Bak Kut Teh Flavour Chicken Soup

This is a thick version of the Bak Kut Teh soup.  I used the Klang Bak Kut Teh herbal ingredients [from Sonia's recipe here].  Instead of cooking it with 2.5 litres water, I reduced it to only 1 litre and changed the pork ingredients to chicken.  I added tofu puffs, firm beancurd, black fungus and mushrooms.

The soup has a strong herbal flavour which had infused into all the other ingredients.  My family like this intense herbal taste.  If you think it is too much of herbal ingredients needed, just use 1-2 sachets of BKT to cook this dish.

Ingredients

[serves 3-4]

2 big chicken thighs - skin removed [about 400 gm] - cut bite size pieces

1 firm beancurd - cut wedges and fried

10 tofu puffs

2-3 dried mushrooms - soaked and quartered

1 piece wood ear fungus - soaked and cut into pieces

1 bulb garlic or  roasted whole garlic 黑蒜头

2 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

salt to taste

1 tbsp Wolfberries/Goji 枸杞

Herbal Soup Ingredients

3 sticks tong sum 党参

1 piece cinnamon stick 桂枝

2 pieces bay leaves

1 piece Chen Pi [dried tangerine peel] 陳皮 

30 gm Yok Chok 玉竹

2 sticks Gan Chao甘草 

3 slices Chuan Xiong 川芎

1 piece Shu Di 熟地 

1 stick Niu Qi  牛七

6 slices Dong Gui 当归

1/2 tsp white peppercorns 白楜椒

1/2 tsp black peppercorns 黑楜椒
1/2 tsp hua jiao 花椒

1/2 tsp fennel seeds 小茴香

1 honey date 蜜枣

1 star anise
1 litre water

1. Rinse herbs.  Bring water to boil and add in the herbal soup ingredients.  Boil for 15-20 minutes or until the soup is fragrant.  
2. Strain the liquid into a claypot or soup pot.  Bring to boil, add in garlic, black fungus and mushrooms.   Boil for several minutes.
3. Add in chicken, tofu puffs and fried beancurd wedges.  Bring to a boil again and lower heat to simmer until chicken is tender.
4. Lastly add wolfberries and seasoning to taste.  Serve hot with rice.