Papaya, Peach Resin and Coconut Soup 木瓜桃膠椰汁糖水 is a simple sweet soup that is great for skin, hair, nails, bones and joints. Peach resin has been called “poor man’s bird’s nest (燕窩 yàn wō)” since it’s a small fraction of the price of bird’s nest. Now that some worry about the estrogen content in bird’s nest, people are looking for alternatives to give them collagen without the side effects. Although peach resin has no collagen, it is high in collagen precursors that promote collagen production in your body. Note that collagen cannot obtained from non-animal means. But there are many collagen-like vegetarian products than can boost your body’s ability to make it. Peach resin and coral grass are some better known ones.
I have another recipe with peach resin and Asian pear. The Asian pear was the feature and so I only used 10g of peach resin. You can check it out here. For this recipe, peach resin is the star and so I used 40g but you can use as much or as little as you like.
I recently made this for a birthday banquet luncheon I made for a friend. I made it in advance and just steamed it in a bowl with a lid for 20 minutes. It was very impressive and only looked expensive! So it’s also great for entertaining.
I actually prefer peach resin over bird’s nest soup. It’s of course more economical, but it’s also humane and sustainable. Also has a great texture. Many people aren’t familiar with peach resin but it’s becoming more popular. I’ve seen it at Asian supermarkets. But if you can’t find it there, try the Chinese herbal stores.
Cleaning peach resin is not fun but it’s easier than cleaning bird’s nest. And since it’s a lot less pricy, it’s okay to let a few of the dirtier pieces go to waste. I was actually able to clean 40g of peach resin in 35 minutes. And I did it while watching television.
In my Papaya, Peach Resin and Coconut Soup 木瓜桃膠椰汁糖水 recipe, I’ll show you how to make this healthy and delicious dessert that the whole family will enjoy.
Papaya, Peach Resin and Coconut Soup 木瓜桃膠椰汁糖水
Ingredients
- 1 Papaya (approx. 600g)
- 40 g Dried peach resin
- 60 g Rock sugar
- 200 ml Coconut cream
- 2 c Water
Instructions
- Soak dried peach resin overnight in water. You may also soak it in hot water and it will soften in approx. 3 hours
- Use a tweezer to remove impurities or residue from the tree.
I find the easiest way is to prepare 2 bowls, 1 filled with water. Use the empty bowl to place the clean peach resin. The one filled with water is for the impurities so you can easily release what’s on the tweezer into the water. - In a pot, add the cleaned peach resin, 200 ml coconut cream, 2 cups water and 60g of rock sugar.
- Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to low. Cook for 30 minutes
- Dice papaya
- Add papaya to the pot after the peach resin has cooked for 30 mintues.
- Bring to a boil again using higher heat
- After it boils, it is ready to eat
- Serve
What would be the difference between using coconut milk vs coconut cream?
Hi Jinny, coconut cream has a more concentrated flavour than coconut milk. It's also thicker. For the Papaya, Peach Resin and Coconut Soup, I like to use coconut cream for a stronger coconut aroma, but coconut milk will also work since it's a soup. You could just add less water. In applications such as curry, I would definitely use coconut cream because I don't want the coconut milk to thin out my sauce. Hope this helps. Happy cooking!