Only the pure in heart can make a good soup - Ludwig van Beethoven

Ms N wants a Cantonese soup recipe.

Most folks think they are really easy to prepare - just throw everything into the pot and boil for ages.

Well somewhat true. But there are tips and tricks to a pot of clear and robust soup. First of all, the pot you boil in. No metal pots as they give off a strong metallic taste to the soup. I use a Tanyu claypot, which is quite pricey but worth the investment. You can stew and boil for a long long time. My grandmother and aunts boil their soups in claypots over charcoal fire. That is really the best method.

You have to preboil the meat bones for one round to get rid of the scum before adding in the rest of the ingredients. You can buy a soup skimmer in most Japanese supermarket.This applies only if the base of your stock is pork bones. Chicken gives off less scum .

Every virtuous wife should have the following in her fridge:

Red dates
Dried oysters
Dried scallops
Black beans
Red beans
Dried squid
Wolfberries


They add complexity to any soup!

Here's a recipe for expecting mummies.

Threadfin fish soup with black beans. Threadfin is an expensive fish, also known as ma yau yu in Cantonese. If you cannot afford the whole fish, get the fish head and bones only.

Boil with black beans and few slices of ginger for about 2 hours on a low fire. Serve with a teaspoon of Chinese wine or even better, cognac. Sprinkle some chopped spring onions.

Enjoy Ms N!