Chinese ABC Vegetable Soup
The Chinese ABC Vegetable Soup aka ABC Soup is a very nutritious soup cooked with potatoes, carrots, onions & tomatoes. A all-time family favorite, it uses affordable ingredients that are easily accessible.
When I was young, I asked my Mum why is it called ABC Soup and she told me it has loads of vitamins; A (carrots), B (potatoes) & C (onions). One other common reason, preparing is as easy as ABC and I totally agree because it’s one of the first soups that I learnt how to cook.
Vegetables
- My soup will usually consist of potatoes, carrots, onions and tomatoes. Vegetables sweeten the soup and tomatoes will add a tinge of sourness which I like. Didn’t add tomatoes in my video because I was out of it.
- Some Chinese believe that potatoes and tomatoes shouldn’t be eaten together as it may cause indigestion, which may be a myth. Otherwise French fries shouldn’t be eaten together with ketchup.
Pork or chicken bones
- Parboil pork bones to get rid of blood impurities, removes the porky smell and ensure that the soup will not have a scum layer on top when cooked.
- Adding ginger and cooking wine while parboiling, eliminates the unpleasant flavor of the raw pork bones without adding too much extra flavor.
- If you do not like pork, use chicken bones instead.
- For vegetarians, replace with sweet corn.
Ikan bilis aka anchovies
- Ikan bilis add a little fish or seafood fragrance to the soup, which complements very well with most vegetable soups.
- Frying ikan bilis in oil before use will give it more fragrance.
- Do wash before use, to remove dirt and grit.
Cooking
- I always use the pressure cooker to make soup, as it is faster and I don’t have to watch the fire. 30 mins will be enough but I prefer to pressure cook it for an hour as it will be thicker and more flavorful.
- You can also boil on the stove, of course it will take much longer, for around 2 hours. Simmer for 3 hours for a more flavorful soup.
Chinese ABC Vegetable Soup
A all-time family favorite, the Chinese ABC Vegetable Soup is a nutritious soup cooked with potatoes, carrots, onions & tomatoes.
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
- Soup Pot
Ingredients
- 300 g potaoes peel & cut into chunks
- 150 g carrots peel & cut into chunks
- 1 large onion peel & cut into chunks
- 1 tomato optional, cut into chunks
- 20 g ikan bilis or anchovies
- 1 litre water for pressure cooker 2 litres for stovetop
- Salt & pepper for seasoning
Parboil
- 250 g pork or chicken bones
- 5 slices ginger
- 1 tbsp cooking wine
Instructions
- Cut all vegetables into chunks,
- Parboil chicken or pork bones in a pot of water, together with ginger and cooking wine for 5 mins to remove scum. Then remove from pot and rinse with water.
- In the soup pot, place the parboiled bones, cut vegetables, ikan bilis and water. Cook for 30 mins with pressure cooker. 2 hours on stovetop.
- Season with salt to taste after boiling when it's still hot. Serve.
Video
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