Wild Watercress, Golden Monk's Fruit & Lean Pork Soup

Why people make this soup

There is a particular kind of tiredness that comes in warm, humid, misty spring weather — not sleepiness exactly, but a bone-deep heaviness and achiness that makes everything feel like an effort. In Chinese food therapy, this is called “bone fire” (gu huo) — heat trapped within the skeletal system as a result of damp-heat accumulation. The body can’t quite release it, so it just sits there, making you ache and feel vaguely unwell.

Wild watercress (ye ge cai) — distinct from the cultivated watercress in salads — grows prolifically in spring in southern China and is considered one of the best herbs specifically for clearing this kind of deep heat. It also has traditionally recognized properties for clearing heat, promoting urination, resolving phlegm, and stopping cough. Combined with the naturally sweet, lung-nourishing monk’s fruit, this makes a genuinely pleasant broth — slightly sweet, clean and refreshing — that also helps with sore throats, coughing, and the general malaise that comes after a cold.

Who it suits / who should be cautious

• Suited for most adults and children during warm, humid seasons, or after a cold when there is residual body aching, sore throat, or cough
• Good for the whole family as a seasonal spring soup
• People with a cold or deficient constitution (always feeling cold, easily fatigued, prone to loose stools, thin build) should not drink large amounts — wild watercress is cooling in nature and this soup is not suitable as a regular tonic for them

Why these ingredients (the food-therapy logic)

• Wild watercress (ye ge cai): A peppery, slightly bitter green associated in Chinese food therapy with clearing heat from deep within the bones and muscles, promoting urination to drain damp-heat, resolving phlegm, stopping cough, and invigorating circulation; it contains compounds (roripamide and rorpine-class alkaloids) with documented antimicrobial activity, particularly against pneumococcal bacteria and influenza bacillus, and is traditionally used for chronic bronchitis; best in season during spring
• Golden monk’s fruit (jin luo han guo): One of the most loved Cantonese soup sweeteners; naturally very sweet from mogrosides rather than sugar; associated with cooling the lungs, stopping cough, clearing throat heat, and supporting the large intestine; adds natural sweetness without refined sugar
• Honey dates (mi zao): Sweet, moist dates that soften the flavor of the soup and add a gentle nourishing quality; different from red dates — softer and more moistening
• Lean pork: Provides protein and richness; blanched to keep the broth clean

Ingredients (4–5 bowls)

Ingredient	Amount	Notes
Wild watercress (ye ge cai)	~300 g (half jin)	Roots trimmed, washed, cut into sections
Golden monk’s fruit (jin luo han guo)	1 whole fruit	Cracked open
Honey dates (mi zao)	2 pieces	Whole
Lean pork	~300 g	Sliced thick, blanched

Method

1. Trim the roots from the wild watercress, wash thoroughly, and cut into sections.
2. Crack open the monk’s fruit.
3. Blanch the lean pork: cut into thick slices, place in cold water, bring to a boil, drain, and rinse.
4. In a large pot, bring 8–9 bowls of water to a boil. Add the pork, honey dates, and monk’s fruit.
5. Once boiling, add the wild watercress. Reduce to a medium-low simmer and cook for 1.5 hours, until the liquid reduces to 4–5 bowls.
6. Season lightly with salt if desired. Serve warm.

Bro Niu’s tips

This soup has a natural sweetness from the monk’s fruit and honey dates, with a pleasant clean finish from the watercress. It’s refreshing rather than heavy, and the whole family can enjoy it. Wild watercress is particularly abundant and vibrant in the spring markets — a beautiful, fresh green that signals exactly when this soup is most needed. One practical note: people with a cold or weak constitution (those who always feel chilly, have loose stools, or get tired easily) should limit how much they drink, as this is a cooling soup. For them, a different warming tonic soup would be more appropriate.

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Published February 13, 2023 · Adapted and translated for Nourilo from a traditional home-kitchen recipe. Approx. 3 min read.