Soups

Watercress & Pork Lung Soup

Traditionally used to clear heat and moisten the lungs

In short: Watercress & Pork Lung Soup is a soup that Traditionally used to clear heat and moisten the lungs. It is most often made for respiratory & lung wellness, cooling & summer heat. Total time about 3 hr 30 min. Key ingredients: watercress, pork lung, ginger, lean pork.

Prep
30 min
Cook
3 hr
Total
3 hr 30 min
Makes
1.5–1.8 L
Watercress & Pork Lung Soup

Why people make this soup

Watercress is a seasonal vegetable of autumn and winter, traditionally associated with clearing heat and moistening dryness; simmered with honey dates it is a classic for cooling lung and stomach heat. Many home cooks pair watercress with snakehead fish or with fresh and dried duck gizzard for a rich, savory soup. Nourilo spotted nicely cleaned pork lung at the butcher at a good price, so he pairs it with watercress here, traditionally valued to clear heat, moisten dryness, and clear accumulated lung-and-stomach heat.

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.

  • Ginger · Meta-analysis, 23 studies · 2022
    Overall, acute and delayed nausea and vomiting did not differ significantly between ginger and control groups. A subgroup taking 1 g/day or less for over four days had less acute vomiting (OR 0.30).Limitation: Clinical heterogeneity between trials required subgroup analyses, and the authors state that sufficiently large, high-quality RCTs are still needed.PubMed 36501010 · 3 more ginger studies
  • Tangerine peel · Randomized controlled trial, 72 participants · 2025
    The tangerine peel drink group showed significant reductions in body weight and triglycerides after the intervention compared with the control group (p < 0.05). Safety markers showed no adverse effects. Gut microbiota and serum metabolite profiles also differed.Limitation: Small pilot trial with only 55 of 72 participants completing. The fermented product is not the same as plain tangerine peel, and the control group is not described.PubMed 40225325

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.

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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