Tom Yum Goong - Hot & Sour Soup

It's -24°c outside right now.  Perfect weather for soup!

Fish or Chicken Stock:

1 pound fish bones (sole cod or other white fish), OR 1 chicken carcass, broken into pieces OR 1 pack of chicken wings (We used a whole chicken but kept aside the breasts and thighs etc. )
1 onion, quartered
1-inch piece fresh ginger, bruised
1 lime leaf
6 cilantro stems, stalks and roots bruised
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Wash your fish or chicken bones in cold water first.  Place in a saucepan and cover with 6 cups water.
2. Bring to a boil, skim if necessary.
3. Add the onion, ginger, lemongrass, lime leaf, and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper.  Return to a boil, turn heat down and simmer for 20 minutes only (no lid), for the fish stock.  For the chicken stock- simmer half covered for 30 minutes.  Remove from heat.
4. Cool, strain into a clean pot and get ready to make the soup. 

Hot & Sour Soup

Ingredients:

3 cups chicken (or fish) stock
1 1/2 cups water
1 lemongrass stem
4 red bird's eye chilies, seeded and finely sliced
1-inch piece galangal, peeled and finely sliced
3 lime leaves, torn into pieces
1 ready cleaned squid tube, cut into rings
1/2 pound cooked shrimp  (shelled is easier to eat obviously)
4 button mushrooms, sliced
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp. sucanat (sugar)
3 Tbsp. fish sauce
1 red chili, seeded and finely sliced for garnish
cilantro leaves for garnish

Directions:

1. Place the stock in a large saucepan with the water.  Heat gently.
2. Trim the root from the lemongrass and slice the bottom 2 inch section into very fine slices.  Bruise the remaining stalk and add all this to the stock with the chilies, galangal, and the torn limes leaves.
3. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer gently for 10 minutes.
4. Remove the bruised lemongrass, add the shrimp, squid rings, and the mushrooms, then add the lemon juice, sugar, and fish sauce a bit at a time until you have the right balance of flavours.
5. Serve in bowls with red chili slices and cilantro garish.

I chose to start with a chicken stock rather than a fish stock and it was very delicious!  This soup is of course HOT and SOUR so be aware of the number of chilies you use.  Use less than I have if you can't take the heat.  :)

Lemongrass Noodle Soup with Edamame lunch

lemongrass noodle soup-

Ingredients:

5 cups chicken or turkey stock (preferably homemade)
1 stalk fresh lemongrass, broken in half
2 kaffir lime leaves
2 cloves of garlic, smashed
1 2inch piece of ginger, cut in half
1 tsp. fish sauce
1 tsp. hot chili sauce
4 ounces dry rice noodles
1/2 cup shiitake mushrooms
2 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 cup fresh bean sprouts
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
salt and pepper to taste
1 lime cut into quarters for squeezing

Directions:

1. In a saucepan over high heat, combine the broth, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, garlic, and ginger.  Bring to a boil.

2.  Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.  Discard the ginger, lemongrass, lime leaves, ginger and garlic.

3.  Add the fish sauce, chili sauce, mushrooms  and noodles, cook until noodles are tender (about 2-5 minutes).  Stir in the scallions.  Adjust seasonings to taste.

4. Divide the soup among 4 bowls, top with bean sprouts and basil, squeeze lime juice in to taste. 


Edamame-

Ingredients-

Frozen organic edamame
salt

Directions-

Follow the package directions.  Bring water to a boil, add edamame, cook uncovered for 3-5 minutes, drain and toss liberally with salt.  You eat the beans inside, not the pod (just in case someone has never eaten this!)



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Yellow Lentil Soup with lots of Cilantro

I made this soup with Toor Dal (Yellow lentils), You could easily make it with brown lentils and save a bit of the cooking time.


Ingredients:

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds, lightly toasted and ground
pinch of ground cayenne pepper
1 heaping cup of yellow lentils, rinsed and picked over
1 small onion, halved
1 bay leaf
salt, to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup chopped cilantro
(optional- plain yogurt for non vegetarians)

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large dutch oven or soup pot on medium heat.  Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Stir in the cumin and cayenne pepper.  Stir together briefly and then add lentils, onion, bay leaf, and 1 1/2 quarts of water.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours, until the lentils are tender and the broth aromatic.  (if using brown lentils your cooking time may be as low as 40 minutes).

