Dried bak choi soup with pork ribs (菜乾白菜湯)

This cooling soup is very sweet and delicious! It is ideal during hot weather especially during the Chinese New Year period when the weather is always very hot.

In the old days long stemmed bak choy (白菜干) was dried to preserve it until the next growing season. The drying technique gives it a unique flavour. It helps relieve heatiness in the body and help moisten, heal and cleanse the lungs. It is not ideal for those in the first trimester of their pregnancy (as the soup is cooling and can cause contractions) and during confinement.

Ingredients  

Pork ribs

1 carrot

100 gm dried bak choy

Cut and soak the dried bak choy in warm water until soft

Rinse in running water 2-3 times (to remove the dried bugs that get embedded during the curing process)

Squeeze out the water from the bak choy

Remember to blanch the pork bones to remove the scum

Put the blanched pork into the slow cooker with boiling water and cook on high for 1 hour

Slice the carrot

Put all the ingredients into the stock and season with salt and pepper

Cook on low for another 4 hours