Huai Shan, Goji and Sun-Dried Scallop Chicken Breast Soup (Huai Qi Ri Yue Yu Tang)

Why people make this soup

This is the kind of everyday family soup that covers a lot of ground quietly. Chinese yam and goji berries are among the most familiar and trusted ingredients in Cantonese food-therapy, and combining them with sun-dried scallop — a small, intensely flavoured dried seafood ingredient — gives the broth a natural depth and sweetness that makes it feel more substantial than the ingredients list might suggest. The traditional logic is that this combination nourishes the spleen (improving digestion and absorption), supports the liver and kidneys (which in turn benefits the skin and the eyes), and provides a range of vitamins and antioxidants that are associated with vision health. It is a light soup but a genuinely nourishing one.

Method

1. Rinse and briefly soak the Chinese yam and goji berries.
2. Pit the red dates.
3. Rinse the sun-dried scallop coins. Cut the chicken breast into thick slices, then blanch with the scallop coins in boiling water for a few minutes. Drain and rinse off any foam.
4. Place all ingredients in a pot with 2.4 L of water. Bring to a full boil over high heat, then reduce to a medium-low simmer.
5. Cook for about 1.5 hours until the liquid reduces to roughly 1.2 L. Serve.

Nourilo’s Tips

A clear, sweet and satisfying soup for the whole family. If sun-dried scallop coins are hard to find or of uncertain quality — many on the market are pressed imitations made from squid or mixed fish — substitute with fresh abalone (including the shell for extra minerals) or high-quality dried pearl meat. Both are excellent for supporting eye health.