2. Salt and pepper to taste.  Discard the onion and the bay leaf. 

3.  Puree half of the soup in small batches in a blender.  (be sure to cover the top of the blender with a towel and press firmly on the lid to make sure hot liquid doesn't spill on you).  Return to soup pot, stir and heat through.

4. Stir in cilantro just before serving.  (if you eat dairy, add a dollop of plain yogurt to the top of each bowl)  Will serve 4.

Roasted Red Pepper & White Bean Soup

First you will need to roast some ( two or three) red peppers

To do this:
 a. Cut off the tops and bottoms of the peppers, remove the cores and seeds, cut down one side and open up the peppers.  Lay the splayed peppers on a baking sheet and flatten them a bit. 

1. Adjust oven rack to top position. Turn broiler on. With oven door closed, let oven heat for 5 minutes. Oven rack should be 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 inches from heating element.  Broil peppers, with oven door closed, until spotty brown, about 5 minutes. Reverse pan in oven; roast until skin is charred and puffed but the flesh is still firm, 3 to 5 minutes longer.
2. Remove pan from oven; let peppers sit until cool enough to handle; peel and discard skin from each piece. For those who prefer, peppers can be transferred to a large heat-resistant bowl, covered with plastic wrap, and steamed for 15 minutes before peeling skin.

Roasted Red Pepper Soup Recipe

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil
1 zucchini, diced
1 1/2 cups roasted red peppers, diced
2 walla walla  onions, minced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp. fresh thyme
1/4 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
salt,  to taste
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1 can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
10 oz of gluten free chicken stock
1 cup water
2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped for garnish


Directions:

1. Roast red bell peppers according to instructions above.

2. In a dutch oven, heat half the oil over medium high heat, saute zucchini until golden (8-10 minutes).  Add the diced roasted red bell peppers, stir to combine, transfer to a bowl and set aside.

3. In the same dutch oven heat the remaining oil, cook the onion, garlic, jalapeno, thyme and pepper and salt until softened (about 5 minutes), Add the beans, the chicken stock and the water, bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Let cool.

4. In a blender, puree the soup (stock and beans), in batches until smooth.  Return to pan, stir in the reserved zucchini and roasted red peppers, heat through and serve.  Garnish with parsley. 

Mexican Chicken, Chili and Grilled Corn soup

This soup has kick and is very satisfying on a rainy day (like today)   It makes a full pot so you will have plenty left over.  The heat of the peppers combined with the sweetness of the corn is fabulous.  A little bit of sour from the lime and it has everything.
note: we ate this for three days for both lunch and dinner and at the end of those three days my husband turned to me and asked- "Can we make this again within the week?".  it's that good. 

First you have to make your chicken broth
The Broth
Chicken Broth Ingredients:

3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
5 cloves garlic, smashed
2 large red onions, rough chopped
2 cups carrots, rough chopped
2 cups celery, rough chopped
Course salt and fresh ground black pepper
1 whole organic chicken
1 sprig thyme
1/3 cup Italian parsley
1 bay leaf
1 sprig tarragon
1/3 cup celery leaves
8 whole black peppercorns

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a large pot over med. heat.  Add the crushed garlic cloves and sauté for 2 minutes until the garlic is golden. Add the onions, carrots & celery to the pot. Season with salt and pepper and sauté for 8 minutes. 

2. Cut up your chicken into pieces with a heavy cleaver- making sure to cut the bones to expose some marrow.  Add to pot and fill the pot with water until it covers the chicken, bring to a boil.

