Chinese Recipes | Cooking Tips | Good Eats

Dried Sole

Dried Sole - The meat portion

One of my new readers asked what is dried sole, and since I have a couple of pictures on hand, I thought I’d post them. Actually, I didn’t know what’s the name of this ingredient in English until I read it in Rasa Malaysia’s Stir-fried Brussels Sprout with Dried Sole post.

I cannot find dried sole in the Bay Area so I had my mom bring them for me when she came over to help with the new baby a few months ago. Thanks mom!

She brought the raw ingredient just so as to educate me on how a dried sole looks like, since I was only familiar with the fried end-product, as in Rasa Malaysia’s recipe pictures, and in Teochew, we call it “tee po” (sounds about right). They are usually cut into squares and then fried with a good amount of oil. The bony portion of the dried sole is difficult to cut, so do use a sharp pair of kitchen scissors and be careful!

I use dried sole quite a bit, like in soups, stir fried vegetables, Minced Pork with Tofu and Wantons. It is packed with flavor!

I still have a bottle of pre-fried dried sole stored in the freezer for use whenever I need it. Mmm… what shall I cook with it next?

Previously when I did a post on the Chinese Herb: “Dang Gui“, I got a couple of readers very concerned about me eating that and alarm bells went off.

While most Chinese herbs contribute to the general well being of men and women, some are potentially dangerous if consumed by women during pregnancy in large quantities. But how much is too much? I seriously don’t know, so I will heed my readers’ advice and avoid them (from now on, that is, cos I have already eaten the Herbal Chicken Soup, uh oh!).

Today I am researching on another Chinese Herb called Wolfberry for this week’s Weekend Herb Blogging hosted by Anh from Food Lover’s Journey.

Wolfberries (枸杞子 Gou Qi Zi in Mandarin) are also called “Fructus Lycii Wolfberries” or “Goji Berries”. They look like bright red raisins, don’t they? Wolfberries are considered a “yin” tonic, a cooling herb. (For a brief writeup on what is “yin” and “yang”, refer to here.)

Rich in vitamin C, wolfberries also contain large amounts of vitamins B1, B6 and vitamin E. With 18 amino acids, 21 trace minerals (including significant amounts of zinc, iron, copper and calcium), essential fatty acids and more beta carotene than carrots, these little red gems are power-packed with nutrients, aren’t they?

One of the many benefits of wolfberries is that they help improve eyesight. Hence they are suitable for people with blurred vision or have degenerated eyes.

I thought I read somewhere that wolfberries should not be eaten by pregnant women in their first trimester as that might induce abortion! (Luckily I am at my third trimester now *phew!*) Unfortunately :( I cannot locate that article again else I would have put it here.

When I was in Singapore in February, I visited a Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor at Eu Yan Sang. I had specifically asked him what Chinese Herbs I should avoid when pregnant. He said that I can eat all in moderation, and the only thing I should avoid is a strange looking one called tian qi (田七).

So I seem to be getting contradictory information. This could be due to the fact that there had not been substantial research done on the effects of Chinese Herbs on pregnant women. I mean, which pregnant woman would subject themselves to be a guinea pig?!?!?

Picture below shows the assortment of herbs used to cook Herbal Chicken Soup. These herbs are used in very small quantities. Example, the wolfberries (枸纪子 Gou Qi Zi) used is only 15g (5oz). Can you spot the little red gems in the midst of all the other herbs?

This is the final “product” - Herbal Chicken Soup - cooking the chicken with a herbal mix pack for 2-3 hours under low heat. If cooked for too long, the “herby” taste gets stronger and stronger and may not taste too pleasant.

I can’t wait for my baby to pop so that I can eat anything I want again. Oh wait…. dang! I’ll be nursing… that means whatever I eat goes to the milk. Hmmm….

The picture above shows a mix of Chinese Herbs used to make Herbal Chicken Soup. I bought this “herb pack” from a Traditional Chinese Medicine shop at Tiong Bahru Plaza in Singapore. It costs only S$3.50 with a 20% discount because it was during the Chinese New Year period (works out to be about US$1.80 nett).

One of the ingredients is Dang Gui (当归). The portion of Dang Gui required in the making of Herbal Chicken Soup is very little - only 7g i.e. 2.3 oz.

Dang Gui is also called the “female ginseng” and is excellent as an all purpose women’s herb. For centuries, Dang Gui has been used by women in China to help regulate the menstrual cycle and to ease premenstrual pain, migraine, mood fluctuations and cramps. Women who has taken “The Pill” and would like to regain their normal menstrual cycles do so with the help of Dang Gui. This Chinese Herb has also proven helpful for relieving hot flashes during menopause.

