American Ginseng Chicken Soup

American ginseng is not a stimulating herb. As a cooling herb it will take a period of time to build up the body before you will "feel" a difference.

Due to the hectic work schedule, tiredness of our mind and body as well as the "heaty" weather recently, I decided to set on this American Ginseng Chicken Soup to revive our strength. Other than the American Ginseng Roots, I also add in some Yu Zhu which is Cool in nature. It influences the lung and stomach channels thus nourishes Yin, prevents internal dryness, extinguishes wind and softens the sinews. It is also commonly used to treat irritability, thirst, intense hunger, sensation of heat in the bones, and cramped and hard muscles.

Ingredients: (serves 2)
2 Chicken Drumstick, skin removed
5g of American Ginseng, root portion
4 - 6 Red Dates, removed seeds
1/2 Tablespoon Wolfberries
5g Yu Zhu(玉竹)
800ml Water

Method:
1. Wash, trim and clean the drumstick then blanched in boiling water for a few minutes, rinse and set aside.
2. Rinse the dry herbs then bring the water to boil in a pot and add in the all the herbs except wolfberries.
3. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes before adding the drumstick then continue to simmer for another 10 minutes.
4. Remove the pot from heat and transfer the content to a double-boiler shown in the picture below.
5. Place the double-boiler in a slow-cooker and cook on AUTO heat for about 3 hours. Add in the wolfberries at the very last 30 minutes.
6. You can season it with pinch of salt before serving or so.

As you can reference through the picture, this is a very easy to prepared homemade double-boiled soup which mostly suitable for everyone in the family. You can also replace the Ginseng Root with either Whole Ginseng or Ginseng Slices for different varieties of soup.

Related Post:
1. Double-Boiled Ginseng Chicken Soup
2. Ginseng Black Chicken Soup
3. Ginseng Honey Tea

Imperial Cordyceps Chicken

While doing my usual weekend marketing, I happen to get hold of this leaflet from the poultry stall in the wet market. I was surprised to see this new product of Imperial Cordyceps Chicken by Kee Song Brothers Poultry Industries Pte Ltd of Singapore and Meng Kee Poultry (M) Sdn Bhd of Malaysia.

This new product is also available in NTUC FairPrice supermarkets, leading hotels restaurants, and poultry stores. It's current retails is at SGD $16.80 per packet weighs about 1 kg and I saw at NTUC promotion that it comes with a pack of free pre-packed herbs together with the chicken. In the given leaflet, there are a few soup menu from Chinese Physician "CHEN MEI ER" too... It is said that these chicken is rich in Cordyceps Sinensis and has the nutritional benefits of wild Cordyceps without impurities.

Even though it might be a bit costly to get a chicken at such at price, but for health wise, maybe it's worth giving it a try. Do check out with the promoter at your nearby NTUC supermarket for soup sampling and more details.

Yoshinoya

YOSHINOYA is famous for its Beef Bowl (Gyudon) which is a tasty and wholesome meals with fast food convenience. It is comprise of thinly sliced imported beef simmered in a special broth and seasoned with a unique blend of savoury herbs and spices. Yoshinoya has a lot of branches all over Singapore and it's really another type of having casual Japanese Food in a budget way.

Other than their Beef Bowl (Gyudon), my dear son especially loves their Ebi Set. He will have it plain without any sauce. The prawn is nicely fried with a crispy outer layer and juicy inside when bite. It is also served with mixed vegetables including carrots, cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower in our Signature Sauce over a bed of plump, steamed white rice.

All the set meals include a bowl of hot and heartwarming Miso soup to go with the rice meal.

We also order their Crispy Potato Mix @ S$3.95, which come in 3 different types of Potato mix:- potato croquette, potato gem and potato chip. They taste even better with the Wasabi mayonnaise sauce.

They have have a few choices of the Kiddo Bento that comes with free gift for kids. So do drop by any of their branches in your nearby shopping mall for new taste of Japanese Food at a affordable prices.

Marina Barrage

Marina Barrage is a dam in Singapore that built across the Marina Channel between the reclaimed lands of Marina East and Marina South. It was officially opened on 1 November 2008. This S$226 million project turns Marina Bay and Kallang Basin into a new downtown freshwater Marina Reservoir. It also provides water supply, flood control and a new lifestyle of attraction.

There is a green roof top which doubles up as a recreational space, open to public access. You will be able to see a lot of visitors flying kites or having picnic on that area too. Other than recreation area, it is also serves as an insulation to lower the temperature of the building. The pump house which located at the ground floor contains seven pumps are used to flush water out of the reservoir during stormy weather at high tide. But the interior of the pump house is closed to members of the public.

This is the Marina Bridge which containing the press gates that form the barrier of the Marina Barrage. Besides separating the seawater from freshwater, it also acts as a tidal barrier to keep out high tides. The 5m tall steel gates can be lowered during heavy rains so that water from the reservoir can be released into the sea.

Other than the outdoor activities, they also have "The Sustainable Singapore Gallery (SSG)" which is an information and sensory extravaganza showcasing Singapore’s efforts towards environmental sustainability.

From 3 August 2009, SBS 400 will be added to the shuttle service between Marina Bay MRT Station and Marina Barrage. Please refer to the chat list of the schedule here. If you are free, do drop by either in the morning or late evening to enjoy the beautiful scenic from another side the city.