Cooking Black Chicken Soup - Chinese Cooking Series

I'm a Lebanese girl on a mission to win over my Chinese boyfriend's mom through food. In this cooking series, I'll be making different Chinese dishes for the first time and testing them on my boyfriend to see if they pass the taste test. By the end of this series, we'll pick five dishes together to present to Edward's mom and find out if I can finally impress her. My first dish for today is Chinese black chicken soup, also known as herbal silky chicken soup. It's raining today and soup season has officially started. Let's make some! This right here is a silky black chicken. It's known to carry so much nutrition that it's the recovery chicken. It is usually leaner than the typical chicken so you don't have much fat in there but has as much protein and iron if not more. So let's turn that into a Cantonese soup. Black chicken soup is often called a healing tonic in Chinese culture because it's believed to work wonders for the body, especially when you're feeling weak or recovering from something like illness, childbirth, or surgery. It's a very easy dish to make, you just need to find the right ingredients. First, cut off the head and the feet of the black chicken before placing it in a pot with cold water. Cold water is very important here because it helps draw out all the gunk as the chicken boils. Once it starts boiling, you'll notice the impurities rising to the surface. Scoop those out as they appear. You can keep this as your soup base if you like, but personally I prefer tossing that water entirely and starting fresh with new water for a cleaner flavor. Next up are the key ingredients that make the soup so special. You'll need huang chi or radi astragali. It strengthens your body's defenses and boosts overall vitality. Then there's dang shen or codonopsis root, sometimes called poor man's ginseng since it's a more affordable option with similar benefits. It's great for boosting energy and nourishing the blood. Of course, we can't forget ginger. It is great for boosting circulation, easing cold symptoms, and help your digestion. Lotus seeds are also essential as they calm your mind, improve digestion, and support your heart and kidneys. For a hint of sweetness, we've got dried longan. It's believed to calm the spirit. Goji berries. They're great for eye health, boosting immunity, and supporting your liver and kidneys. And red dates or jujubes. They're believed to nourish your blood, improve your sleep, and give your immune system a boost. Finally, I like to add tangerine peel or lemon peel. This keeps the soup from feeling too heavy or greasy. Just make sure to wash these well first since dried stuff tend to collect dust. And you want to get rid of that. Once everything is ready, dust these ingredients into the pot with fresh water and the chicken. Bring it all to a boil, then transfer it to a smaller broiler. Let it slow cook on low heat for, I would say, about two to three hours, allowing all the flavors and nutrients to melt together. And then it will be ready to serve. Here we go. I'm so excited. This is the first time I make this soup or any Chinese soup in general. Like, it's my first time ever. And if I pull this off, that means any one of you watching can pull this off. Let's give it a go and see how it tastes. Oh my god, it's so good. It's like a warm hug. So perfect for this weather. Okay, I'm gonna try the meat now. I heard it might taste like a game meat, but we shall see. Oh my god, it tastes so good. It just tastes like a chicken. I can't tell the difference. I thought it's gonna be like a subtle different taste, but I can't tell. Like, honestly, this is probably the best soup I've ever done. I wonder what Edward's gonna think of that. So let us call him over and see what are his thoughts. Eyes closed. Okay, okay. Whoa, this is something only my mom has ever made for me. And now I'm the second woman who ever made this for you. Yes, this is a very complicated dish to make. It's not as complicated as you think. It's super simple to do. It's just complicated to find the ingredients. It's got these red dates, these things. I don't even know what it's called in Chinese. Lotus seeds. What is this? Longan. Longan as well? First try the soup base, then try the chicken, then the rest. Chinese black chicken soup. There's a subtle chicken flavor and then a lot of herbs flavor. Is there anything like dominant taste to it or it's all blending together? Like a prominent. No, no, it's blended very well. Really? Yeah, I don't think there's that much. Don't lie to me just because I'm going to guide you. No, for real, no, for real. I don't think that there's a very prominent flavor. I'm struggling to come up with an answer for this. A key thing for this soup is everything has to blend together. Oh, really? Yeah, so you should like no flavor has to stand out. It's like a harmonious blend. You shouldn't feel like, oh, it's a chicken soup. I shouldn't feel like it's a herbal soup. It should be a mixture. Look, I didn't lie. I never knew that before. Don't. No, for real. I don't make Chinese food like this. I didn't know that. It's hard for me to pick out an exact taste. I'm so excited. So good. Does it remind you? This reminds me of home. You're the best girlfriend ever. Guys, this is black chicken. If you've never seen it before, it tastes exactly like regular chicken. But I think it's less fatty. It is less fatty. I actually don't know why it's black. Is the chicken egg itself actually black? Yeah, it's the type of chicken. It's so tender. How is it? Very yummy. It's really good. Isn't this your first time making this? First time making it. Dude, you're so OP. You need to get your Chinese license right now. Wow, you finished it. Okay, rate this dish. 10. Really? Actually, can I have seconds? Yeah, we're gonna sit down and actually eat. This is legit a 10. And the fact that you made it your first time is so impressive. And also the fact that you even think to make something like this. This is something that no one would ever think of when it comes to Chinese food. But this stuff is the most traditional Chinese food and the most healthy. I want to be able to cook Chinese food for you. For me. You know, like I don't do that. I want to up my game. Best girlfriend ever. Next thing you know, I'll have the full set with the real Chinese knife. Not like the normal knife that you guys see. Like, you know this big one? The butcher knife. They cut everything with it. There's only one knife in the Chinese kitchen is the big fat one. If you guys enjoyed this video, make sure you give it a thumbs up and subscribe, guys. Subscribe to this channel. This series is gonna be amazing. She's gonna keep making different foods for me. Yeah. To impress my mom. We'll see if she gets impressed with it. Yeah, we shall see. Anyway, we'll stay in touch. Bye. If you want to see more, click here to watch me cook lo mai gai for the first time. And here for a video that YouTube thinks you'll love.