Watercress, Dried Duck Gizzard and Carrot Soup

Why people make this soup

After the Lunar New Year — or any period of festive eating — it is easy to overdo the melon seeds, candy, roasted nuts, and fried snacks. The result in Chinese medicine terms is “excess heat”: a dry throat, mouth ulcers, or a nagging feeling of inner dryness. Watercress has long been the go-to vegetable in Cantonese kitchens for exactly this situation. Simmered slowly for two to three hours with dried duck gizzard and carrot, it transforms into a beautifully clear, naturally sweet soup that gently brings things back into balance. It’s the kind of everyday remedy that Cantonese families have kept in their kitchen playbook for generations.