Soups

Sea Solomon's Seal, Snow Ear Fungus, Cordyceps Spore and Lean Pork Soup

traditionally used to nourish yin, moisten dryness, and support lung health

In short: Sea Solomon's Seal, Snow Ear Fungus, Cordyceps Spore and Lean Pork Soup is a soup that traditionally used to nourish yin, moisten dryness, and support lung health. It is most often made for respiratory & lung wellness, cooling & summer heat, everyday balance. Total time about 110 min. Key ingredients: goji berries, lean pork.

Prep
20 min
Cook
90 min
Total
110 min
Makes
1.2 L
Sea Solomon's Seal, Snow Ear Fungus, Cordyceps Spore and Lean Pork Soup

Why people make this soup

Nourilo shares this recipe from personal experience: after pushing through a busy teaching schedule with a sore throat and dry cough, things got worse before they got better — lost voice, multiple rounds of antibiotics, and eventually the lingering sensitivity of an over-worked throat. What he learned the hard way is summed up in an old Chinese saying: “treat an illness while it is still shallow.” This soup was what he turned to while recovering — a nourishing, yin-moistening blend that helps when the throat and lungs feel parched and exhausted, especially during dry autumn and winter seasons or after illness. It is a gentle, savoury soup, not a medicine, but it is the kind of thing a caring Chinese household makes when someone has been pushing too hard.

What studies say about the key ingredients

Traditional use is not the same as clinical proof. Here is the strongest human research we found for each ingredient, limitations included.

  • Snow fungus · Randomized controlled trial · 2018
    The Tremella fuciformis groups showed greater improvements than placebo in subjective memory complaint scores, short-term memory and executive function tests. Adverse event frequency was similar across high-dose, low-dose and placebo groups.Limitation: Small sample with only 15 people in the placebo group and a short 8-week duration; the brain imaging findings were exploratory.PubMed 29319408
  • Cordyceps flower · Randomized controlled trial · 2015
    Compared with placebo capsules, the C. militaris group had greater increases from baseline in NK cell activity, lymphocyte proliferation, IL-2 and IFN-γ. No statistically significant adverse reactions were reported.Limitation: Only healthy men were studied, for 4 weeks, with 39 and 40 per group. Findings are immune-marker changes rather than clinical outcomes, and the capsules were an ethanol-treated preparation.PubMed 26284906 · 2 more cordyceps flower studies
  • Goji berries · Meta-analysis, 161 participants · 2012
    Compared with placebo (n=80), the goji juice group (n=81) reported greater improvements in several self-rated symptoms, including stress, mental acuity, sleep quality and overall well-being, under a random effects model.Limitation: Outcomes were self-reported symptom questionnaires, and several symptoms showed significant heterogeneity across the four pooled trials of a single branded juice.PubMed 22897500 · 3 more goji berries studies

From the Nourilo Research Library. Findings come from specific doses, extracts and populations and may not apply to a home-cooked recipe.

Safety first — read before you cook

This is a traditional food, not a treatment. Please check with your doctor or pharmacist before making it a regular part of your diet if you:

  • are pregnant or breastfeeding, or are cooking for a young child;
  • take regular medicines — especially blood thinners, blood-pressure, diabetes or immune-suppressing drugs;
  • have a kidney, liver or heart condition, or a known food allergy.

Ingredient notes for this recipe

  • Goji berries: A few cases of raised INR (a bleeding-risk marker) have been reported in people taking warfarin after drinking concentrated goji tea or wine. If you take a blood thinner, check with your doctor. Source: Memorial Sloan Kettering — Lycium

Stop eating it and seek advice if you notice an allergic reaction or feel unwell. Safety notes reviewed 8 October 2026 · How we write safety notes

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