Cantonese Turnip Soup (Qing Dun Luo Bo / 清炖萝卜)

Place the pork ribs in a saucepan, cover generously with cold water, and bring to a full boil; boil for 2–3 minutes, then drain and rinse each rib under cold running water, so that the grey foam, blood and loose impurities — which would otherwise muddy both the colour and the flavour of the finished broth — are completely removed. The ribs should be visibly clean and pale before they go anywhere near the soup pot. This blanching step is the foundation of a clear soup.

Transfer the cleaned ribs to a clean pot, add 2 litres of cold water, and bring slowly to a gentle simmer over medium heat, starting from cold so the fat and juices ease gradually into the water rather than seizing and clouding it. Once the surface trembles with a quiet, steady simmer — not a rolling boil — reduce the heat to maintain that calm; any rapid boil will turn the broth white and rough-tasting where it should be pale gold and sweet. This is where the dish lives or dies.

Add the daikon sections to the simmering broth and continue to simmer gently, uncovered or with the lid slightly ajar, for a minimum of 2 hours, so the steam can escape and the broth concentrates slowly without turning bitter from trapped condensation. The surface should remain pale gold and translucent throughout; if it begins to boil hard, lower the flame immediately.

At the end of 2 hours, taste the broth — it should be remarkably sweet and clean, with full body from the pork; the daikon sections will be very soft and nearly flavourless, because their sweetness will have migrated entirely into the liquid, which is correct and exactly what you are after. If the broth still tastes thin, continue simmering in 20-minute intervals, tasting each time, until the body and sweetness are fully developed.

Season with fine salt only at the moment of serving, so the natural sweetness that has built slowly over two hours is not flattened or masked during cooking. Ladle into bowls and serve at once.