Fish Maw, Goji Berry and Frog Leg Soup (Hua Jiao Gou Qi Tian Ji Tang)

Why people make this soup

Fish maw (hua jiao) is the dried and rehydrated swim bladder of large fish — it sounds unusual if you have not encountered it before, but it has been part of Cantonese fine dining and everyday wellness cooking for generations. What makes it special is its high concentration of collagen-related proteins, which are absorbed into the body through the digestive system. Eating collagen may not work in exactly the way topical skincare does, but many people who eat fish maw regularly report improvements in skin smoothness and moisture — and traditional food therapy has always understood the relationship between deep nourishment and outer appearance.

In traditional Chinese food therapy, fish maw is considered unusual because it simultaneously nourishes both kidney yin (the cooling, moistening aspect) and kidney yang (the warming, energising aspect) — most tonic ingredients tend to favour one or the other. It is also very low in sugar and fat, making it suitable for a much broader range of people than many rich-sounding tonic ingredients.