Soups
Coconut, Carrot and Black-Bone Chicken Soup
Traditionally used to nourish qi, support a clear complexion and build up a weak body
Why people make this soup
Fresh coconut is a wonderful soup ingredient — crack the whole coconut open, and the sweet coconut water inside is worth saving for the pot, as it makes the soup even more naturally sweet. This coconut, carrot and black-bone chicken soup is traditionally used to nourish qi, care for the complexion and build up a weak body, gentle enough for young and old alike.
Who it suits / who should be cautious
- A good everyday tonic for people who feel run-down; gentle enough for the whole family, and fine in early pregnancy or during menstruation.
- Best avoided while you have an active cold — wait until the cold has cleared. For young children, choose a small chicken to avoid hormone-heavy farmed birds.
Why these ingredients (the food-therapy logic)
- Coconut and its water (ye zi): sweet and cooling, it lends natural sweetness and is associated with a moistening, refreshing quality.
- Carrot (hong luo bo): sweet and nourishing, it rounds out the broth and supports the spleen and stomach.
- Red dates (hong zao): warming and sweet, traditionally used to nourish the blood and harmonise the soup.
- Black-bone (silkie) chicken (zhu si ji): prized as a gentler, less heating chicken, traditionally used to nourish yin and build up a depleted body.
Ingredients (4 bowls)
| Ingredient | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Coconut | half | reserve the coconut water |
| Carrot | 1 | peeled, cut into chunks |
| Red dates | 8 | |
| Fresh ginger | 2 slices | |
| Black-bone chicken | 1 | cleaned, blanched |
Method
- Clean and dress the black-bone chicken, then blanch it.
- Peel the carrot and cut into chunks.
- Put everything (including the reserved coconut water) into the pot with about 10 bowls of water.
- Simmer about 2 hours down to roughly 4 bowls. Serve.
Bro Niu’s tips
This soup is naturally sweet and tasty, with a good building-up quality — one of the best gentle food-therapy soups for people who feel weak or depleted.
Community questions answered (selected)
- Q (Bell): Can I make this without red dates? I had surgery and take blood-thinners, so many tonic herbs are off-limits. Bro Niu: Yes, you can leave out the red dates, or use a little dried fig in their place.
- Q (MM): Can it be taken in early pregnancy? Bro Niu: Yes, this soup can be taken in early pregnancy.
- Q (Kitty Wong): Can I drink it when I have a cold? Bro Niu: It’s best to go easy on building-up soups during a cold, so the illness doesn’t take hold. Wait until the cold has passed.
Published February 27, 2010 · Adapted and translated for Nourilo from a traditional home-kitchen recipe. Approx. 2 min read.
