Pig feet and ginger stew

There are a lot of chinese traditions I don't quite understand. I guess it doesn't really matter...as long as they involve nice food.

Today, we got to enjoy one of those rare treats...my dad cooked pig feet and ginger stew.

Jiang chu is the name of the dish and legend has it dating back to the Ming Dynasty. The dish literally means 'ginger vinegar' and it is indeed gingery and vinegary. But the highlight is the soft, gelatinous chunks of stewed pig trotters, which both Nathan (!!) and I enjoyed for dinner.

The dish is eaten soon after the arrival of a new baby and is suppose to be a restorative dish for the mother. The rest of us just happen to be riding on my sister's coat tails.

Aside from the effort it takes to make and grow a baby, the dish is apparently very time consuming to make, which probably explains why dad doesn't make it every other week.

I eagerly await the arrival of the niece/nephew.