Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup is what you make when you want something exotic tasting with very little effort! Think – classic pumpkin soup with Thai Red Curry vibes. Love the beautiful coconut undertones. It’s so good!

Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup

Everybody loves pumpkin soup. It’s comforting, it’s thick, it’s creamy, and it’s easy to make.

But sometimes, we want to make dinner a little more interesting! Enter – Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup. Use coconut instead of cream. Add red curry paste. Fish sauce instead of salt. Thai toppings.

And boom! Our reliable pumpkin soup has had a sexy makeover – and we love it!

Ingredients in Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup

We’re using a store bought curry paste today which makes things nice and easy. For the small amount we need (just 3 tablespoons), it’s a convenient option. If using homemade – I applaud you! The flavour in this will be even better, with the beautiful fresh Thai flavours coming through.

The soup

• Pumpkin or butternut – Recipe works as written for both pumpkin and butternut squash (we call it butternut pumpkin here in Australia). Use one that is around 1.8 kg / 3.6 lb with the skin on and seeds in. After peeling and deseeding it will be around ~1.3 kg/2.6 lb.

  Cutting and peeling – Watch the video for a safe, easy cutting technique for butternut (potato peeler for skin!), and see the Pumpkin Soup video for how I cut pumpkin (cut in wedges then cut skin off).

• Thai Red Curry paste – My position on the best store-bought Thai red curry that’s readily available is fairly well documented on this website! Maesri is the best – there is just no question – and it’s the best value. $2.10 for a 115g/4 oz. You’ll need 1/2 a can – so you can make this Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup twice!

  Find it at Woolies, Harris Farms and Coles (I’m in Australia), or Asian stores and online. As for other brands – they tend to have less authentic flavour and usually weirdly, overly sweet. However, for a recipe like this where the curry paste is a background rather than key flavour, any curry paste will suffice.

• Homemade Thai Red Curry Paste – Recipe here. I generally make then use the whole batch in one go so I rarely have leftovers to use for things like this soup. But it’s an excellent one for freezing, and will really take this to another level.

• Onion and garlic – Essential flavour base. Don’t skip these, they add great flavour.

• Coconut milk – Not all coconut milk is created equal! Good ones are made with 85%+ coconut so have better flavour. Economical ones are diluted with water and have less coconut flavour. Ayam is my default (89% coconut).

  Please use full fat. Fat is where the coconut flavour is! Low fat has little coconut flavour.

• Fish sauce will give this soup a more authentic Thai red curry flavour than using just salt. Soy sauce can be used as a substitute.

• Vegetable stock – Or chicken stock. This is the liquid the pumpkin is simmered in. Tastier than water! Use low sodium, else your soup will be on the salty side.

Garnishes

This is a great soup to have fun with toppings! Adds visual and textural interest as well as extra flavour.

• Crispy fried shallot pieces – salty and oily, these are sold in jars and packets at large grocery stores these days, but cheaper at Asian stores! Terrific garnish for all things Asian. I use it liberally – it’s a frequent player in my recipes.

• Red cayenne pepper – Use the large ones which are not spicy. Small chillies are spicier!

• Coriander / cilantro – Lovely fresh herb used frequently in Thai dishes

How to make Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup

Fabulously straight forward, you’ll have this on the table in 20 minutes once you start cooking. Don’t shortcut sautéing the curry paste. This really intensifies and improves the flavour. Essential step for almost every curry – most especially curry paste out of a jar!

1. Sauté curry paste – Get the onion and garlic started first, then add the curry paste and cook it for a good couple of minutes. This caramelises it and intensifies as well as improves the flavour. Key step when using any curry paste out of a jar!

2. Coat the pumpkin in the tasty curry paste flavour. Give it a good couple of minutes to toast the pumpkin a bit!

   Tip: See video for how I peel and cut butternut (potato peeler for skin!), and see the Pumpkin Soup video for how I cut pumpkin (cut in wedges then cut skin off).

3. Simmer 8 minutes – Set aside a little coconut milk to use as a drizzle for serving. Then add the rest of the coconut milk, stock and fish sauce into the pot and simmer for just 8 minutes, or until the pumpkin is soft. It really does not take long.

4. Blitz with my favourite appliance (stick blender) until smooth. Ladle into bowls, swirl with reserved coconut milk then finish with as many or as little toppings as you’d like!

