Chinese Lamb Soup

Can you tell that it's unusually cold in Sydney at the moment? This is my fourth soup recipe in three months!

For Mothers' Day, the family gathered together for a dinner where we all brought along different dishes. My brother cooked this beautiful Chinese Lamb Soup. The nearest I got to a recipe from him was that is was similar to his chicken stock recipe (I prefer Kylie Kwong's chicken stock recipe) and he sometimes added other herbs depending on the purpose of the soup. For example, in traditional chinese medicine, star anise is seen as a warming herb.

Since Hubby and I switched to a low sodium diet, our tastes have changed. This recipe makes about 2 litres. Adding the salt increases the sodium in the soup by about 50mg per 100ml.

Serves 8

Times

Preparation:

15 minutes

Cooking:

2 hours

Ingredients

• 1½ kg lamb shanks
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 12 cloves garlic, crushed
• Approx 5cm ginger, sliced
• ½ bunch of shallots, roughly sliced
  (approximately 1 cup)
• ½ tsp fresh ground pepper
• 2 star anise
• 4 litres of water
• ½ tsp salt (optional)
• Extra shallots and white pepper for serving

Method

1. Place all ingredients except the salt, extra shallots, and white pepper, in a stock pot or large saucepan, and bring to the boil.
2. Reduce heat to a simmer, skimming foam from the surface.
3. Turn down heat until surface of stock is barely moving and cook for 2 hours, skimming as required.
4. If desired, add salt.
5. Strain soup into bowls for serving.

Serve with plate of finely-cut shallots and white pepper. Guests can sprinkle shallots and add pepper to their own tastes.

Tips

• Strain soup into containers and freeze for future meals.
• Use the lamb meat in sandwiches or for other meals.
  Try using the lamb in a curry or serving it with a sauce and vegetables.