Whenever friends come to your house as guests, you always feel overwhelmed because you don't have any impressive dishes to offer. This certainly makes you unhappy. So, here is a detailed recipe for making Red Date, Chestnut, and Goji Berry Chicken Soup. With this recipe, you can showcase your cooking skills and be the most versatile version of yourself. Now, let me tell you how to make the delicious Red Date, Chestnut, and Goji Berry Chicken Soup.
【Name】
Red Date, Chestnut, and Goji Berry Chicken Soup
【Ingredients】
Half a chicken, 1 corn, 5 red dates, 5 chestnuts, 15 goji berries, 2g salt, 1 tablespoon Sichuan peppercorn water
【Instructions】
1. Wash the chicken and cut it into small pieces. Soak the chicken in 1 tablespoon of Sichuan peppercorn water for about 10 minutes.
2. Blanch the chicken: Heat water in a pot (do not let it boil) and add the chicken pieces. Cook for about 7-8 minutes.
3. Remove the chicken pieces and rinse them with cold water.
4. Place the chicken pieces from step 3, corn, red dates, and cold water in a soup pot. Bring to a boil over high heat for about 15 minutes, then simmer on low heat for 30 minutes.
5. After 30 minutes, add chestnuts to the pot and simmer for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, add the soaked goji berries and salt. Increase the heat and simmer for another 15 minutes. Your delicious and flavorful chicken soup is now ready.
【Tips for Making Soup】
1. Soaking the chicken pieces in Sichuan peppercorn water can remove any unpleasant smell.
2. Blanching the chicken means cooking the main ingredients in boiling water for a short time. This not only removes any fishy smell but also eliminates impurities from the chicken. When blanching, do not use cold water, as this would cause the meat to lose nutrients during the process of going from cold to boiling. If boiling water is used, the heat will cause the proteins in the meat to coagulate, affecting the texture. It is best to use water that is hot but not boiling, and cook for about 7-8 minutes.
3. When making soup, it is important to start with cold water so that the ingredients can release all their nutrients as the temperature gradually rises. Therefore, after blanching, be sure to rinse the chicken pieces with cold water so that when they are added back to the pot, they won't shrink due to the sudden drop in temperature.
4. Add salt after the soup is cooked, not at the beginning or when it is half-cooked. If salt is added for a long time, it will react with the protein in the meat, causing it to coagulate and making the soup taste bland.
【Nutritional Value】
Red dates: They have a sweet and neutral taste and are known for their beneficial effects on nourishing the heart and lungs, relieving coughs, replenishing the spleen and stomach, and nourishing the blood and calming the mind. Red dates are rich in vitamin C and contain adenosine triphosphate and hawthorn acid, which have been proven to have anti-cancer effects. In other words, red dates are a healthy food suitable for the modern environment as they can help prevent cancer.
Chestnuts: They have a sweet and warm taste and are known for their effects on nourishing the stomach, invigorating the spleen, strengthening the kidneys and waist, promoting blood circulation, stopping bleeding, and reducing swelling. Chestnuts are rich in nutrients, including carbohydrates, proteins, fats, various vitamins, and minerals. Regular consumption of chestnuts can prevent aging and promote longevity.
Corn: Corn is very high in dietary fiber, and vitamin E in corn promotes cell division and delays aging. Corn also contains lutein and zeaxanthin, which can counteract eye aging. Corn contains magnesium and selenium, which can inhibit tumor growth. Especially, the abundance of glutamate in corn has a brain-boosting effect.
Goji berries: Goji berries are rich in beta-carotene, vitamin A1, B1, B2, C, iron, calcium, and other essential nutrients for healthy eyes. That's why they are known as "bright-eyed berries". Goji berries can enhance the body's immune system, invigorate qi and strengthen tendons, nourish the liver and kidneys, fight aging, relieve thirst, warm the body, and have anti-tumor effects.
