Chinese Herbal Soup with Pork

Lately, I am exhausted.  I know it's because of work.  I have deadlines to meet and the network keeps having issues.  It’s always one thing after another, and all you ended up is helping others, but yet you don’t have enough time to do your own projects.  Sometimes, I just crash when I get home until it’s time for dinner. Last week, I even took a Friday off so I can have a three days weekend just to rest, but it did not seem to help.  I know I need to fix this before it gets worse.  Therefore, I decided to make Chinese herbal soup today.  My Dad had shown me how to make Chinese Herbal soup in the past.  And I have all the ingredients, but I have never had time to do it.  According to my Dad, if you have one bowl of this soup, you can kill three tigers with your bare hands. :-)  I know he exaggerates a bit but, I can tell you this. After I had one bowl of this soup, I am energized! :-)

I had this bowl for breakfast this morning. It sure warmed up my whole body and now I feel like an energized bunny!!! LOL :-)

The basic tonic soups can made from a combination of red dates, astragalus, dried goji berries, ginseng, and dang gui.  This will help to improve immunity, strengthen the body and prevent relapses. Since my Dad gave me many ingredients, I put the following combination in my pot. The goal is to nourish my weak point and strengthen my health and give me more energy. 

Chinese wolfberries or goji berries (gou ji zi)

Effects: Nourishes and tonifies the liver and kidney, helps eyesight, improves blurred vision, alleviates sore back, strengthens the leg and stomach,  improves circulation, boosts immune function, promotes longevity. It is used for treatment of general weakness and impotence.

Astragalus propinquus (bei qi)

Effects :  Treatment of Qi deficiency, spleen deficiency and Yang deficiency, weakness and fatigue, numbness of limb, morbidity after stroke, sweating, treatment of diabetes, promotes pus discharge and tissue regeneration, promotes diuresis to reduce edema.

Angelica sinensis (dang gui)

Effects: Tonic for blood and for regulating the menses, lubricates bowels to correct constipation, reduces swelling, expels pus, relieves pain.

Red dates (Chinese dates or red jujube – Hong Zao)

Effects : strengthen the functions of heart and lung, nourish stomach and spleen, increase blood flow and oxygen to the brain to improve memory and promote clear thinking. Red dates are known to be effective in countering fatigue, anaemia and low energy. They are commonly used for building up strength and blood.

Dang shen (Codonopsitis Pilosulae)

Effects: cure appetite loss, strengthen the immune system and replenish qi. Corrects blood deficiency, invigorates Qi (lack of appetite, fatigue, thirst, diarrhea, vomiting, polapse of uterus, stomach, rectum due to spleen deficient), improves digestive system.

Ginseng (ren sheng)

Effects : replenishing the primordial qi, restoring pulse and treating collapse, tonifying the spleen and lung, promoting the production of body fluid to quench thirst, tranquilizing the mind and improving mental power.

Radix astragalis (huang qi)

Effects: tonifying the qi, lifting the sunken yang, strengthening the defensive energy and superficial resistance, promoting pus discharge and tissue regeneration, and tissue regeneration, and inducing diuresis to cure edema.

Chinese pearl barley or Coix seeds  (yi mi)

Effects: anti-swelling, pus-expelling and cooling. It is therefore most commonly recommended to people suffering from stiff and painful joints.

Lotus seeds

Effects: lotus seeds are believed in Chinese medicine to "clear heat" (清熱) and be particularly nutritious and restorative to one's health, which may explain the prevalence of their use in Chinese cuisine.

Dried Longan

Effects: In Chinese food therapy and herbal medicine, it is believed to have an effect on relaxation. In Chinese medicine the longan, much like the lychee, is considered a "warm" fruit.