Pork Rib Soup with Peanuts and Black Eye Beans

This hearty soup is one of the typical Chinese slow-cooked soups that is perfect for the cold autumn/winter nights. It is spring here now, was chilly last few days and I thought it would be nice to have some hot soup for the dinner. When I started to cook this, I then realised the weather was too hot... too late! I prefer to have steamboat or slow-cooked soups when the weather is cold. Contrary, T loves it in the hot weather. He enjoyed the soup very much last night and asked me to cook another soup with claypot tonight!

For this soup, it is optional to add red dates and wolfberries. I always have those two items available in the fridge, so I just dropped a few in it. Red dates enhance the sweetness of the soup, whereas the wolfberries is said to have many health benefits including improving eye-sight. Both of them are commonly used in traditional Chinese Medicine. If your pot is big enough, you may add a few chicken feet in it.

Ingredients (4 servings):
500g ribs or oxtail
70g peanuts
70g black eye beans
1 medium carrot, chopped
2-3 chinese red dates (optional)
10g dried wolfberries (optional)
1-2 litres boiling water (depends on the pot size)
Salt to taste

Directions:

1. Boil ribs in a medium pot for 2-3 minutes then discard the water. Transfer ribs to a claypot, add in water and cook on low heat for 15-20 minutes.
2. Add in peanuts, black eye beans, carrot and dates. Cover and let it simmer on low heat for 50-60 minutes or until the peanuts and beans are softened.
3. Add wolfberries and salt to taste, let it simmer for another 5-10 minutes. Serve warm.