Roti for dunking

I served this Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup with roti for dunking. That flaky, buttery flatbread of Indian origin, roti stalls are a local and tourist attraction all across Thailand though most Australian’s would associate roti as a menu favourite at Malaysian restaurants.

Not to be confused with the non-flaky roti flatbread that is a staple in Indian cooking, roti is a brilliant store-bought freezer standby that you cook from frozen in a fry pan, and takes just minutes. (Though homemade just got added to my Must Try list!), fairly easily found these days in everyday grocery stores – here’s the one I used from Woolworths.

Enjoy! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup

Recipe video above. This is a brilliant way to turn a classic pumpkin soup into something that tastes more exotic – with very little effort. Think – pumpkin soup with Thai Red Curry vibes. It's so good!

See separate tutorial for how I cut butternut pumpkin and the Pumpkin Soup recipe for how I cut pumpkin.

Course Mains, Soups

Cuisine Asian, Thai

Keyword coconut pumpkin soup, Thai coconut pumpkin soup

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 5

Calories 302cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil (or other oil)
• 1 brown onion , diced
• 2 garlic cloves , finely minced
• 3 tbsp Thai red curry paste , Maesri recommended (Note 1)
• 1.8kg/ 3.6 lb pumpkin or butternut squash – peeled, deseeded then chopped into 3cm / 1.2" chunks (~1.3 kg/2.6 lb) (Note 2)
• 2 1/2 cups vegetable stock , salt reduced (or chicken stock)
• 400ml/ 14 oz (1 can) coconut milk, full fat, best quality (Note 3)
• 1 tbsp fish sauce (sub light or regular soy sauce, Note 4)

Garnishes (optional):

• Crispy Asian shallots , highly recommended (Note 5)
• Red cayenne pepper , finely sliced
• Fresh coriander leaves
• Roti (the flaky kind), frozen, pan fried – for dunking (SO GOOD!) – Note 6

Cups – Metric

Instructions

• Sauté – Heat oil in a large heavy based pot over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic, cook for 2 minutes until soft.
• Add curry paste and cook for 2 minutes.
• Add pumpkin and stir to coat in the flavours for around 2 minutes.
• Simmer 8 minutes – Set aside 1/4 cup coconut milk for garnish. Add stock, remaining coconut milk and fish sauce. Bring to simmer then reduce heat to medium and simmer for 8 minutes until the pumpkin is soft.
• Blitz using stick blender until smooth.
• Serve topped with garnishes. Dunk in roti. Enjoy!

Notes

1. Thai Red Curry paste – My position on the best Thai red curry is fairly well documented on this website! Maesri is the best – there is just no question – and it’s the best value ($2.10 for a 115g/4 oz). You’ll need ~1/2 a can.

Find it at Woolies, Harris Farms, Asian stores and online. (Overseas Amazon – US, Canada, UK).

2. Pumpkin – Recipe works as written for both pumpkin and butternut squash. Use one that is around 1.8 kg / 3.6 lb with the skin on and seeds in. After peeling and deseeding it will be around ~1.3 kg/2.6 lb. Watch video for safe, easy cutting technique.

See separate tutorial for how I cut butternut pumpkin and the Pumpkin Soup recipe for how I cut pumpkin.

3. Coconut milk – Not all coconut milk is created equal! Good ones are made with 85%+ coconut so have better flavour. Economical ones are diluted with water. Ayam is my default (89% coconut).

4. Fish sauce will give this soup a more authentic Thai red curry flavour, but soy sauce makes a fine substitute.

5. Crispy fried shallot pieces – salty, oily, terrific garnish for all things Asian. I use it liberally – it’s a frequent player in my recipes. Found in the Asian section of supermarket but cheaper at Asian stores!

6. Roti canai – The flaky flatbread of Indian origin that’s now common across South East Asia. Find it in the freezer section of large supermarkets, cook from frozen on the stove in just a couple of minutes. Cheap, tasty, if you’ve never tried it, it’s a game changer! Excellent for dunking in this soup.

7. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for 4 days or freezer for 3 months.

8. Nutrition per serving, excluding toppings.

Nutrition

Calories: 302cal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Sodium: 767mg | Potassium: 1106mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 23803IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 90mg | Iron: 5mg

More things to make with pumpkin and butternut squash

Pumpkin Soup

Creamy Baked Pumpkin Risotto

Roast Pumpkin, Spinach and Feta Salad

Easy Coconut Curry Sauce

Roasted Pumpkin with Yogurt Sauce and Pine Nuts

Honey-Cinnamon Pumpkin Lentil Salad

Easy Pumpkin Gnocchi with Sage Butter Sauce

Maple Roasted Pumpkin with Chili and Feta

Stuffed Butternut Pumpkin

Life of Dozer

Dozer going for his first weigh in at his new vet! Who do you think taught him that trick of hanging half off the scales…..

