Bak Kut Teh herbs can be purchased from local Chinese herbal shop or super market. These herbs now comes with different brands. We mix a packet of ready made packet of mixed herbs in a sachet and picked some herbs from a local herbal shop for this. Some herbs make the soup black in color while some in light brown. Teo Chew BKT will be very light grey.
Boil all the pork bones and meat in hot water for 20 minutes to remove scums, oil and smell. Set aside.
Boil 3 litres of water in a pot with all the herbs and soup bone for 30 minutes.
Put in the rest of the pork meat, garlic and ginger into the pot and boil for another 20 minutes. Add in salt and soy sauce and boil for another 10 minutes.
Turn off fire. Let the pot cool down and keep in the fridge overnight. Alternatively if you have a keep warm thermos pot you can keep in there. This overnight process will marinate the herbal soup and seasoning into the meat.
After overnight, boil the pot. When the pot is hot, add in sugar. Adjust to taste. The soup should taste little salty and sweet. Let it simmer in slow cook for 3 hours and serve. You can add in other optional items such as tofu pok, emoki mushroom or vege. Goes well with white rice and soy sauce with garlic and chili padi.
