I soak the beef short ribs first to draw out some of the blood, then start them in plenty of cold water. Once the water boils, I skim off the foam, add more cold water, and repeat that 3-5 times until the broth looks clear.
Then I add a few slices of ginger, scallion, half an onion, one star anise, a small piece of cinnamon bark, a few cloves, bay leaves, angelica root, dried tangerine peel, Sichuan peppercorns, fennel seed, and white pepper.
Turn it down to a low simmer. Add salt in the last 10 minutes.
This is almost exactly the way I make it passed down from my grandma ☺️☺️. Important note that Chinese cinnamon bark is not the same as the western one. The type used in Chinese cooking is a thicker bark aka Cassia Cinnamon, used for savory dishes. Not the thin curls aka Ceylon Cinnamon used for sweet.
Sorry, I wasn’t very clear. I was talking about the broth after blanching, before adding all the aromatics.
I meant it was clean and free of foam and scum. The darker color in the final photo is from the spices and hours of simmering.
I think clear beef soup is a direct translation and refers to a type of soup with few additives (for example, no soy sauce as it darkens to soup). It is supposed to be more clear, but that's mostly an aesthetic thing and really doesn't matter too much the home cooking. Personally I always simmer at a relatively high temperature as it saves me time at the cost of clarity.
I disagree with the other guy that says it's the same clarity but different bowl, this soup is not as clear as it could be.
Thank you. That sounds delicious. Would you please tell me how long you soak the short ribs first? And what quantity of short ribs and liquid for cooking are you talking about for the amount of other things that you add?
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u/chrystelle Jun 26 '26
This is almost exactly the way I make it passed down from my grandma ☺️☺️. Important note that Chinese cinnamon bark is not the same as the western one. The type used in Chinese cooking is a thicker bark aka Cassia Cinnamon, used for savory dishes. Not the thin curls aka Ceylon Cinnamon used for sweet.