White Radish Soup 白萝卜汤

Ingredients
Serve 6-8 person
1 large white radish or 2 small/medium ones
3lbs pork ribs (I opted for the baby back ribs)
1 piece of dried cuttlefish (~50g), cut into bite-sized pieces
12 red dates, soaked to soften then seeds removed
3 tbsps whole white peppercorns, lightly crushed
~6 L water
salt to taste

1. Wash the pork ribs trimming away excess fat and then chop them into smaller pieces. Blanch the ribs in a pot of boiling water in batches to remove the scum. Set the ribs aside.
2. Heat up about 6L of water in a large stock pot. While it takes its time to boil, work on getting the radish ready. Rinse, cut off the ends, peel the skin and cut them into fairly large chunks. 
3. Once the pot of water is ready, transfer the ribs and the radishes into the pot. Add in the whole white peppercorns (preferably in a wire mesh or a spice bag) and the rest of the ingredients (minus the salt). Bring to a rapid boil. 
4. Leave to boil for about 15 minutes on high. Cover, turn the heat down to low and let simmer away for optimally at least another four hours. 
5. Right before serving, add in salt to taste.

How to cook Millet

How to Cook Millet

Makes about 3 1/2 cups

While I list the butter as optional here, it really helps keep the millet from sticking together, and a little bit of salt goes a long way.

What You Need

Ingredients
1 cup raw millet
2 cups water (or broth, if you'd prefer)
¼ teaspoon salt, optional
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, optional
Equipment
2-quart saucepan with lid
Stirring spoon
Measuring cup and spoons

Instructions

1. Measure millet and cooking liquid: You'll need 1 cup of raw millet and 2 cups of cooking liquid (water or broth).
2. Toast millet: In a large, dry saucepan, toast the raw millet over medium heat for 4-5 minutes or until it turns a rich golden brown and the grains become fragrant. Be careful not to let them burn.

3. Add the water and salt to the pan: Since the pan is hot, the water will sputter a bit when you pour it in. After adding water and salt, give the millet a good stir.
4. Bring the liquid to a boil: Increase the heat to high and bring the mixture to a boil.
5. Lower the heat and simmer: Decrease the heat to low, drop in the butter and cover the pot. Simmer until the grains absorb most of the water (they'll continue soaking it up as they sit), about 15 minutes. Avoid the temptation to peek a great deal or stir too much (unless its sticking to the bottom). Stirring too vigorously will break up the grains and change the texture.
6. Remove From Heat and Let Stand: Like most grains, millet needs a little time off the heat to fully absorb the liquid. Allow it to sit, covered and removed from heat, for 10 minutes.
7. Fluff and Serve! After millet sits, fluff it with a fork. Taste and add additional salt if you'd like. Millet does not keep well and is best served warm (see Additional Notes below). ]

Additional Notes:

• To make millet porridge, increase the liquid to 3 cups and stir every few minutes as the millet simmers.
• In terms of texture, some of millet's little beads will cook more quickly than others. You'll likely have some softer grains and some chewy or even crunchy grains. I find this to be a good thing!