The post Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

This is a quick Korean noodle soup that’s healthy, packs big flavours and will curb your spicy Asian food cravings. The broth gets its flavour from gochujang and kimchi – express passes to flavour! (PS The soup looks far more fiercely spicy than it actually is, but this is not one for kids.)

Spicy Korean Noodle Soup

This is a bit of a gold nugget recipe because it’s actually quite difficult to make good spicy Asian soups. You can’t just add a squirt of chilli sauce into a classic Chinese soup broth. Well, you can, but it lacks the oomph of really good spicy Asian soups which have bold savoury flavour that compliments the spiciness. To make a great one, you typically need a mound of bones simmered for hours to make a homemade stock, a LOT of chilli oil or a deft combination of hard-to-find Asian sauces.

Hence my excitement over this spicy Asian soup recipe. Especially when it passed the highest of all taste-testing-bars: my brother. Famous in our circles for his tough critique of my recipes – read the backstory in Chilli Lime Fish for entertaining proof!

Key ingredients – Kimchi and Gochujang

The two key ingredients in this soup – both of which can be picked up at most everyday grocery stores – are kimchi and gochujang. Gochujang is a wickedly good Korean paste to have in your fridge – if only to make this soup over and over again!! More information below.

• Kimchi is a traditional Korean pickle of fermented vegetables packed in tangy, spicy juice. The cabbage version (the most common type) is best in this soup. The cabbage acts like a mop for the sauce so you get extra flavour in the broth!

  Widely available in the fridge section of large grocery stores or Asian stores these days. We use both the sauce in the jar as well as the vegetables for this recipe. The sauce is loaded with flavour, don’t waste it! Add it into stir fries or Asian soups for a hit of extra salt and spiciness.
  

• Gochujang is a spicy Korean paste loaded with savory flavour. It makes an appearance regularly in my Korean recipes – including the Slow Cooked Beef Ribs in Korean BBQ Sauce which is a signature dish in my cookbook (it’s insanely easy for phenomenal results!).

  Readily available these days in large grocery stores (Asian aisle, not fridge) and Asian stores.

Other broth ingredients

And here are the other ingredients required for the Korean soup broth:

• Chicken stock/broth – use low sodium, else it might be too salty once all the sauces are added.

• Fish sauce – Adds salt into the broth, and more flavour than just plain salt and even soy sauce.

• Soy sauce – More salt into the broth (just using fish sauce is a little too fishy). Use either light or all purpose soy sauce. Not dark soy sauce, the flavour is too strong! More on different soy sauces here.

• Chinese cooking wine – or mirin or dry sherry. Just a small amount adds depth of flavour and complexity to soups and sauces. Without, you’ll notice that the soup is missing “something”. Substitute with more fish sauce (see recipe notes).

• Ginger and garlic – To infuse the broth with flavour.

Soup add-ins

I’ve used choy sum and carrots in this soup. But it’s one to make your own! Use whatever cookable vegetables you want.

• Kimchi – As per above, we use the juices in the jar to flavour the broth as well as the cabbage. Korean spicy goodness to the max!

• Noodles – Use any type you want. I like using thin egg noodles for this – dried ones. But the recipe will work fine with any noodles at all, just prepare according to packet directions.

• Choy sum – Love using Asian greens for quick-prep recipes. So quick to chop! Plus, a good contrast of textures – some fresh crunch from the stem and floppiness from the leafy part. Feel free to substitute with other Asian greens (bok choy, gai lan/Chinese broccoli etc)

• Carrot – For some crunch and lovely contrasting colour! I’ve cut it into batons but if you can’t be bothered, just slice it on an angle. It really doesn’t matter.

• Green onion – Fresh garnish! Optional.

How to make spicy Korean noodle soup

This recipe has a great efficient flow to it. Pour the stock into the saucepan then as it is coming up to the simmer, measure out and add the remaining ingredients into the broth. Then while the broth is simmering for 10 minutes to bring the flavours together, chop the veg and cook the noodles. Then assemble the soup bowls!

