Papaya and snow fungus tong sui
A Cantonese sweet soup of silky snow fungus and ripe papaya with red dates and goji berries — lightly sweet and moistening, lovely warm or at room temperature.
- 50 min
- Serves 4
- Simmer
- Easy
Why it suits you: As autumn begins, a Yin-deficient constitution is the first to feel the dryness — a dry mouth, skin and throat. Snow fungus nourishes yin and moistens the lungs and papaya eases dryness; this lightly sweet soup suits Hong Kong's still-hot weather too, and can be eaten at room temperature (just not iced).
Method
Prep 10 min · Cook 40 min- 1Soak the snow fungus for 30 minutes until soft, trim off the hard yellow base and tear into small pieces.
- 2Put the fungus and red dates in a pan with the water, bring to the boil, then simmer for 30 minutes until the fungus turns gelatinous.
- 3Peel, deseed and dice the papaya, add with the rock sugar and simmer for another 10 minutes.
- 4Add the goji berries for the last 2 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Cautions
- Reduce the rock sugar to taste and eat sparingly if you have diabetes; go easy on papaya if your stools tend to be loose.
Chef's tips
- Cook the snow fungus until gelatinous before adding the papaya — papaya cooked too long falls apart and turns sour.
The TCM view
Snow fungus is sweet, bland and neutral, nourishing yin, moistening the lungs and nourishing the stomach to generate fluids. Papaya is sweet and neutral, moistening the lungs, generating fluids and aiding digestion. Red dates nourish the middle and blood, rock sugar moistens the lungs, and goji berries nourish the liver and kidneys. Gently moistening and yin-nourishing — suited to Yin deficiency.
