Asian Style Poached Chicken Broth
Asian soups are some of my favorite menu items for cold days during the winter and early spring months of the year.
At this time of year normally soups are reserved for a sick day cure or easy appetizer when you have friends round for dinner, but don’t overlook soups as a hearty breakfast or even as the main attraction entrée.
Soups are a staple in a wide range of Asian cuisines, from Thailand through to Japan. Whether you’re in the mood for noodle-based soups like ramen and Hanoi-style breakfast or something non-traditional like egg drop soup boosted with spinach and edamame. Try this recipe that will warm your heart and soul in these cold winter weather months until the warmth of spring arrives.
A little information on noodles:
• Rice noodles – Made from rice flour, these soft-textured noodles are eaten in many cultures of East and Southeast Asia. Skinny rice noodles are often called vermicelli, while thicker ones may be referred to as sticks, ribbons, or sheets.
• Shirataki – Japanese konnyaku noodles made from the starch of a tuber called konjac or devil’s tongue, and sometimes tofu. Though they can be eaten raw, rinsing and boiling helps neutralize the noodles’ fishy odor, which, along with their rubbery texture, may be an acquired taste for some.
• Soba – Japanese noodles made from buckwheat flour and sometimes flavored with green tea, mugwort, or seaweed. (Wheat flour is often added, so check the ingredients). With a nutty flavor and slippery texture, soba noodles are equally good in cold or hot dishes.
Asian Style Poached Chicken Broth
Serves 4
Ingredients:
8 cups low in sodium (organic) chicken stock
1 Thai red chili, seeds removed, flesh minced
1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and minced
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine
4 free range chicken thighs, skin removed, flesh cut into thin strips
7oz packet of Shirataki or Soba noodles or Rice noodles, raised under cold water
2 cups spinach
1 cup shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 soft boiled eggs, shell removed, cut in half (optional)
1 green onion, thinly sliced (optional)
1 tablespoon crushed peanuts (optional)
How to make
Take a large saucepan, add the first six ingredients to the pan and whisk together, then place over a high heat on the stove. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer, add the sliced chicken thighs and lightly cook for 10 minutes.
Take the raised noodles and add them to the stock, cook for 2 minutes, then add the spinach and mushrooms, continue to cook for 2 minutes. Serve the broth in four warm soup bowls, each with a soft boiled egg and a sprinkle of green onions and crushed peanuts.