EZ Chinese Black Beans Pork Ribs Soup

My mother in-law cooks this kind of soup quite often but usually with pig’s tail which I find it quite oily and avoid drinking it. 

Recently, I read from Kat Juju that black beans aka black turtle beans is an excellent source of protein and fibre. It is also packed with powerful anti-oxidants providing the body with lots of essential vitamins and minerals. 

From TCM [traditional Chinese medicine] point of view, this soup helps to tonify the kidneys, strengthens yin energy and nourish the blood. A must for people who are tired, run down and whose body needs recovery. 

According to Kat, kidneys are the body’s natural filter of the blood and remove waste which is diverted to the urinary bladder. Like all kinds of filters, the kidneys need to be nourished and detoxed to maintain its proper function. 

Traditionally drunk by pregnant and women undergoing confinement, this blood nourishing soup is beneficial for both men and women.

Verdict – Like what Kat Juju says, this is a delicious and so easy to make soup. I tried and she is right even though I slightly modified the recipe for more simplicity. I replaced red dates and kei chee with another specie of red dates called Goji Dates [available at medical shops]. This is a seedless red dates which are sweet and stays in shape even after boiling for a long time. If you can’t find them then use the ordinary red dates and kei chee. The black beans are crunchy soft and the pork ribs are tender. Nice soup which I wouldn’t mind cooking it often. 

Ingredients 

[serves 2-3] 

200 gm pork ribs – cut small pieces 

50 gm black beans [pre-soaked in cold water for several hours, drained] 

9 Goji red dates or 20 red dates and a handful of Goji [kei chee] 

¼ piece of cuttlefish – rinsed well 

A few cloves of garlic 

800 ml water 

Salt to taste 

1. Blanch pork ribs in boiling water for several minutes to remove the scums. Remove and rinse well with running tap water. 
2. Place all the ingredients [except salt] in a soup pot. Bring to a rolling boil, scoop up any scums that surfaced. 
3. Lower heat to simmer soup for about 45 minutes or until black beans and pork ribs are soft and tender. 
4. Add salt to taste before serving hot.