The other day when I went to see the TCM doctor regarding a slightly sprained elbow and an achy back, he told me that I have to be conscientious in taking care of myself, especially after each menstrual cycle as he says that my limbs feel a little cold to touch. He suggested that I should make myself a tonic soup after the menstrual cycle or buy Bak Foong pills to nourish my body... and so I decided that I'd just make myself the tonic soup. After all, I'm a fan of soups... so why not? :)
The last time I drank a dang gui soup would have to be during confinement. That's when I can take heaty stuff and not fall ill. It seems that it's the same with a woman who's just finished menstruating. Accordingly, this soup should be consumed on the day the period finishes. Unfortunately, I was too busy on that day and so I only made it the next day. I hope it won't cause me to be over-heaty!
Benefits of consuming dang gui (Chinese Angelica Root):
- nourish blood
- improve blood circulation
- alleviate menstrual cramps
- improves regularity of menstrual cycle
Dang gui tonic soup
Ingredients:
- 5 thin slices of dang gui
- about 1 tablespoon wolfberries
- 70g lean pork (瘦肉) - can be substituted with a hard-boiled egg or chicken meat
- 3 big red dates (pitted)
- estimated 10g yu zhu (Solomon's seal)
- 500ml water
- salt (optional)
Method:
- Rinse the herbs.
- Blanch the pork.
- Add the pork, all the herbs (except wolfberries) and water into the double-boiler.
- Double-boil for 3-4 hours.
- Add wolfberries approximately 15min before serving.
- Add salt prior to serving (optional).
- Sieve the ingredients, leaving behind only the meat and wolfberries in the soup.
- Serve.
Anyway, the soup's really tasty and I enjoyed every bit of it... Men however are advised against
taking this soup as it's usually too heaty for men. It's possible for men to have the soup: just reduce the amount of dang gui to about 3 pieces.
