EZ Nutritious Watercress Soup

This is my second Watercress Soup which is much easier yet tasty if you prefer a less meaty version than my first recipe [recipe here].

While the soup is boiling, you can the cuttlefish aroma eventhough the quantity is so small.  The herbal flavour is also not intense.  Overall, a tasty soup for dinner with vegetable.  Instead of chicken or pork, I used chicken feet, dried cuttlefish and Dong Quai [this specie is from Vietnam].  

Notes: Visit this site for It's Nutritional Facts [here]

Ingredients

[serves 2-3]
2 pairs of chicken feet
10 red dates
2 strips of dried cuttlefish - washed
3 pieces Dong Quai roots
300 gm watercress - washed, cut and blanch in  boiling water, rinse and drain [reduces the bitterness in soup]

1/2 tsp chicken stock granules

salt to taste

600 - 700 ml water

1. Prepare the ingredients as stated above.   Cleaned and blanched chicken feet in boiling water for several minutes.  Drain and rinse well.
2. Bring water to boil, add in chicken feet and cuttlefish.  Boil for about 5-10 minutes [discard chicken feet if you are not eating them].
3. Put watercress, Dong Quai pieces and red dates.
4. Bring soup to a rolling boil for 2-3 minutes, add seasoning to taste.  Lower heat and simmer for another 15-20 minutes.
5. Dish up to serve hot.
   

Note:

• the cardinal rule of making 'sai yeong choi' or watercress soup [without the bitter taste] is the pot of water MUST BE BOILING before you add watercress.   If you add watercress into water which is warming up or even cold water, your soup will turn out bitter [from the Soup Queen].