Hot and Sour Chicken Soup

Here's one of my favourite spicy and tangy Indo-Chinese soups that can warm up your body and mind. As in any soup the broth is what that makes or breaks it. While I've tried a different home made and store bought broths - here's a version which worked out well for me.

Ingredients

Broth

1. Chicken with skin and bones. I used about 6 large chicken drumsticks.
2. Garlic - 1 bulb smashed
3. Ginger - 100 gms - cut and smashed
4. Spring onion twigs - a few bumches
5. Black pepper - 1 table spoon
6. Salt - 2 table spoons

Soup

1. Chicken broth - 4 cups
2. Carrot - diced - 2 table spoons
3. Cabbage - diced 2 table spoons
4. Green chilles - diced - 2 table spoons
5. Vinegar - 1/2 cup
6. Dark soy sauce - 2 table spoons
7. Corn flour slurry - 1/3 cup
8. Eggs - 2  egg yolks and 3 egg whites beaten
9. Seasme oil - 1 table spoon
10. Cooked Shredded chicken - 1/2 cup 
11. Spring onions - diced - 2 table spoons

Method

Broth

1. In a large sauce pan or vessel boil the chicken for about 10-15 minutes.
2. Drain the chicken and the water.
3. Fill the same sauce pan with water, transfer the chicken, add the garlic, ginger, pepper and salt.
4. Bring it to boil and then simmer it for about 30 minutes.'
5. Take the chicken pieces out, let it cool and then remove the flesh out with hands or fork.
6. Put the bones and skin back in the broth and let it simmer for another hour or so.
7. Drain the broth out into a container.

Hot & Sour Soup

1. In a sauce pan, saute the chillies, carrot and cabbage for about a minute in seasme oil and vinegar.
2. Add the chicken broth and bring it to a boil.
3. Once boiling add the corn flour slurry and bring it to boil.
4. Add the soya sauce and mix well.
5. Add the shredded chicken and mix well.
6. Stir the soup mix well that the broth is rotating around.
7. Add the beaten egg mix and twirl it around with a folk.
8. Serve hot with a dash of spring onions as a garnish.

Enjoy!!

C

Sweet Corn Chicken Soup

Sweet corn chicken soup - one of those soups that gives a meaning to "Chicken Soup for the Soul". It has all the goodness in it to bring your spirits up - especially on a gloomy cold night. After tomato soup this would have been one of my earliest memories of soup consumption - especially in a restaurant. There's something about the smell, the texture, the consistency and of course the flavour. So without much further ado - here's how to prepare sweet corn chicken soup - restaurant style - at home.

Ingredients

1. Sweet corn - fresher the better. If not a frozen packet would do just fine. (2 cups)
2. Chicken - Boneless - either thigh or breast pieces - thinly sliced or cubed
3. Chicken stock - either store bought or stock made out of boiling chicken with bones for about an hour.
4. Vinegar - 1 tablespoon
5. Garlic - minced (1 tablespoon)
6. Corn Flour - 50 gms
7. Eggs - 2 (beaten)
8. Milk - 1/2 cup
9. Sesame oil - few tablespoons
10. Spring onions (for garnish)

Method

1. Take about 3/4th - 1 cup of the sweet corn and pulse it to create a rough / chunky mixture.
2. In a large sauce pan or wok heat the sesame oil and saute the chicken and garlic for a few minutes. Saute until the pinkness is vanished in the chicken.
3. Add the vinegar and give it quick toss.
4. Add the sweet corn (whole and the chunky mixture) and saute for a few minutes.
5. Add the chicken stock and milk and bring it to a boil.
6. While the chicken stock is boiling, create a corn flour slurry by mixing water to the corn flour - about 1/4 cup.
7. Once the stock has come to a boil add the corn flour slurry and let the soup thicken up for a few minutes. I like my soups thick - so if the consistency is not thick enough for you, prepare more corn flour slurry and add it to the soup.
8. Once the soup is thick enough pour the beaten eggs in a circular fashion around the soup and stir it around in ONE direction with a fork. This should create the "egg flower" - which BTW is also another name for this soup in Chinese restaurants.
9. Simmer the soup for 2-3 minutes.
10. Serve hot with a garnish of spring onions.

Note: Some people like to have this with a bit of chilli vinegar mixed for a bit of a tangy and spicy flavour. If you would like it - just chop of a few green chillies in a few tablespoons of vinegar before you start this process.

Restaurant style - Indo Chinese - Sweet Corn Chicken soup ready!!

Happy Cooking!!

C

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Hello,

Cream of Mushroom soup - was introduced via the spice trade from Malaysia to India. ;-) My grand pa brought these soup packets whenever he visited from Labuan - late 70s early 80s??. Definitely don't remember the brand  but still remember the smell. After that it has been a long long time since I've had a good cream of mushroom soup until I started cooking that myself. This is one soup that you don't normally get in restaurants and if you do - not worth mentioning.

Recently tried this when we had a bunch of friends over for dinner and came out fairly ok.

Ingredients
1) Mushroom - any variety would do I suppose.
2) Butter
3) Cream
4) Milk
5) Corn flour
6) All purpose flour (Maida)
7) Onions
8) Celery sticks (minced). Chopping celery is a very interesting activity. It gives a great smell and feel as you chop it.
9) Vegetable stock (can try chicken stock as well to enhance the flavour)

Process
1) Finely chop the mushrooms and onions. I recently found a trick to mince the mushrooms in a hand blender.    Definitely very handy when you have to do this on a large scale.
2) In a large sauce pan, melt the butter in low/medium heat.
3) Once butter is melted add the the mushrooms, onions and celery and sautee them for about 3-4 minutes.
4) Add the vegetable stock and bring it to a boil.
5) Add a 1-2 tablespoons of cream and about half a cup of milk.
6) Once the above gets to a boil add a mix of corn flour and all purpose flour in water.
7) Leave the soup to boil and then simmer for a few minutes until it thickens to a consistency you need.

Happy Cooking!!

C