3.  Tie the thyme, parsley, bay leaf, tarragon and celery leaves into a bouquet using butchers twine.  Add to the pot.  Add the black peppercorns to pot, bring broth to a boil, turn down to med-low, partially cover and simmer for 3 hours.  (add more water if required 1/2 way through cooking)

4. Skim off any fat, strain the chicken broth through a mesh sieve, then strain again through cheese cloth a couple of times until your broth is nice and clear.  Leave to sit and separate a while so that you can skim off the fat.  (I have a special fat skimming container that I use)

5. Hand pick the the good chicken meat and set it aside for soup recipe.

The Soup!
Mexican Chicken, Chili and Grilled Corn Soup
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, smashed
2 chipotle peppers (in adobo sauce) minced
1 hot Anaheim New Mexico chili, reconstituted and chopped
1 red onion, diced
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne
1/4 tsp. paprika
course salt & fresh ground black pepper to taste
5 cups chicken broth  (if you don't have enough, top it up with water)
1 cup fresh tomatoes, chopped coarse and smushed with the side of a knife
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 1/2 cups cooked chicken (hand picked from your broth earlier)
1 handful cilantro , chopped
1/2 cup wild rice
2 cobs of corn, grilled
canola oil for grilling
1 cup canned, strained black beans
1 tsp. sucanat (or brown sugar)
handful of cilantro, minced (and some  for garnish)
Fried corn tortillas for topping
Fresh lime to taste
Creme fraiche or sour cream for the dairy lovers

Directions:
1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over med. heat.  Add garlic and sauté for 2 minutes.  Add chipotles, chilies, red onion, cumin, cayenne, paprika, salt and fresh ground pepper.  Sauté for 8 minutes.  

2. Add the chicken broth, the tomatoes, oregano, hand picked chicken meat and a handful of cilantro.  Partially cover and simmer for 40 minutes.

3. In a separate pot, boil some water, add wild rice and cook according to package, strain.

4. Heat some canola oil, brush some oil on the corn  and grill your corn either in a cast iron pan or on a grill.  You want each side to be grill marked (slightly brown).  Slice off the corn niblets.

5.  In a cast iron pan, heat some oil on medium and add corn tortillas slices, fry until golden, set aside on paper towels.

6.  Add the corn niblets, wild rice and black beans to the soup and stir to combine.  Season with salt, pepper, sucanat and cilantro.

7. Serve soup with crispy tortillas, a squirt of fresh lime, and some creme fraiche or sour cream if you eat dairy.

Easy Veggie soup

We started our soup with some Turkey Stock that we had in the freezer from Canadian Thanksgiving. You could use homemade chicken stock or vegetarian soup stock as well.

Ingredients

4 cups gluten free soup stock
2 medium carrots, chopped small
2 baby bok choy, chopped, with greens separated from the white stalks
2 handfuls of shiitake mushrooms sliced, hard stems removed and discarded (save them for your next soup stock)
1 small bell pepper, seeds removed and chopped into small bite size pieces
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 Tbsp. fresh ginger, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 scallions, greens only, chopped for garnish
salt, to taste
fresh ground pepper, to taste
crushed red chili peppers, to taste
fresh lemon wedges for serving

1 cup Brown Rice- cooked according to the package instructions

Directions:

1. Cook the brown rice according to the package instructions.

2. Heat stock in soup pot over medium heat, add ginger, garlic and chopped onion. When the soup begins to boil, add the carrots, shiitake mushrooms, bell peppers and Bok Choy stalks. Turn heat down to simmer and cook until vegetables are sufficiently done. (add some water if you need too) Salt to taste, add crushed red pepper. Adjust seasonings until satisfied, Stir in the bok choy greens at the last minute.

3. Scoop some brown rice into individual serving bowls, ladle vegetable soup over top. Garnish with scallion pieces and serve with lemon wedges for a little squeeze of freshness.

Mulligatawny Soup

Adapted to be gluten free from another super Cooks Illustrated recipe.

