Lab Bi (Six Aroma/Flavours, Lok Mei) Soup Recipe – Chinese Traditional Soup to Whet the Appetite

Types of herbs used (clockwise from top middle) : Longan fruit, polygonatum root, Dioscorea Yam, lily bulbs, fox nut and Lotus seeds (halved, with brown skins) You can find pre packed Lab Bi (six aroma/flavours, Lok Mei) herbal combination in most Chinese Medicine Hall. This is a very popular soup among the Chinese and it is known to be able to whet the appetite. As a foodie, I need a lot of this soup so that I can continue eating nonstop, ha ha ha!
The sweet and neutral Fox Nut (Brown and white) is good for our kidneys, spleen and appetite. Fox Nut is the fruit of a type of waterweeds that grows in lakes and swamps. The other herbs that are found in Lab Bi are Polygonatum Root (Yuzhu, Polygonatum odoratum, for wind and prevent internal dryness), Longan Fruit (Yanrou, Euphoria Longan, nourishes the blood and spleen), Lily Bulbs (Baihe, Lilium Brownni, stops cough, removes heatiness and settle the mind), Dioscorea Yam (Huaishan, Dioscorea opposita, Strenthen Digestive system, increase Qi, good for lungs and kidneys). The Lotus seeds (Lianzi, Nelumbo nucifera) that are used in this herbal combination are with the brown skins intact. The ones that are used for Tong Sui would have this brown skin removed. Lotus seeds nourish the kidney and spleen.
I normally buy these herbs separately and mix them whenever I want to cook this soup.

Ingredients
Fox nut, 2 table spoons
Polygonatum Root, 10 pcs
Longan Fruit, 10 pcs
Lily Bulbs, 10 pcs
Dioscorea Yam, 4 pcs
Lotus Seeds, 20 half seeds
Chicken Carcass, Bones or Pork Ribs, 300 gms
Water, 6 bowls Salt to taste

Put water in pot and bring to a boil. Add in all the ingredients and boil in slow heat for around 45 minutes to 1 hour. Add salt to taste. Serve with steamed rice.

PS : This is a savoury version which you eat with rice. Some people would omit the bones and salt. They would put in sugar to make it into a dessert.