Old cucumber soup (老黄瓜汤)

This is another favourite soup with small children. I don’t know why but they just love eating the soft flesh of the cucumber. It is ideal for hot days as it helps to reduce heatiness in the body. Some people add dried cuttlefish but I find the smell and taste too over powering.

 Old cucumber is the mature fruit of a cucumber plant. It is roughly 6 to 8 inches long and yellow to golden-brown in color. It is considered to have ‘yin’ or ‘cooling’ properties which will help to lower ‘heatiness’ in the body. Old cucumber is high in dietary fibre, calcium and iron. It contains Vitamins A, B6 and C, which are beneficial to health and wellness. Plus, old cucumber is good for the skin and helps prevent aging and may also act as a diuretic. 

Ingredients

1 old cucumber

1 chicken carcass

Red dates

Wolfberry (kei chi)

Scrub the skin clean and cut into chunks

Remove the seeds

Blanch the chicken to remove the scum

Put enough hot water into the slow cooker

Put everything into the slow cooker

Switch on high for 1 hour then turn down to auto and leave for 4-5 hours