Wild Watercress, Carrot & Crucian Carp Soup

Why people make this soup

Most people have experienced that particular exhausted aching — every joint feels heavy, the neck is stiff, and even mild activity feels like too much. In Cantonese food culture this is often described as “bone fire” (gu huo), and it can come on after long hours of work, a string of late nights, or in the early stages of a cold. Rather than reaching for painkillers, many Cantonese families turn to a pot of wild watercress soup. The watercress — known locally as tang ge cai — has a reputation for clearing this internal heat, while the crucian carp adds a richness that makes the broth genuinely satisfying.

Method

1. Rinse the watercress thoroughly, including the roots; cut into sections.
2. Peel and chunk the carrot. Soak the dried tangerine peel.
3. Clean and gut the crucian carp. Heat a small amount of oil in a pan and fry the fish on both sides until lightly golden and fragrant.
4. Bring 8 cups of water to a boil in a large pot.
5. Add all ingredients — watercress, carrot, honey dates, tangerine peel, and the pan-fried fish.
6. Simmer for 2 hours. Serve the soup (and the fish if desired).

Nourilo’s Tips

Pan-frying the fish first is worth the extra step — it reduces the fishy smell and gives the broth a much better flavour. This soup also doubles as a remedy for cold-related cough and sore throat. Lean pork (about 225 g) works fine as a substitute if crucian carp is unavailable. If you are vegetarian and avoiding meat entirely, simply omit the fish and add extra red adzuki beans and flat-leaf beans (chi xiao dou and bian dou) for a plant-based version with a similar clearing effect.