Chicken Wonton Soup

Tags

asian, asianfood, broth, food, soup, wontons

When we were living in China, my husband and I would head to Hong Kong every couple of weekends to feast on Dim Sums and Wontons. I do miss it a lot, so yesterday I decided to make a simple Chicken, Shiitake & Savoy cabbage Wontons to have with my Chicken Broth. 

Ingredients for the broth

• 4 to 5 pieces of Chicken on the bone (thighs or drumsticks) 

• 5 cloves of garlic (whole)

• 4 chunky slices of ginger

• cracked black pepper

• 2 tbsp of fresh chopped Cilantro 

• 1 carrot (chopped)

• 1 stalk of celery (chopped)

• Red chilli for garnish

• Light soy sauce (salt substitute)

Method

1. In a pot, place the chicken thighs, garlic and ginger. Add water to completely cover the chicken, simmer on a low heat for 1 to 2 hours. 

2. Remove the chicken out of the pot, set aside and add the carrots, chopped celery & spring onions into the broth. Bring this to a boil then simmer till the celery disintegrates. 

3. At this stage you can season with salt & pepper or just pepper then add light soy sauce in the individual serving bowls according to taste. 

Ingredients for the Wontons

• 1 Chicken breast (minced)

• 5 dried Shiitake mushrooms (soaked then drained & chopped)

• 2 slices of Savoy cabbage leaves (sliced thin) 

• 1 stalk of Scallion (chopped)

• 1 tbsp light soy sauce

• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

• 2 tsp cornstarch

• cracked black pepper

(Combine all the above ingredients well in a bowl and refrigerate for an hour.) To test taste it, fry a little of the mixture in a pan. 

• Wonton skins

To make the Wontons, I just went on this you tube page https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_wUiwMOa-BI to watch the various ways on folding them. 

Once the wontons are ready folded, drop them into the boiling broth for 3 mins. 

Garnish with scallions, chopped chillies and serve.❤️

Tofu & Vegetable Soup

Tags

asian, food, soup, tofu, vegan, vegetarian

So I was down with gastroenteritis last week due to a virus going around within the community here and after a trip to the doctors, all I wanted was one of my grandma’s simple tofu soup. 

This soup could not be easier to prepare and fantastic when you are poorly and need to be on a soft, simple diet.   

Ingredients

 • 4 to 5 shallots thinly sliced

• 3 cloves of garlic

• 1 potato (diced)

• 1 carrot (diced)

• 2 stalks of celery thinly sliced

• Salt & pepper to taste

• Tofu (cut into chunky squares)

• 1 litre of water 

• a little oil & a little sesame seed oil

• 1 tbs of fresh chopped cilantro (leave some for garnishing)

Method

1. In a pot, heat about a teaspoon of oil & a teaspoon of sesame seed oil and sauté the shallots and garlic. Once golden, add the celery and sauté for another minute.

2. Pour in the litre of water and let it simmer/boil for about 15-20 mins before adding the potatoes & carrots.

3. Once the vegetables are cooked, gently add the tofu into the soup and simmer till they start floating up. Season well. 

Garnish with the rest of the chopped cilantro, crispy shallots and serve hot…

 
Have a happy healthy Sunday!💛

Carrot & Ginger Soup

Tags

food, healthy, soup, winter

It was all about having hot soups in our household after the New Year as both my husband and I were down with the flu. I think the end of the year run got the best of us. We decided to walk home and I think we caught a chill.

To help beat the flu, I made a very simple bright orange soup full of goodness…

Ingredients
• 10 carrots (roughly chopped)
• 3 to 4 thick slices of Ginger
• 1 White onion (thinly sliced)
• A little olive oil & a teaspoon of butter
• Cracked black pepper & salt to taste

Method
1. Heat the olive oil & butter in a pot, sauté the onions and ginger till soft.
2. Add the chopped carrots to the pot, sauté for a minute before adding enough water to cover the carrots.
3. Simmer till the carrots are soft, blitz in a food processor, return to the pot and continue to simmer for a couple of minutes.

Serve with warm crusty bread.

A perfect soup to help beat and prevent colds & flu.💛

Spinach & Celery Soup

Tags

food, healthy, soup, vegan, vegetarian, winter

As the end of the year draws to a close, I’d like to take this opportunity to say thank you all for your support, love and friendship. This year has been a truly blessed year for me, I got fitter and can run further, I also made some amazing friends here on WordPress and also on my Instagram.

For my last recipe of the year, I give you, my green soup for these cold winter days….also known as the Hulk soup! Haha!💚

Ingredients
• Spinach (as much as you want)
• Celery (roughly chopped)
• 1 onion (sliced)
• half a potato (roughly chopped, add more if you want a thick soup)
• Cream (optional)
• Salt & cracked black pepper
• a little olive oil & butter

Method
1. Sauté the onions and celery in a little olive oil & butter.
2. Once soft, add the potatoes, water and seasoning.
3. Simmer till the potatoes are cooked.
4. Add the spinach, leave to simmer for another minute or so, don’t overcook the spinach.
5. Process the broth in a blender, place back in the pot and simmer for another 2 mins.

Serve with a drop of cream and homemade herb & garlic croutons! A perfect winter warmer!

Wishing you all a blessed New Year and may the dreams that you dream, be the future that you find.

