If it had not been for my Chinese flatmate, I would have never discovered the brilliance of the Chinese Caterpillar Fungus. It is basically a fungus that feeds and grows inside a caterpillar, till the host dies and is mummified.What has that got to do with food? Well, for one, it makes it extremely healthy and its also supposed to be an aphrodisiac. Imagine that.
So my flatmate used it recently in a soup that he made called Ton Chun Xya Chao i.e. Winter Worm Summer Grass soup.
The worm and the soup.
Here are the ingredients for the soup:
300gms Boneless chicken, cut in inch-long square pieces
1 tbsp Korean Gensing Soup Powder
1 Spring Onion, chopped
1 lt water
Salt to taste
(if you can’t get hold of a Chinese Caterpillar Fungus, do not fret. Most of us on this side of the Universe can’t. Just stay away from too much fat and salt, and you’ll stay healthy anyway.)
How to make it:
Really easy. Put all these ingredients on slow boil for atleast, ATLEAST 4 to 5 hours. Done. Seriously.
Read more about the Chinese Caterpillar Fungus here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caterpillar_fungus
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