Nang Chong Stories : Sea Cucumber Soup

Sea cucumber soup with egg drop soup

We Foochows have a great love for soups. There is a saying, we Foochows must have soup with our meals :" Cannot do without soup - 不汤不行." And indeed if we had nothing else, we had a soup. My own family loves soup too and quite often it is just soup!!


A foreign friend of mine said that he was surprised to see five different soups during a single meal in Fuzhou city.  He had a thick sea cucumber soup, a thick seafood toufoo soup, a clear whole chicken soup, a razor clam soup and a whole duck in  soup. The vegetables came out last. He was overwhelmed by the richness of the food but nevertheless, he enjoyed it to his surprise.His fellow travellers who never had that rich cultural and culinary experience were amazed.

Indeed, even in a simple Foochow home in Sibu today (I cannot speak for the Foochows of Fuzhou district of China), we can have two soups e.g. Sea Cucumber Soup and a Bitter Gourd Soup, with the latter as the last dish.Sometimes when the wallet is thick a father may order two special soups in a restaurant.

Another point to raise is the nature of a thick soup called 羹 or Geng which is very much favoured by the Foochows. Geng is created by adding a special tapioca based powder which does not colour the soup but will only thicken.

Of all the ingredients, SEA CUCUMBER , is the most favoured for soups prepared by Foochow chefs both in Fuzhou City and in Sibu or wherever there are Foochow chefs..



The two Chinese words for Sea Cucumber is Hai Shen or Sea Ginseng. As the name implies, it has ginseng's health giving properties.

Its shape has also earned some fame for itself as an aphrodisiac.

A Chinese doctor has said that many studies have stated that it could be a good treatment for kidney disorders, high blood pressure, and  impotence.

It has a high protein content and a low fat content, an ideal food for the health conscious.

But the Foochows in the past , in Mainland China, during the times of plenty, loved it because the seas around Fujian in China were full of sea cucumber and fresh ones were harvested as easily as fresh fish for the families.

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My grandmother lived with my Third Uncle's family in Nang Chong. And in the 70's Indonesian traders sold dried sea cucumber at 7 ringgit per Kilo, an unbelievable price today. My Third Aunt prepared the dried sea cucumber and cooked them as a soup. During my grandmother's old age, the soft sea cucumber was nourishing as well as comforting to her. This was the way a daughter in law and grand children would show their love to their elders.

My uncle used to say that "After eating sea cucumber soup, his eyes were brighter and sharper!" This is a good Foochow statement to compliment the good wife who has saved to buy the sea cucumber for every one in the family.

A sea cucumber soup makes an ordinary meal extraordinary.


My  Third Aunt recently said that the best sea cucumbers are too highly priced. Just look, don't buy. Just remember that we once had it so good in Nang Chong.