The North turns cold in the last days of the year with a hurried pace of life, making many people want to gather around the meal table with their families.
Many people assume that clam sour soup is a typical dish of summer thanks to its cooling properties. However, if you know how to skillfully improvise it, this is a wonderful dipping dish and extremely "pick-up" on days when the temperature drops.
In the minds of Vietnamese people, dishes from clams are often associated with coolness and cooling down. According to traditional medicine, clam meat has a cold nature, sweet and salty taste, helping to nourish yin and promote water (helping the excretory system function better, supporting detoxification through urine). Because of this cold nature, many housewives often hesitate to cook clam soup when the weather turns cold because they are afraid of cold stomachs or not suitable for the air that needs warmth.
However, reality proves the opposite. Winter is usually the season for fried and stir-fried dishes, rich in oil and fat and rich in protein to provide energy for the body. In the middle of that meal, a bowl of hot, smoky clam sour soup is the perfect balance point. The sour taste of pineapple, tamarind or dracontomelon not only helps stimulate the taste buds, fight boredom but also provides abundant amounts of Vitamin C, supporting the immune system during the flu season.
To make clam sour soup harmonious and good for health in winter, the most important rule is the "rules of compensation" in cuisine. Combining hot spices will help neutralize the cold nature of clams, creating a dish that is both delicious and healthy.
Instead of just cooking with ordinary onions and garlic, add a few slices of fresh ginger and a little spicy chili. The spicy taste from ginger and chili not only removes the fishy smell but also has the effect of warming the spleen and stomach, enhancing blood circulation.
Vietnamese coriander and fennel are the two souls of this soup. In particular, Vietnamese coriander is warm in nature, very good for digestion, when combined with clams, it will create a characteristic flavor, dispelling the cold feeling of the weather.
Siamese clam sour soup on cold days must be used immediately when it is still hot. The heat of the broth mixed with the sour and spicy taste will immediately warm the body from the inside.
Oyster sour soup is not picky about the weather as many people think. With a little flexibility in the way of mixing spices, this will definitely be an ideal flavor-changing soup, bringing warmth and deliciousness to family meals on cold days.
