Lotus Root, Dried Octopus and Pork Soup

Dried Octopus

Whenever I prepare lotus root, dried octopus and pork soup I cannot help but think of Tai O and its stores displaying dried products: octopus, fish maws, shrimps, scallops, etc under rows of bright red lights. I already wrote about Tai O village in a previous post.  At week-ends tourists and locals alike packed the former fishing and salt-making village to enjoy its charm and fresh seafood.

Street hawkers selling live fish in plastic buckets from carts

Tangerine peel and fish hung up in the sun to dry

 

Braised Pig’s Trotters with Fermented Bean Curd

This is the time of the year when we yearn for hearty meals and for families to prepare roasted meat and soups. We are now in November and the cooler months approaching special winter dishes such as braised goat is back on the menu of restaurants.

Goat, mutton, eggs, chicken, etc. belong to the yang category. According to Chinese beliefs yang foods are believed to increase the body heat, nourish and replenish us during the cold season.

Pork With Hard-Boiled Eggs Stew

Autumn is here....I can now feel it!

Although the weather can be quite hot, particularly at mid-day, there is less humidity and it gets cooler in the morning and evening. I like this season: this is my favourite!

This is the time to enjoy chestnuts from the street hawkers. At this time of the year I know my parents (in France) are roasting chestnuts at home and eating them in a soup plate filled with hot milk and a tad of sugar. My Dad loves sweet treats and chestnuts are never sweet enough for him. 

It is also the time for hearty meals. I no longer feel being in a sauna when I am in my kitchen but feel like baking (I already posted my sourdough bread tribulations), making stews and experimenting with bôu-jái-faahn (or little rice pots) recipes (not yet posted). 

But first, before sharing my Pork and Hard-Boiled Eggs Stew recipe with you I would like to show you the pictures I took this afternoon.