Chinese Thanksgiving

This year Chinese Winter Solstice falls on the 22 December.  It is comparable to Thanksgiving Day, because on this day all family members will congregate to feast and to catch up with one another.  It is also the day to make amends and peace among family members and give thanks to gods and to honour the ancestor.

On this day, a particular type of food must be serve because of it's significant and it's meaning.  This food is called "Tang Yuan" which translate as Round Dumplings Soup.  The dumplings are made of either rice flour or glutinous rice flour or the combination of both.  Tang Yuan is normally serve as a dessert.  The 'soup' is normally a sweet syrup made of sugar and water flavoured with ginger slices, or added to any liquid based desserts.  However there are countless of way to eat Tang Yuan and varies to individual liking.  It is also common to put different sweet stuffing in the dumplings, for example, custard, red bean paste, lotus paste, crushed peanuts and sesame sweet paste.  The best of all, these varieties can be found in your local Asian grocers.  Just look for them in the freezers.

What I am going to share with you here is something different.  I will show you how to make the dumplings and cook them with leeks and roast pork.  Yes . . . it is going to be a savoury dish.  This dish brought a lot of fond memories of my parents and myself.  This dish reflects the unity and the love we share with each other.

I call this dish - My Family Tang Yuan

A. The Dumplings
1 cup rice flour
1/2 cup glutinous rice flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 - 3/4 cup water


Method:

1. Sieved the flour into a mixing bowl and make a well in the middle.
2. Pour the water into the well slowly and start to mix and gather the flour until form a soft dough.
3. Dust a tray with rice flour for the dumplings to rest on.
4. Start rolling into round shape to wider than 1 centimeter.
5. Bring a pot of water to boil with a pinch of salt, then drop the dumplings in as quick as possible.  Hint - the  round dumplings does not roll.  Quick pick and drop is recommended.
6. A quick stir to avoid sticking at the bottom of the pot.  Let all dumplings float and further boil for 5 minutes.
7. Removed dumplings and sit them in a cold bath.

B. The Soup

1 medium Spanish onion - sliced

2 cloves garlic - chopped

1 large leek or 5-6 stalks Chinese leek - sliced

200g Chinese roast pork (Siew Yuk) - thinly sliced

3-4 stalks Spring onions - cut to equal lengths

Handful of chopped Continental parsley

700 mL water

Soy sauce to taste

Method:

1. Sauteed Spanish onion and garlic until translucent.
2. Add leek and keep stirring until soft before adding the meat and water.  Bring to the boil.
3. Removed the dumplings from the cold bath into the soup.  Bring back to boil then simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Turned off the heat and add in the spring onion and continental parsley.  Give it a quick stir to wilt them slightly.
5. Divide into bowls and drizzle with a teaspoon of soy sauce if needed.

Functions and Benefits:

1. Rice and Glutinous Rice - Tones the Middle Burner; build and nourish Qi and Blood.
2. Pork -  Tones Qi and Blood.
3. Leek - Tones, regulates and benefits the Qi and expels Cold.
4. Onion - Tones, regulates and benefits the Qi and expels Cold.
5. Garlic -  tones and regulates Qi; expels Cold; warms Middle Burner; moves sluggish Qi and improves digestion.
6. Spring onion - Tones, regulates and benefits the Qi and expels Cold.
7. Continental parsley -  Clears damp and promotes urination; tones Spleen Qi improving digestion.

Precautions and Contraindications:

1. The dumplings can get you choked up if eaten in large amount in a mouthful.  They are heavy and stodgy if consume in large quantity.
2. Overall it is a warming dish and can be greasy from the roast pork.  Refrain from excess consumption.

If you have any doubt or want to know more about this recipe, contact your TCM practitioner or myself.

Thank you for reading.

Kenny Law
Australia Registered TCM Practitioner.
DISCLAIMER:
Information given are purely for references and it is not intent to diagnose medical conditions or to be used for self-diagnosed. Always consult medical health personnel for proper medical diagnosis.

© COPYRIGHT 2010 KENNY LAW

Sharing and/or reproduction of any part of this document is prohibited without written consent

Spiced Vinegar Pork Knuckle Stew

This recipe is believe to be originated from the Canton province in China.  It is a main dish produced by the Cantonese people to celebrate the arrival of a new born.  The significant of this dish can be branched to few different levels - nutritional, energetic, and spiritual/cultural belief.  There are a few variation to this recipe alone based on personal taste and family "handing down" ways of preparation.  The recipe given here is how I remember it when my beloved grandmother preparing for my aunties.  The brands of ingredients have changed due to my current global location - Melbourne - but the taste seems to stays on and reside in my heart.

Without wasting more time, let's look at the ingredients shall we?

