Fresh Almond Tea with Egg White

Wash 214g south almonds and 36g north almonds (250g total). Place in a large bowl with clear water to soak for at least 4 hours (overnight is best), keeping the soaking water afterward. At the same time, wash 40g white rice, soak in a small bowl with water for at least 4 hours, then discard the rice soaking water.

Pour the soaked almonds together with their soaking water, along with the soaked white rice into the blender in batches. Turn on the blender at high speed and grind until completely pulverized into a smooth, white almond mixture.

Place the filter bag over a deep pot and pour the ground almond mixture inside. Add a little clear water to rinse the blender cup and pour in as well. Thoroughly wash your hands or wear clean gloves, then squeeze the filter bag firmly to extract all almond juice into the pot until only dry almond pulp remains in the bag.

Wrap 80g rock sugar in a clean towel, place on a cutting board, and crush into small pieces using the back of a knife for easy melting. Separate 2 egg whites from the yolks into a bowl, and beat gently with chopsticks until smooth.

Place the pot with strained almond juice onto the stove, add 80g crushed rock sugar, and heat over medium-low flame until boiling, taking about 12 minutes in total. Stir the bottom of the pot constantly with a ladle throughout to prevent rice starch from sticking and burning. Adjust water to your preferred consistency (around 800ml total water). Once rock sugar melts completely and the almond tea becomes thick and uniform, pass it through a fine sieve once for an extra smooth texture.

Keep the almond tea at a gentle simmer, and use chopsticks to guide the beaten egg whites into the pot in two batches. Stir quickly in circles if you prefer fine egg ribbons, or stir lightly a few times for larger egg bites. Turn off the heat immediately, cover with a lid, and let it sit with residual heat for 2 to 3 minutes to cook the egg whites until tender. Ladle into bowls to serve.