Half Chicken Persimmon Chinese Soup

I am in complete horror.  Seriously.  3 days ago, to celebrate the end of 2013 and ring in the New Year, I ate nothing but processed foods; take out, chips, chocolate bars, cake, drank alcohol and soda drinks.  Something must have possessed me because never have I completely and willingly let go and stuff my face with all these foods in such a short time in large qualities!!!! Never!!!

So when I finally got home, back to a controllable environment, the first thing I did was drink Half Chicken Persimmon Soup I had (thankfully) prepared a few days before my body consumed large amounts of processed goods.

I must admit, the soup was purely coincidental and not at all planned.  The persimmon fruit just happened to be sitting innocently on the counter, waiting to be eaten as a fruit.  Little did it know, its end course was bathed in simmering broth, flavouring and highlighting the chicken mushroom stock. The whole chicken (raised in Ontario) just happened to be on sale, with the feet and head still attached, tucked and twisted into its shaved body.  The chinese dried herbs used was something I always have on the ready.

So here goes!

Since a whole chicken will be far too much for the amount of soup I usually make, I did have to cut the poor whole chicken in half, saving the other half in the freezer for other uses, hence the name of the soup; Half Chicken.... 

Makes: 8-10 bowls of soup

Ingredients:
1/2 Chicken
2 dried shitake mushrooms - soaked in hot water
2 pieces of dried scallop - soaked in hot water (optional)
1 tbsp of dried goji berries, sliced almonds 
1-2 small pieces of sliced dried ginseng
1 - 2 dried honey dates
1 dried white fungus
1 thin slice of ginger
and a couple slices of root herb I've got no clue of the name, all I know is, its good for you
1 persimmon fruit
1 carrot
1/2 lotus root

Directions:
1.  In a ceramic pot, fill water to a little more than half way.  Clean the half chicken under cold water.  Add clean chicken to pot.  Bring to a medium boil.

2.  Skim off the skum as it surfaces; the cloudy foamy yuckiness.
3.  While it slowly heats to medium boil, in a bowl, add all the dried chinese herbs including the shitake mushrooms and soak in hot water for 5 mins.  Drain and rinse clean and drain.

4.  Once chicken stock comes to a soft boil, add in the dried herbs and ginger, lower the heat to low.  Cover and allow to simmer.

5.  Peel and chop carrot, lotus root and persimmon into bite size pieces

6.  Add to pot and continue to allow to simmer for another 2.5 hours.

Broth colour prior to simmering 2.5hrs

Broth colour deepens after 2.5 hours of simmering

After 2.5 hours of simmering, broth colour deepens resulting in a full body flavour.  Traditionally, only the liquid portion of the soup is drunken, while the veggies, herbs and meat are discarded since it is believed, during the long simmering process, all flavours and invisible nutrients are extracted and released into the broth.  While this may be a huge waste to most people, I do try to consume a majority of the veggies and meat.  Don't consume the chinese herbs!! But be sure to drink up all the delicious broth!!

Enjoy this full flavoured, robust, clean soup!  It certainly made me believe this soup help cleaned out all the processed food I had consumed. :DD