Korean Ginseng & Chicken Soup

Dad's friend gave him a piece of fresh ginseng which he had bought during a holiday to South Korea. It cost a bit more than a hundred ringgit, according to Dad. I thought it was expensive, yet it was really generous of Dad's friend to gift him with the medicinal root. Mom kept it in the fridge and waited for me to come home so that I'd get to eat it too ... ;))

So that morning, Mom bought a fresh free-range chicken to boil some soup with ginseng. Traditionally, in South Korea, ginseng is used to cook samgyetang, where chicken is stuffed with glutinous rice and boiled with ginger, garlic and red dates. But Mom decided not to add any other ingredients that day, i.e. wolfberries and mushrooms.  So it was just chicken and ginseng boiled over low fire for many hours.

Fresh korean ginseng, washed

Hmn ... ginseng is said to have a lot of health benefits. I am not sure what health benefits, though. A search on Google revealed that it is supposed to aid blood circulation and promotes general well-being. 

Korean ginseng soup

Well, I doubt that drinking the soup on a single occasion will make me healthy in any way. So I suppose I was more focussed on the taste. So what did it taste like? Hmn .... the ginseng was quite delicate in flavour, surprisingly. I suppose I had expected it to taste bitter and having a strong medicinal taste. But, it was really yummy - sweet, earthy and umami. I thoroughly enjoyed the soup. 

So ... if I ever visit South Korea, I think I'd not hesitate to buy some fresh ginseng roots ... I'd have Chicken & Ginseng soup anytime!!