Feliz Año Nuevo para mi familia en Galicia! Bicos!😘💕

Asian Chicken Noodle Soup

Tags

asian, asianfood, Chicken, food, healthy, noodles, soup

What could be better than a good bowl of hot noodle soup with a kick of chopped chillies on a cold and rainy day? For me, nothing.

The soup is packed with garlic & ginger, all the goodness to help prevent colds and flu especially very common this time of year. The recipe is super simple and it’s just a case of simmering everything in a pot.

Ingredients
• 3 Chicken thighs
• 6 cloves of garlic (whole)
• 4 chunky slices of ginger
• cracked black pepper
• Spring onions (chopped)
• 3 to 4 carrots (chopped)
• 2 stalks of Chinese celery (chopped)
• Red chilli for garnish
• Light soy sauce (salt substitute)
• Thin flat Korean Noodles or any other noodles of your choice.

Method
1. In a pot, place the chicken thighs, garlic & ginger. Add water to cover the chicken, simmer on a medium low heat till the chicken is thoroughly cooked.
2. Fish the chicken out of the pot, set aside and add the carrots, chopped celery & spring onions into the broth.
3. Shred the chicken and place back into the pot. Season with the cracked black pepper and simmer till the carrots are soft.
4. In a separate pot, cook the Thin flat Korean noodles. Once ready, rinse with cold water so they don’t stick togther.

Place the noodles in a bowl, ladle your hot soup, garnish with spring onions & chopped chillies. Add a little soy sauce and serve. A healthy no oil, no salt dish.

Enjoy!💛

Fishball & Shiitake Mushroom Noodle Soup

Tags

asian, asianfood, food, healthy, noodles, soup

It’s FINALLY feeling like autumn here…rainy, windy and much cooler than it was last week! I love the rain and have always believed that there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad choice of clothes. Wouldn’t you agree?

Seeing as the temperature has dropped more than 10 degrees C, I thought it was the perfect time for some noodle soup. Light, yet comforting.

Ingredients
• Fishballs (you can get this at any Asian supermarket)
• Dried Shiitake mushrooms
• Celery (chopped)
• 3 to 4 cloves of garlic (whole)
• Ginger (roughly sliced)
• 1 stalk of lemon grass (whole)
• Fish sauce
• Carrots (run your peeler down the carrot to make ribbons)
• Spring onions (chopped)
• Cracked black pepper
• Korean flat rice noodles

Method
1. Depending on how much soup you want to make, place water in a pot and to that, add your garlic, ginger, lemon grass, celery, fish sauce & seasoning. Leave to simmer for 20 to 25 mins until you get a lovely aroma of the ingredients.
2. Soak the dried Shiitake mushrooms in water and leave to soften.
3. Once the garlic in the soup starts coming apart, add the fishballs, some of the spring onions & the Shiitake mushrooms and leave to simmer further. The fishballs will start to float once they are cooked, once this happens, take the pot off the heat.
4. Meanwhile, throw your Korean flat rice noodles in a pot of boiling water. Once cooked, rinse with cold water so they don’t stick together in a lump.

You are now ready to plate your dish. Place the noodles in a bowl, ladle a generous amount of the hot soup into it. Garnish with the raw carrot ribbons & spring onions.

If like me you like a bit of heat and a kick to the dish, I made a simple chilli sauce to go with it. All you need is 3 little fiery birds eye chilli, smash that in a pestle & mortar, add a little sugar, salt & a good dollop of vinegar. (But beware, this chilli sauce is NOT for those who cannot take spicy food🔥) Alternatively, use a normal chilli that’s not as spicy.

I didn’t use any oil or salt for this dish so feel free to adjust according to your own taste.

Happy cooking & enjoy the cooler weather!💙

Beef Udon

Tags

asian, asianfood, beef, food, noodles, soup, udon

Summer is nearly over and I am looking forward to the cooler autumn weather…. when it comes of course as it’s still fairly warm here at the moment with temperatures up to 29 degrees celcius.

But, despite the hot temperatures, a couple of weeks ago, I really fancied a warm soupy noodle dish! So I decided to make this hearty dish filled with textures and flavours! This is my take on Beef Udon…

Ingredients
• Prime fillet steak (sliced thin)
• Dried Shiitake mushrooms (soaked & sliced)
• Shallots (sliced thin)
• Few cloves of garlic, ginger & cracked black pepper (minced)
• Carrots (julienned)
• Chinese cabbage (sliced)
• Cilantro (chopped)
• Chilli (sliced)
• Dark & light soy sauce
• Sesame oil
• Udon noodles (cooked in boiling water)

Method
1. In a pot, heat a little sesame oil and sauté the beef for 2 to 3 mins.
2. Add the shallots & minced garlic with ginger. Stir fry this for another 2 mins or until the shallots are golden before throwing in the carrots and the Shiitake mushrooms.
3. Add some water and the light soy sauce and a couple teaspoons of the dark soy sauce to the pot and let this simmer till the beef is tender. (Make sure you taste it as I didn’t use any salt in this recipe.)
4. Set aside the Chinese cabbage, chopped cilantro and chilli on a dish.
5. In a bowl, place the cooked Udon noodles, add the raw Chinese cabbage and ladle the hot soup into the bowl. (You can always pre cook your Chinese cabbage but I personally prefer them crunchy.)

Garnish with cilantro and some sliced chilli if you want a wee kick…serve hot…

Hearty, filling and so simple!

Happy cooking and have a fabulous start to September!💕