Astragalus, Black Bean and Lamb Neck Soup

Why people make this soup

As the weather turns cool, friends who always feel the cold in their hands and feet love a warming lamb soup. Angelica (dang gui) pairs beautifully with lamb, but not everyone enjoys its strong medicinal smell. Nourilo’s tidy solution is to build the soup on astragalus, goji, red dates, longan and black beans instead — just as nourishing and far more crowd-friendly. Traditionally it is used to warm the spleen and stomach and support qi and blood.

Method

1. Blanch the lamb to remove scum.
2. Dry-fry the black beans in a dry wok until fragrant.
3. Rinse and soak the remaining ingredients.
4. Combine everything in a pot with 2.4 L of water and simmer about 2 hours down to 1.2 L. Drink the soup and eat the solids.

Nourilo’s Tips

Adding longan and red dates reduces the gamey smell of lamb. If you fear it is too “heaty,” add a few water chestnuts to simmer along. Lamb neck is sold at frozen-lamb stalls or at beef stalls that carry fresh lamb.