Deep Well King Orchid Soup

Deep Well King Orchid Soup

　　   Deep Well King Orchid is a famous local specialty of Huangpu District.

　　    King Orchid is commonly processed by heating and drying, which is a fast method, but the resulting product often carries an astringent taste and lacks fragrance.

　　    The people of Deep Well have a different approach to processing King Orchid—they sun-dry it naturally. Since the peak season for King Orchid falls between the fifth and ninth lunar months, there are many sunny days but also a lot of rain. Drying the orchids requires constant effort: gathering them up when it rains, spreading them out again when the sun returns, then collecting them again at night and laying them on bluestone slabs to air-dry. Any slight mishap can cause the orchids to spoil, in which case they must be discarded—so although the quality is excellent, the yield is not high. This process reflects the perseverance of the people of Deep Well, enabling such delicate King Orchid to produce premium dried goods. It’s said that for a family of four or five, adding just about one or two liang (50–100g) of King Orchid when making soup and simmering it slowly over low heat is enough to fill the pot with rich, floral flavor. The King Orchid harvest occurs roughly five times a year, and the price is around 20 yuan per jin (500g), which may be slightly higher than elsewhere, but the reputation is outstanding. Next time you’re here, be sure to bring back a small portion—it’s truly a rare delicacy on Guangzhou’s dining tables.

　　    Soup made with Deep Well King Orchid has a fragrant, mellow taste, and its sweet, floral richness makes you feel as if you’ve become one of those refined ancient scholars who savored blossoms and petals.