1kg pork knuckle - cut into manageable pieces

1kg pork knuckle meat with skin on - diced to similar size as the knuckles pieces

2 large garlic bulbs

1 fist size old ginger (brown skin) - crushed

3-4 large dried red chillies - soaked and removed seeds

5 shelled hard boiled eggs

1L premium Sweetened Black Vinegar (Pat Chun* Brand or Pearl River Bridge Brand)

500ml Premium Black Vinegar or Balsamic Vinegar

500ml water

1/2 cup dark muscovado sugar

1 cup light soy sauce

Salt to taste

Coriander and Spring onion to garnish

1 cup Chinese Cooking Wine/Rice wine

*My preferred brand of vinegar

Method:

1. Prepare a pot of boiling water and add in the rice wine.  Let it boiled for 2 minutes to reduce the alcohol.  Then placed the meat in the pot to blanched.  Bring the water back to simmer for additional 5 minutes.  This process will rid impurities from the meat.  Strained the meat out and leave it under running water.
2. Using a heavy lidded pot, place the meat first then rest of other ingredients EXCEPT the eggs.
3. Secure the lid and bring to the boil.  Then transfer the pot to smallest burner and lowest setting and let simmer for 3-4 hours with the lid tilted slightly.  Stirred content every 30 minutes to prevent sticking.
4. About 2 hours into braising the meat, add in the eggs.  Gently bathe them in simmering liquid.  Leave it to simmer for another hour.
5. The liquid will then slowly evaporate and thickened turning into glossy and lustrous dark sauce.  Taste the sauce and if needed add some salt.
6. Served up and generously garnish with coriander and spring onion.

Functions and Benefits:

1. Pork knuckle - Tonifies Qi, Blood and Marrows, lubricates dryness, and tones Yin.
2. Vinegar - Warming, Assist yang, Tonifies Qi, dries damp, benefits Qi, remove blood stasis, expels cold, disperse coagulation, and haemostatic.
3. Ginger - Regulates and benefit Qi, remove blood stasis, expels cold, and warms Middle Burner.
4. Garlic - Tones and gegulates Qi, remove blood stasis, expels cold, warms Spleen and Stomach, moves sluggish Qi, and an appetent.
5. Chillies - Assist and tones Yang, Tones Qi and Blood, warms all Three Burners, Disperse blood stasis, and diaphoretic.
6. Muscovado sugar - Assist Yang, Tonifies Qi and Blood, remove blood stasis, expel cold, Tonifies MJ, and relaxes Liver.
7. Eggs - Tones Qi and Blood, lubricates dryness, and tones Yin.

Precautions and Contraindications:

1. This dish is not recommended for daily consumption by the "general" people.
2. It is a rich dish.  It is specially made for the new mother whom in need of both nutrition as well as therapeutic food in order to recover well and also the energy needed to produce milk to feed the new born. 
   
3. However, besides it benefits for new mothers, this dish will too benefits those who are in musculoskeletal post-surgery rehabilitation program combining with daily exercise to strengthen muscles and sinews.

If you have any doubt or want to know more about this recipe, contact your TCM practitioner or myself.

Thank you for reading.

Kenny Law
Australia Registered TCM Practitioner.
 

DISCLAIMER:
Information given are purely for references and it is not intent to diagnose medical conditions or to be used for self-diagnosed. Always consult medical health personnel for proper medical diagnosis.

© COPYRIGHT 2010 KENNY LAW

Sharing and/or reproduction of any part of this document is prohibited without written consent

For further reading:

     

Lean Pork with Cassia (Cinnamon) Twigs

This simple dish helps to relieve ache and pain during menstruation (blood clotting; amenorrhoea) due to Coldness in the abdomen. It also aids to replenish Qi and blood right after childbirth for exhausted mother. It also benefits those who have lumbago during menopausal.

12g Cassia twigs (Gui Zhi)
200g lean pork
5 red dates
Water
Soy sauce or Tamari

Method:

1. Combine ingredients in a pot and filled with 1L water.
2. Bring to boil then low simmer about 2 hours or until pork is soft and tender.
3. Season with soy sauce and serve. It is best serve with some rice.

Functions and Benefits:

1. Cassia twigs – promotes blood circulation; relieve external Cold and warms the body
2. Pork – Tonifies Qi and Blood; lubricates Dryness.
3. Red dates – Tonifies Stomach and Spleen; nourish Blood

Precautions and Contraindications:

1. Cassia twig is contraindicated in hot febrile disease with high fever and those with severe hypertension.
2. This recipe is not suitable for pregnant women.

If you have any doubt or want to know more about this recipe, contact your TCM practitioner or myself.

Thank you for reading.

Kenny Law

Australia Registered TCM Practitioner.

DISCLAIMER:

Information given are purely for references and it is not intent to diagnose medical conditions or to be used for self-diagnosed. Always consult medical health personnel for proper medical diagnosis.

© COPYRIGHT 2010 KENNY LAW

Sharing and/or reproduction of any part of this document is prohibited without written consent