Fresh Yam, Dendrobium, Carrot and Lean Pork Soup

Why people make this soup

Most people in the West encounter dendrobium (shi hu) as an ingredient in expensive supplements or tinctures — but in Cantonese food-therapy tradition, the fresh stem is something you might pick up at a Chinese herb shop and toss into the evening soup. Fresh dendrobium is one of those ingredients that bridges the kitchen and the dispensary: raw, the stems are juicy and mildly sweet with a pleasant stickiness when chewed (that stickiness, Nourilo points out, is how you know it is genuine). Cooked into soup with fresh Chinese yam and carrot, the result is a light, nourishing broth with a gentle sweetness that is easy to eat even when appetite is poor.

This soup is particularly useful in the period after a fever or illness when the body is recovering — appetite is off, there may be a bitter or stale taste in the mouth, skin is breaking out, or the eyes are tired and dry. It is also a good choice for children with eye-related symptoms or for those managing blood sugar, as both yam and dendrobium have a long history of use in the dietary care of diabetes.