Ingredients:

4 med. cloves garlic- 2 peeled and 2 finely minced
1 piece ginger, peeled & grated so that you have about 1 1/2 Tbsp.
1/4 cup water
3 Tbsp. butter
2 med. onions, chopped medium coarse
1 tsp. tomato paste
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 1/2 Tbsp curry powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 cup Bobs Red Mill, all purpose gluten free flour
7 cups gluten free chicken broth (homemade is best)
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped coarse
1 rib celery, chopped course
1 banana, very ripe, peeled.
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
salt, to taste
fresh ground pepper, to taste
fresh plain goats yogurt (or cows yogurt)
fresh cilantro for garnish

Directions:

1. Place the 2 peeled whole garlic cloves, 2 tsp. of grated ginger & water in a blender. Blend until smooth. Leave this mixture in the blender jar and set aside for the last step. (you will puree the soup right in the blender with the garlic and ginger)

2. Heat butter in a large stockpot over med. heat until foaming. Add the onions and tomato paste and cook, stirring often until the onions are soft and beginning to brown (about 5 minutes). Stir in the coconut and cook for about a minute. Add the minced garlic, remaining 2 1/2 tsp. ginger, curry powder, cumin, cayenne & gluten free flour; stir until evenly combined for around a minute. Whisking constantly & vigorously, slowly add the gluten free chicken broth.

3. Add the carrots, celery & whole banana. Increase heat and bring to a boil, add the chicken breasts to the pot. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for around 20 minutes (until chicken is cooked through). Remove the chicken breasts with tongs and set on a cutting board, cool slightly and cut into bite size pieces.

4. Puree the soup in small batches in the blender (with the garlic and ginger mixture still in the blender). Wash & dry the pot. Return all of the pureed soup to the freshly washed pot, salt and pepper to taste. Add the cut chicken pieces and heat the soup on low until warmed through. don't boil.

5. Ladle into bowls, dollop with yogurt and sprinkle with chopped fresh cilantro. Serve with saffron rice.

Spicy Turkey & Jasmine Rice Soup

adapted from a cooks illustrated recipe, see title for link.

Basic Turkey stock (makes 3 quarts)
Ingredients:
1 turkey carcass from 12 pound turkey cut into 4 or 5 large pieces to fit in pot. (try to keep plenty of meat on the carcass when you freeze it for soup)
1 Large Onion, peeled and halved
1 Large carrot, peeled and halved
1 Large Celery Rib, chopped course
3 medium garlic cloves, unpeeled and smashed
2 cups dry white wine
1 bay leaf
5 sprigs fresh parsley
3 sprigs fresh thyme

Directions:
1. Bring turkey carcass, onion, carrot, celery, garlic, wine, bay leaf, and 4 1/2 quarts water to boil in 12 quart stockpot over med/high heat, skimming fat that rises to surface. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered for 2 hours, continuing to skim surface as necessary. Add parsley and thyme; continue to simmer about 2 hours longer.
2. Strain stock through large mesh strainer into a large bowl, remove meat from strained solids, shred into bite size pieces and set aside. discard solids in strainer. cool stock slightly (20 minutes) spoon fat from surface. stock can be refrigerated covered for up to 2 days.

Spicy Turkey and Jasmine Rice Soup
Ingredients:
1/2 basic Turkey stock and 1/2 reserved shredded turkey meat
1 stalk lemon grass, trimmed to bottom 6 inches and bruised with the back of a chef's knife
1 and 3/4 inch fresh ginger, peeled, cut into thirds and crushed with the back of chef's knife
2 large garlic cloves crushed a bit with back of chefs knife
2 fresh jalapeno chiles, halved with seeds removed
3 Kaffir lime leaves
lime juice from 1/2 lime
salt
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup brown jasmine rice
2 Tbsp. minced fresh cilantro
1 and 1/2 Tbsp. fresh basil leaves
3 medium scallions sliced thin

Directions:
1. Bring turkey stock to simmer in large stockpot over med/high heat. Add lemon grass, ginger, garlic, chiles, kaffir lime leaves and 1 tsp. salt. cover and simmer until broth is fragrant (about 10 minutes) Add juice from lime and stir.
2. With slotted spoon remove and discard- lemon grass, ginger, garlic, chiles and kaffir lime leaves. Add rice and reserved shredded turkey meat; bring to boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer covered until rice is tender (35 minutes) Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper.
ladle soup into individual bowls and sprinkle with cilantro, basil, crushed red pepper flakes and scallions. serve immediately.

(use the remainder of the stock to make turkey gluten free noodle soup)