Cantonese Wellness in a Bowl: Ching Po Leung
Cantonese wellness in a bowl
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Ching Po Leung is a Cantonese herbal pork bone soup popular for its healing properties. In the Cantonese language ching is cleansing of the body, po is putting nutrients back into your body to make you strong and healthy and leung is cooling.
“Cantonese believe you drink this soup to give the body and diet balance,” said Mary Li, owner of Ginger & Fork. She grew up watching her mother, and grandmother, make the soup. And while different family recipes use slightly different herbal ingredients, Li’s family recipe has goji berries, Chinese yam, pearl barley and red dates—all of which are combined to nourish the body’s blood and essential fluids to promote good health.
The soup takes about five hours to make. Start with a pork bone broth, extracting all the nutrients from the marrow, then incorporate all nine herbs and spices. It’s what makes Ching Po Leung a traditional decoction that is taken at all ages to encourage healthy aging.
Find both recipes (Cantonese and English) to the left.
Ching Po Leung is on the menu of Ginger & Fork, 4705 Inker St.
