Night-Blooming Jasmine Flower Beef Noodle Soup

Why people make this dish

Night-blooming jasmine — known in Cantonese as ye xiang hua, and sometimes called Chinese star jasmine or cowslip creeper — is a flowering vine whose blossoms open in the evening, releasing a delicate, honeyed fragrance. In Cantonese cooking, the flowers are prized as a seasonal ingredient in stir-fries and soups during their peak season. Nourilo uses them here in a simple noodle soup that comes together in just minutes: springy Beijing pulled noodles chilled after cooking so they turn perfectly silky, tender beef tenderloin barely cooked through in a hot broth, and a handful of fragrant flowers added at the very end. It is the kind of dish that makes you want to eat even on a hot, heavy day when your appetite has gone missing.