#82 Five Spice Black Bean Soup, Western Style

To serve 4

250g dried black beans
2 star anise
3 cm cinnamon stick
3 cloves
½ tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp Szechuan pepper
2 tbsp oil
2 cm ginger, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 red chilli, chopped
4 tbsp light soy sauce
a few drops of sesame oil

Put the black beans in a deep pan, together with the five spices, cover with water and cook on medium heat until the beans have softened, about an hour. When ready, take the spices out and discard.
In a small pan, heat the oil and fry the ginger, garlic and chilli for 1 minute. Add to the soup.
Add the soy sauce and sesame oil and transfer the soup to a liquidizer. Blend until very smooth, adding more water if the soup looks too thick.
Reheat gently and serve.