Lotus Root & Pork Rib Soup

排骨藕汤 · pái gǔ ǒu tāng

Hubei's home-cooking soul: starchy Honghu lotus root simmered with pork ribs until the root turns powdery-soft and the broth goes faintly pink.

Order it

The story

Hubei is China's lotus province — Honghu and the Jianghan Plain grow the country's best 粉藕 (starchy root). Every Wuhan family serves this at reunion dinners, and mothers-in-law judge a new bride by her soup.

How to eat it

Shared dish. Drink the soup first, then eat the root; a good one 'draws threads' (藕断丝连) when you bite it.

Where

Any 湖北菜 (Hubei cuisine) restaurant; look for 藕汤 in the soup section.

Allergens: pork