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Duck blood and vermicelli soup facts for kids

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Duck blood and vermicelli soup
Duck blood and green bean noodle Soup 2010.JPG
Duck blood and green bean noodle soup, a very similar dish
Place of origin China
Region or state Nanjing
Main ingredients Duck blood, Chinese vermicelli

Duck blood and vermicelli soup (also called Yāxiě fěnsī tāng in Chinese) is a special and tasty dish from Nanjing, a big city in China. People enjoy this soup not only in Nanjing but also in many other parts of China. There's even a similar soup in countries like Poland, Belarus, and Lithuania, which is known as czernina.

What is Duck Blood and Vermicelli Soup?

Duck blood and vermicelli soup is a very popular traditional dish. It comes from Nanjing, which is the capital city of Jiangsu province in China. This soup is famous for its rich flavor and unique ingredients.

A Story About the Soup

There is an old story about how this soup began. Long ago, a poor man in Nanjing was cooking a duck. He collected the duck's blood in a bowl. By accident, some vermicelli noodles fell into the bowl of blood. Instead of throwing it away, he cooked them together. To his surprise, the soup tasted amazing! A rich person heard about this delicious new dish. They hired the poor man to cook it for their family. Since then, this special soup has become very popular.

What's Inside the Soup?

Xiaolongbao & Duck blood and vermicelli soup
Xiaolongbao & Duck blood and vermicelli soup

Duck blood and vermicelli soup uses many different ingredients. These include duck blood, thin noodles called vermicelli, and dried fried tofu. Small dried shrimp are also added. Other duck parts like gizzards, intestines, and livers are often included. For flavor, people add shallots, ginger, sesame oil, and a herb called caraway.

Key Ingredients Explained

The main noodles, vermicelli, are made from sweet potato. They are smooth, soft, and very tasty. Duck blood is another important part of the soup. Dried fried tofu adds a nice texture. Dried small shrimp give the soup a salty, savory taste. Duck gizzards, intestines, and livers add to the rich flavor. Salt, shallots, ginger, sesame oil, and caraway make the soup even more delicious. All these ingredients together make the soup look good, smell wonderful, and taste fantastic!

Traditional Beliefs

Some people prepare this soup with more than twenty different traditional Chinese herbs. They believe these special ingredients can help the body in different ways. For example, some think they help with blood flow. Others believe they can help with digestion and keep the stomach warm. These beliefs are part of the soup's long history.

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