Pork knuckles and ginger stew facts for kids
Pork knuckles and ginger stew
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| Type | Stew |
|---|---|
| Region or state | Cantonese |
| Invented | Ming Dynasty |
| Main ingredients | Pig trotters, ginger, sweet vinegar, eggs, salt, and oil |
| Similar dishes | Miyeokguk |
Pork knuckles and ginger stew (Chinese: 豬腳薑; pinyin: zhū jiǎo jiāng; Cantonese Yale: jyū geuk gēung) is a special dish from Cantonese cuisine. People in Guangzhou, China, traditionally eat it. New mothers often have this stew to help them get their strength back after having a baby. It's also a way to share the happy news of a newborn with friends and family.
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The Story Behind the Stew
This tasty stew has an interesting story from the early Ming Dynasty. Long ago, there was a butcher who married a kind and lively girl. But even after many years, they didn't have a child. In old Chinese culture, not having a child was seen as a big problem for the family. So, the butcher's mother made them divorce.
The wife was very sad and moved to a small hut on a hill. To her surprise, she soon found out she was going to have a baby!
The butcher still loved his wife. When he heard about the baby, he worried they wouldn't have enough food. So, he brought her some pork knuckles that he hadn't sold. He cooked them in a big pot with sweet black vinegar, ginger, and eggs.
After some years, their child grew up. The wife decided to forgive the butcher's mother. She went back home with her son. As a gift, her son brought a pot of the sweet vinegar stew for his grandmother. The grandmother was very happy to see them and loved the stew.
Since then, whenever a baby is born, families make this sweet vinegar stew. They share it with their friends and neighbors to celebrate the new arrival.
Why This Stew is Special
This stew is not an everyday meal in China. It's a traditional food eaten by new mothers in the Guangzhou area. It helps them recover after giving birth. This special food helps mothers regain their health during the first forty days after childbirth. This period is known as choyut in Cantonese.
According to Cantonese custom, families use Pork knuckles and ginger stew to celebrate a baby's birth. New parents share this dish with their relatives and friends. They usually do this about twelve days after the baby is born.
Healthy Benefits of the Stew
The ingredients in pork knuckles and ginger stew are very good for new mothers. They help them get strong again.
- Calcium Boost: The vinegar in the stew helps to pull calcium from the pork knuckles' bones. This is great for mothers because they lose a lot of calcium during pregnancy.
- Ginger Power: Ginger is full of Vitamin C, which helps make the mother's immune system stronger. It also helps remove "wind" from the body, which is a traditional belief about childbirth. Ginger can also help mothers produce more milk for their babies.
- Protein from Eggs: Eggs give new mothers lots of protein. Protein is very important for repairing muscles and helping the body heal.
One bowl of this stew has almost 600 calories, giving mothers lots of energy.
How the Stew is Made
The main things you need to make pork knuckles and ginger stew are pig trotters, ginger, sweet vinegar, eggs, salt, and a little oil.
Traditionally, people cook this dish in a tall pot made of earthenware with a shiny inside. It's important to use this type of pot. The sour vinegar can pull metals from iron pots into the stew. This happens more with vinegar than with water-based stews.
Buying the Stew Today
Usually, families make this stew themselves. They might even have their own secret family recipes! But today, many people don't have enough time to prepare the stew. It takes a lot of effort.
In Hong Kong, some companies now sell ready-to-eat pork knuckle stew. For example, Chinese herbal shops like Hung Fook Tong and vinegar makers like Pat Chun offer it.
In February 2013, Hung Fook Tong even sold vouchers for a pot of this special dish. Customers of Pat Chun can order fresh stew and have it delivered right to their homes.
