Dragon-Tongue Leaf, Pear, Apple and Luo Han Guo Soup

Why people make this soup

When the weather flips between sun and rain, colds go around — and they often leave a nagging cough behind. It is not serious, but a cough that won’t quit wears you down. Nourilo likes fresh dragon-tongue leaf for this: mild in nature and easy to find at the market, simmered with pear, apple, monk fruit and apricot kernels into a clear, sweet brew you can sip like a cooling tea. Traditionally it is associated with easing phlegm, calming cough and soothing the lungs and throat.

Method

1. Rinse the ingredients; core the pears and apples and peel the carrot, then cut into chunks.
2. Put everything in a pot with 1.8 L of water and simmer about 1.5 hours, down to 0.9–1.2 L. Serve.

Nourilo’s Tips

This soup is traditionally helpful for the cough that follows a cold, for throat discomfort from overusing the voice, and for a phlegmy cough linked to too much smoking or drinking. The flavour is clear and sweet, neither cooling nor heating, so children take to it well.