Confinement soup recipes: six easy soups to cook at home, with wet market shopping lists and who should check with a doctor first

These confinement soup recipes use ingredients from any wet market, supermarket or Chinese medical hall, and none takes more than a little chopping and a long simmer. Fish soup with papaya is the classic Chinese confinement soup, KKH notes, believed to help milk supply. HealthHub's postpartum advice, endorsed by doctors from KKH, SGH and NUH, is to make sure soups add protein and iron for recovery, vegetables and fruit for vitamins, and plenty of fluid if you're breastfeeding, with less salt. Two cautions apply to every recipe: if you add rice wine and you're breastfeeding, wait at least three hours before feeding or expressing, and ask your doctor or a registered TCM physician before adding herbal tonics. For meals to go with them, see our easy confinement recipes and one-week menu.

The six soups at a glance

Each recipe makes about four bowls. Keep the salt low: HealthHub suggests less salt, sauce and processed food to ease water retention after the birth.

Papaya fish soup

The best-known Chinese confinement soup. KKH lists fish soup boiled with papaya among the traditional dishes believed to help milk production, and HealthHub lists papaya as a good source of vitamin C, which helps you absorb iron.

• 500g fish bones or 300g fish slices, such as batang or snapper
• 1 small green (unripe) papaya, about 400g
• 4 slices old ginger
• 1.5 litres water
• 1 teaspoon oil, salt and white pepper

1. Peel the papaya, scoop out the seeds, then cut it into large chunks.
2. Heat the oil and fry the ginger for a minute, then fry the fish bones until lightly browned.
3. Add the water, bring to the boil and simmer for 30 minutes, until the stock turns milky.
4. Strain out the bones if you used them, add the papaya and any fish slices, and simmer for 10 minutes more.
5. Season lightly and serve hot.

Black chicken soup with red dates

Wet markets and supermarkets sell black chicken as silkie chicken, and it's a confinement favourite. Red dates are on HealthHub's list of neutral foods if you follow TCM's warming and cooling ideas.

• 1 black chicken, about 600g, cut into pieces
• 10 red dates, pitted
• 1 tablespoon wolfberries, also sold as goji
• 4 slices old ginger
• 2 litres water

1. Blanch the chicken in boiling water for two minutes, then rinse.
2. Put the chicken, red dates and ginger in a pot with the water, bring to the boil and simmer gently for 2 hours, or double-boil for 3.
3. Add the wolfberries in the last 15 minutes.
4. Skim off the fat and season with a little salt.

Medical halls sell bags of mixed herbs for chicken soup, such as dang gui or eight-treasure mixes. Those are herbal preparations, and HealthHub asks you to consult a registered TCM physician first to make sure they're safe while you're breastfeeding. Our guide to confinement herbs explains what each one is used for and who should avoid it.

Pork rib and lotus root soup

A gentle soup for the days you want something plain. HealthHub lists lotus root among the neutral vegetables, neither "heaty" nor "cooling".

• 500g pork ribs, blanched
• 500g lotus root, peeled and sliced
• 8 red dates, pitted
• 2 litres water

1. Put everything in a pot. Bring to the boil and skim.
2. Simmer, covered, for 2 hours, until the lotus root is soft.
3. Season with a little salt.

ABC soup

The everyday Singapore soup, full of vegetables. HealthHub suggests two servings of vegetables a day, and carrots and onions are on its neutral list; tomatoes add vitamin C.

• 500g pork ribs or chicken pieces, blanched
• 2 potatoes and 2 carrots, cut into chunks
• 1 large onion, quartered
• 2 tomatoes, quartered
• 2 litres water

1. Bring the water and meat to the boil, skim, and simmer for 30 minutes.
2. Add the potatoes, carrots and onion, and simmer for 45 minutes.
3. Tomatoes go in for the last 15 minutes. Season lightly.

Lean pork and spinach soup with egg

A quick soup for iron. HealthHub lists red meat and dark green vegetables such as spinach as good iron sources for making up for blood loss after delivery.

• 150g minced lean pork, mixed with a pinch of pepper and a teaspoon of light soy sauce
• 200g spinach, washed and cut
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3 slices ginger
• 1 litre water or low-salt stock

1. Boil the water with the ginger.
2. Drop in small balls of the minced pork and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Put in the spinach for 2 minutes.
4. Turn off the heat and stir in the beaten egg in a thin stream.

Sesame oil and ginger chicken soup

A lighter, soupy version of the classic sesame oil chicken. KKH says rice wine, sesame oil and herbs do no harm in moderation, but in large amounts alcohol passes into breast milk.

• 500g chicken pieces
• 60g old ginger, cut into thin slices
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 litre water
• Optional: 100ml Chinese rice wine

1. Fry the ginger slowly in the sesame oil until fragrant and lightly crisp.
2. Add the chicken and fry until it changes colour.
3. Pour in the water, and the rice wine if using, and simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Season lightly.

Cooking doesn't remove all the alcohol, HealthHub says. If you're breastfeeding, leave out the rice wine, or wait at least three hours after eating before you breastfeed or express milk for your baby.

Who should check with a doctor first

Our guide to foods to avoid during confinement explains which traditional taboos matter, and confinement food delivery compares caterers if you'd rather someone else cooks. For milk supply, see how to increase breast milk supply, and for the rest of the month, our confinement guide.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best soup for confinement?

There's no single best one. KKH notes fish soup with papaya is the traditional Chinese choice for milk supply, and HealthHub's advice is to get protein, iron, vegetables and fluid across the week, so rotate several soups.

Can I add rice wine to confinement soup while breastfeeding?

You can, but some alcohol stays after cooking. HealthHub suggests waiting at least three hours after eating before you breastfeed or express milk, or leaving the rice wine out.

Are herbal confinement soups safe?

Ask first. HealthHub recommends consulting a registered TCM physician before taking herbal preparations while breastfeeding, and KKH advises breastfeeding mothers against herbal remedies without a doctor's advice.

Where can I buy confinement soup ingredients in Singapore?

Fish, chicken, pork, papaya and lotus root are at any wet market; red dates and wolfberries are at Chinese medical halls and most supermarkets.

How long can I keep confinement soup?

Eat it soon after cooking or refrigerate it quickly. SFA says cooked food shouldn't sit at room temperature for more than four hours, so cool and refrigerate leftovers promptly and reheat them until piping hot.