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Soups & Broths

Four Treasures Spare-Rib Soup (Si Shen Tang)

Taiwan’s beloved gentle tonic soup: lotus seed, Chinese yam, poria and Job’s tears simmered with tender spare ribs — mild, creamy and family friendly.

🔪
Prep
15 min
🔥
Cook
60 min
🍽
Servings
4
⚡
kcal
320 kcal
Four Treasures Spare-Rib Soup (Si Shen Tang)

Ingredients

  • pork spare ribs, blanched 500 g
  • dried lotus seeds 30 g
  • dried Chinese yam slices 30 g
  • poria cubes 20 g
  • Job's tears (adlay) 30 g
  • fresh ginger 3 slices
  • water 2 L

Featuring ingredients

Lotus Seed Chinese Yam (Huai Shan Yao) Poria (Fu Ling) Job’s Tears (Adlay / Yi Yi Ren)

💡 Kitchen tip

For a vegetarian version, swap ribs for corn chunks, carrot and dried shiitake.

Steps

  1. 1

    Rinse the lotus seeds, yam, poria and Job’s tears, then soak the grains for 30 minutes.

  2. 2

    Blanch the spare ribs in boiling water for 3 minutes, rinse and drain.

  3. 3

    Combine everything with ginger and cold water in a large pot and bring to a simmer.

  4. 4

    Skim gently, cover, and cook on low heat for 60–75 minutes until the grains are tender.

  5. 5

    Season with a pinch of salt and serve warm.

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