lotus root and pork bone soup

Soak the dried mandarin peel, dried scallops, and peanuts in 3 separate bowls of warm water.

Prepare the lotus root by peeling the skin. For any uneven parts that are difficult to get with a peeler, use a knife to scrape to remove the skin. Cut the lotus root in half, and then into wedges. Give the lotus root a good rinse to remove any remaining dirt.

Slice the ginger. I like to keep them in large pieces since the soup will be simmering for a while, but you could also do thin matchsticks.

Once the dried mandarin peel has rehydrated enough to be flexible, use a spoon to scrape off the pith (the inner white fibrous part) of the peel. Pith can taste bitter, so this will prevent bitterness in your soup.

Once the scallops are rehydrated a bit (they don’t have to be fully soft, as they will continue softening in the soup), break them apart into separate strands. Keep the water they are soaking in, as we’ll use that in the soup!

Bring a pot of water to boil, then add the pork bones. Blanch for a few minutes (until you see a lot of gunk in the water), and pour out the water. Give the pork bones and pot a good rinse.

Once boiling, reduce to a simmer and cover. You don’t want to cook this on high heat, as too much liquid will evaporate during cooking. Simmer for 2.5 hours.