Comforting, warm, light watercress soup easily made with just 5 simple ingredients in a pressure cooker. This easy Instant Pot Chinese Watercress Soup will hit the spot and bring you back to your childhood memories!
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Chinese Watercress Soup is a classic Chinese soup dish that features leafy watercress vegetables in a clear broth made with pork. Even though the broth is clear and light, the pork gives it a deep flavor that compliments the watercress leaves.
This dish is often made in many Chinese households. In Chinese cuisine, we usually have soup as a starter to help prevent overeating and for the many nutritional benefits. It's also a great way to eat your vegetables!
This soup recipe is made quicker with the instant pot and can be kept for 4-5 days if you refrigerate it and re-boil it for later. With time, the soup becomes even more flavorful!
This soup brings back a lot of childhood nostalgia for me. I remember serving this soup to my family, using chopsticks to scoop out equal size portion of the watercress leaves in each bowl, followed by a big ladle of broth.
We would drink it before our main dinner and if we had leftover rice we would pour it into the soup to easily finish it off! It was the best way to warm the body up especially during the colder months.
Ingredients & Substitutes
- Pork butt or pork shoulder: or substitute with bone in chicken.
- Garlic cloves
- Watercress Leaves: make sure these are fresh and vibrant
- Cold Water
- Regular Soy sauce: or season with oyster sauce for a deeper flavor!
Expert Tips
- Source fresh watercress leaves that are bright and vibrant. Avoid using greens with any yellowing or rotten leaves.
- Use pork shoulder or pork butt for a richer tasting broth.
- Thoroughly rinse the watercress bunches at least 5 times until there is no dirt or bugs trapped between the leaves. I usually place the watercress leaves in a colander set inside a large steel mixing bowl. Then I fill it with water, rubbing the leaves and then lifting the colander out of the mixing bowl of water. Repeating the process again 4 more times until the leaves are super clean.
- Make sure to skim the cooked broth of its oil and scum floating at the top prior to adding the watercress leaves. The scum isn't pleasant to drink and contains blood which alters the taste of the broth.
- Do not add the watercress when the broth is lukewarm or just hot! It must be boiling, or you will end up with a very bitter soup!
Instructions
Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make Instant Pot Watercress Soup:
- Add sliced pork and minced garlic to instant pot followed by 8 cups of water. Cover instant pot with lid and set to "Soup Mode" and set timer to 60 mins. Set to "Sealing Mode" and allow this to pressurize and boil out.
- Meanwhile wash and rinse watercress at least 5 times until there is no dirt or bugs. Be sure to remove any leaves that may be yellowing or are brownish or molding. Strain out excess water and set aside.
- Once broth has pressurized, release the steam by releasing the Seal. Then set to sauté mode to bring broth to boil. Meanwhile skim and remove the scum and oil floating on top, leaving the pork chunks in the pot.
- When broth is boiling, then add watercress leaves. Do not add watercress when the liquid is not boiling, or it will turn bitter!
- Cover with lid and set to "Soup mode" and "Sealing Mode On". Reduce timer to 5 minutes. Allow this to pressurize and boil. Release the seal to allow steam to escape and remove lid.
- Season with soy sauce to taste. Enjoy!
Storage
- Leftovers lasts 4-5 days stored in an airtight container in the fridge. To re-heat it, re-boil the soup over the stove top or microwave it with the pork in the broth as this adds more flavor overtime.
- Freezer-friendly? I don't recommend freezing the soup as the vegetables will become very mushy.
Pairing Suggestions
This Chinese watercress soup serves well with other Chinese dishes like:
- white or brown rice, cauliflower rice, fried rice, chow mein, lo mein, plain noodles, soup noodles
- cooked vegetables like bok choy, spicy garlic bok choy, choy sum, gai lan, garlic green beans or stir fried snow pea leaves.
- protein dishes like Soy Sauce Chicken, Char Siu, Chinese Roasted Pork Belly, Soy Garlic Tofu, Chinese Braised Tofu and more!
FAQ
Yes, you can make this watercress soup in a normal pot on the stove top by following these instructions:
1. First add your pork and minced garlic into a pot filled with 8 cups of water. Then bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer over medium heat covered. Let this boil for at least 120 minutes to really bring out the flavour.
2. Remove the lid and skim out the scum and oils floating at the top.
3. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil, then add your washed watercress leaves into the pot and submerge them.
4. Boil for 30 minutes until the leaves turn a darker green. Season with soy sauce and enjoy!
Pick the ones that are vibrant green and are not wilted but perky looking. Avoid picking the ones that look very wilted, molding or yellow in colour.
When watercress is added to non-boiling hot water, there is a reaction that causes the soup to turn bitter. Therefore, it's important to add the watercress soup when the broth is boiling hot and bubbling.
📖 Recipe
Easy & Simple Instant Pot Chinese Watercress Soup
Ingredients
- 1.25 lb pork shoulder sliced into large chunks, about 1 x 2 inches
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 bunches watercress leaves
- 8 cups water cold
- 3 tablespoon regular soy sauce or oyster sauce and add more if needed
Instructions
- Add sliced pork chunks and minced garlic to instant pot followed by 8 cups of water. Cover instant pot with lid and set to "Soup Mode" and set timer to 60 mins. Set to "Sealing Mode" and allow this to pressurize and boil out.
- Meanwhile wash and rinse watercress at least 5 times until there is no dirt or bugs. Be sure to remove any leaves that may be yellowing or are brownish or molding. Strain out excess water and set aside.
- Once broth has pressurized, release the steam by releasing the Seal. Then set to sauté mode to bring broth to boil. Meanwhile skim and remove the scum and oil floating on top, leaving the pork chunks in the pot.
- When broth is boiling, then add watercress leaves. Do not add watercress when the liquid is not boiling, or it will turn bitter!
- Cover with lid and set to "Soup mode" and "Sealing Mode On". Reduce timer to 5 minutes. Allow this to pressurize and boil. Release the seal to allow steam to escape and remove lid.
- Season with soy sauce to taste. Enjoy!
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
That was a great tip for using chopsticks to serve up equal portions of the watercress into each bowl. Nothing beats a hot bowl of delicious soup on a cold night!!