Pork Tomato & Cellophane Noodle Soup (瘦肉番茄粉丝汤)

Happy Valentine’s Day!

This is one of my secret Chinese diet recipes that keeps me fit for many years. It's not just dead simple to make, but a few ingredients needed. This recipes is absolutely a low fat low carb low calorie but high protein diet recipe.

Despite we don't count calories in China, I still try my best to give you the nutrition information for every recipe I am sharing here with you. I have been living in UK for 5 years, more or less I am cooking under some influence of western diet.

But "The latest research into weight loss shows that calorie-controlled, low-fat diets are less effective than low glycemic load diets, which is exactly what a traditional Chinese diet is." Western nutrition experts, Patrick Holford says.

So taking a soup, or a soup-based dish help you control your appetite and release nutrients from the food you are about to eat, and that is exactly what a traditional Chinese diet is.

Nutritional value (per serving based on 6 servings)

Calories:             140.5

Carbohydrates:    15.6 g

- Sugars:              1 g

- Dietary fiber:     0.3 g

Fat:                     5.3 g

- Saturates:          2 g

Protein:               6.3 g

Salt:                    0.83 g

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

1. lean pork 200g, cut into thin stripes;

2. tomatoes 200g, washed, seeded and cut into stripes;

3. cellophane noodles 100g;

4. 4 spring onions white parts, cut into stripes;

5. 2 inches root ginger, cut into stripes;

6. 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine;

7. 1 teaspoon salt;

8. sesame oil;

9. 1.5 pints homemade chicken stock or water;

10. 1 teaspoon chicken powder（half teaspoon if using chicken stock).

Directions:

1. Soak cellophane noodles in warm water for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside when it's soft.

2. Bring 1.5 pints of chicken stock or water to boil in a pot.

3. Add cellophane noodles, spring onions, ginger and Chinese rice wine to the boiling water. Cover and bring to boil again.

4. Then add the pork stripes and tomato stripes into the pot, stir it well, cover and bring it back to boil.

5. Sparkle with chicken powder and pour the soup into 4-6 indiviual soup bowls. Sparkle with few drops of sesame oil and serve hot.