Chinese Name: 芡實 (qiàn shí ) What is this? The white starchy seeds are produced from a flowering plant in the water lily family The plant grows in water, with large, round leaves and purple flowers Each flower pod contains around 8-12… Continue reading Euryale Ferox (or Fox Nuts)
Lotus Seeds
Ingredient Name: Lotus Seeds Traditional Chinese Name: 蓮子(lián zi) What is this? Dried lotus seeds (also known as lotus nuts) are the interior of the lotus plant There are two types of commercial lotus seeds: Brown peel (pictured above) or white (pictured below) They are usually cored or split in half in order to remove… Continue reading Lotus Seeds
Onions (Fresh)
Ingredient Name: Onions (Fresh) Traditional Chinese Name: 洋蔥 (yáng cōng) What is this? The onion is a vegetable It is virtually found in dishes and recipes in every culture around the world Onions come in a variety of sizes (small ones are called shallots) and colours (like the red or yellow onion) Onions are durable… Continue reading Onions (Fresh)
Bok Choy (Dried)
Ingredient Name: Bok Choy (Dried) or Chinese Cabbage Traditional Chinese Name: 菜乾 (cài gān) What is this? Bok Choy is part of the cabbage family and is often called chinese cabbage It has thick, white stalks and dark green leaves that have a round shape Drying the bok choy dates back from Chinese history as… Continue reading Bok Choy (Dried)