Sweet Snow Fungus Soup (雪耳汤)
The first time I tried xue er tang I couldn’t decide whether I liked it or not. It was a confusing experience: a sweet soup made from mushrooms and seeds with with a gloopy mouthfeel. But after I overcame my surprise, I grew to love the subtly of it. It is definitely not like a Western desert with sugar and sweetness as the primary feature. Like so many Chinese dishes, it’s as much about the texture as it is the flavour After a long simmer, the snow fungus (银耳) turns soft, the liquid becomes thick and by the end the soup is silky and the fungus slippery but with a gelatinous crunch. The snow fungus benefits from a slow, gentle heat; if you’re impatient, it will still be too rubbery. You’ll know it’s ready when the fungus becomes completely translucent in the pot.
Ingredients
- 80 gFresh Snow Fungus
- 30 gdried snow fungus - if fresh isn't available
- 20Lotus Seeds
- 1Asian Pear - peeled
- 30 gRock Sugar
- 2 tablespoonsGoji Berries
- 4 cupsHot Water
Instructions
- 1
Soak the lotus seeds over night. Some lotus seeds are already prepared (the green stem already removed), but if not, drain the water the next day, split them in half and remove the bitter green stem inside. If you don’t the soup will turn very bitter. Set the seeds aside.
- 2
If using dried snow fungus, soak it for at least 15 minutes in warm water. Then drain and cut the fungus into small, bite-sized pieces. If using fresh, cut the head of snow fungus into small chunks: think a bit smaller than kale for a salad. With both, you will need to cut around the hard core (usually the orange bit) and dispose of that.
- 3
Add the snow fungus, lotus seeds and rock sugar to a medium sauce pan and cover with hot water. Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer and cover for 40 minutes. Note, that the liquid bubbles up quite a bit with this soup so make sure the pan is about double the size of the liquid.
- 4
Meanwhile, peel the Chinese pear then cube. After 45 minutes, add the pear and simmer for another 30 minutes. You might need to half a cup or so of water here.
- 5
After 30 minutes, remove the lid, add the goji berries and cook for another 10 minutes without the lid. Taste the soup - it should be a bit sweet, but most of the sweetness comes from the pear and goji. If it’s not sweet enough, add a bit more sugar here.
- 6
Serve into small bowls and eat when warm.