Dang Gui should not be used during menstruation, as it can stimulate bleeding. Stop taking it a week before menstrual bleeding begins and resume once menstruation ends. Women with heavy menstrual flow should not use Dang Gui at all.

I did some research on this Chinese Herb because mom said I need to buy Dang Gui to cook herbal soups after the delivery of my little one in June, since there will be major exertion of strength during labor and blood loss during delivery.

She said Dang Gui can help speed a woman’s recovery after childbirth and deal with symptoms of low energy or chronic fatigue. Not only does Dang Gui help to relax the muscles of the uterus, it also keeps the muscles in the arteries dilated, helping to maintain regular blood flow and heartbeat.

Before it is sliced, Dang Gui looks like a root. Traditional Chinese Medicine shops will also grind this root into a powder upon request, and you can mix the powder with warm water and consume with meals.

I can get Dang Gui easily here in the Bay Area, but to make herbal soups, other Chinese Herbs are required as well, hence I prefer to buy a “herb pack” that already has all the portions weighed out. Luckily, these “herb packs” can also easily be gotten in the Asian supermarkets here. :)

This post was written for this week’s Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted by Kalyn’s Kitchen.

It never occurred to me that lemon grass is classified as a culinary herb until I started doing some research on my second post for the Weekend Herb Blogging event. This week, the host is Tomato from Melbourne, Australia.

Lemon grass is commonly used for Asian cooking, especially for Thai, Malaysian, Vietnamese and Indonesian cooking, in soups and curries.

They are as long as green onions, have a woody stalk and only the bottom whitish part can be used (i.e. about 6 inches from the base). Cut off the lower bulb and remove the tough outer leaves.

Bruising the lemon grass releases the aromatic oils from the juice sacs in the stalk. Usually I cut them into 2 inch lengths and use the back of my knife to pound it. When you sniff the lemon grass after pounding, you will find that it has a citrus lemony fragrance.

Lemon grass is also known by the name Citronella. Citronella oil is used in soaps, as a mosquito repellent in insect sprays and candles, and also in aromatherapy. It is known to have a calming effect that relieves insomnia or stress.

I made a hot and spicy Tom Yum Goong (Prawns) Soup recently and used lemon grass as an ingredient.

Tom Yum Goong (Prawns) Soup

Below are some of the other ingredients used. Not in the picture are: tom yum paste, sugar and fish sauce. For full recipe and cooking method, refer to here.

When serving, remove the lemon grass pieces as they are too fibrous to be eaten unless they are sliced very thinly or pounded until softened using a mortar and pestle.

I have a couple stalks left in my refrigerator and am eager to make more soups and curries. So stay tuned!

Note: Lemon grass can be found in Asian supermarkets and cost $1.99/lb in Ranch 99.

Weekend Herb Blogging this week is kindly hosted by RealEpicurean. This is my first time participating and I know I can learn a lot from these WHB food bloggers, especially since we are talking about the international scene here!

I’d like to start off with a brief introduction to what is “Yin” and “Yang” in Chinese cooking.

“Yin” and “Yang” describe two primal opposing but complementary forces found in all things in the universe. This philosophy is also used in the realm of Chinese food and cooking.

Yang foods are believed to increase the body’s heat (eg. raise the metabolism), while Yin foods are believed to decrease the body’s heat (eg. lower the metabolism).

In general, Yang foods (e.g. chili pepper, deep fried food, dried meat and lychee) tend to be dense in food energy, especially energy from fat, while Yin foods (e.g. watermelon, cantelope, honeydew and green tea) tend to have high water content.

Ideally, the Chinese recommend that you eat both types of food to keep the body in balance. A person eating too much Yang food might suffer from acne and bad breath while a person lacking Yang food might be lethargic or anemic.

Red Dates (紅棗), also known as Jujube or Chinese Dates are classified as a Yang food and can be used for replenishing blood and boosting energy (補血益氣).

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) cooking, ginseng in chicken soup is a classic, while bird’s nest is traditionally served sweetened with rock sugar, and sometimes with Red Dates as well.

I use Red Dates as an ingredient in Chinese Soups. These red fellas sweeten up my soup and balance the savory taste of pork, which I often use as my soup base.

Examples of soups in which I have used Red Dates are Lotus Root Soup and Radish, Dried Cuttlefish and Spareribs Soup.

Lotus Root Soup

Radish Dried Cuttlefish and Spareribs Soup

Red Dates Longan Drink

Red Dates can also be brewed with dried longans and sweetened with rock sugar to produce a sweet tea, believed to calm the mind, add a glow to the skin, and bring radiance to the eyes.

With all these benefits of Red Dates, isn’t it time to let this be one of the ingredients in your pantry?