1. Choy sum cutting – Trim the roots off. Cut into 7cm / 2.5″ pieces then separate the stems from the leafy part. Why? Because we add the stems first as they take longer to cook than the leaves which wilt in literally seconds. So we put them into the pot right at the end.

2. Kimchi – Measure out 2/3 cups kimchi and 2 tablespoons of kimchi juice. Press and squeeze the cabbage if needed to extract the juice! We need it for flavour, so don’t be short!

3. Simmer broth 10 minutes – Place all the broth ingredients into a saucepan then simmer for 10 minutes to bring the flavours together. I simmer the kimchi cabbage with the broth ingredients to extract the kimchi juices out of it.

4. Cook veg – Cook the bok choy stems and carrots for 2 minutes, then the leafy part of the choy sum for just 1 minute. Then that’s it! The broth is done, ready to assemble the noodle bowls.

5. Cook noodles – Cook the noodles according to the packet directions while the broth is simmering, then drain.

6. Assemble – Place the noodles in a bowl. Then ladle over the soup broth and all the add-ins. Sprinkle with green onions if using then serve!

This is such a gloriously quick dinner to make when you’re craving something healthy, something quick, something spicy or something slurpy – or any combination there of. 😂 It’s fabulously versatile with the add-ins: choose your own vegetables, choose your own noodles, add proteins if you want.

While I encourage you to make this soup your own, I will, however, get a little strict with the soup broth! The combination and quantity of sauces is one that my team and I agreed made the tastiest soup, after going back and forth quite a few times, with a few heated “debates” thrown in. If you skip any of the sauces, it will still taste good but not as great as it is intended to be.

So I really do hope you try the broth as written one of these days! And remember, you can get everything at large supermarkets here in Australia (Coles, Woolies, Harris Farms).

Enjoy! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Spicy Korean Noodle Soup (quick & healthy)

Recipe video above. For all those times you need a spicy Asian noodle fix – FAST! This packs a serious flavour punch. The secret is the juices from the kimchi jar and a good dollop of gochujang, that magical spicy Korean paste you can get "everywhere" these days.

To add protein, cook raw prawns/shrimp or fish pieces in the broth (only takes 3 min), or top with slices of BBQ pork. You can also poach chicken in the broth using this foolproof method.

Course Main

Cuisine Asian, Korean

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 2

Calories 365cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Spicy Korean Soup Broth

• 4 cups / 1 litre chicken stock/broth , low-sodium
• 2/3 cup cabbage kimchi (Note 1)
• 2 tbsp kimchi juice , from kimchi tub (Note 1)
• 3 tbsp gochujang (Note 2)
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce (Note 3)
• 2 tsp fish sauce (sub more soy)
• 1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine (Shaoxing wine, Note 4)
• 2 slices ginger , sliced 0.7cm / 1/3" thick (skin on)
• 1 large garlic clove , smashed (Note 5)

Add-Ins (Note 7):

• 200g/ 7oz thin fresh egg noodles (or 100g/3.5oz dried – Note 6)
• 4 stems choi sum or other Asian greens, cut into 7cm / 2.5" lengths, stems separated from leafy part
• 1 small carrot , peeled, cut into thin matchsticks
• 2 1/2 tsp sesame oil , toasted (Note 8)
• 1/4 cup finely sliced green onions (1 stem)

Cups – Metric

Instructions

• Broth – Place all broth ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce heat so it’s simmering gently. Simmer 10 minutes without a lid.
• Cook vegetables – Add choi sum stems and carrot to the broth. Simmer for 2 minutes. Add choi sum leaves and simmer for another minute. Stir in sesame oil just before serving.
• Noodles – Meanwhile, cook egg noodles in boiling water per packet directions. Drain, give the noodles a quick rinse under tap water. Shake off excess water well.
• Assemble – Divide noodles between bowls. Top with the vegetables. Pick the garlic and ginger out of the broth, then broth pour over the noodles. Sprinkle with green onions and serve!

Notes

1. Kimchi is a traditional Korean pickle of fermented vegetables packed in tangy, spicy juice. Widely available in the fridge section of large grocery stores or Asian stores. Extract the juice by squeezing the spoon against the cabbage (there’s usually plenty in the jar, just need to extract it!).

2. Gochujang is a spicy Korean rice and bean paste loaded with savory flavour. You’ll need it for one of the signature recipes in my cookbook: Korean BBQ Beef Short Ribs! Also for most Korean recipes I’ve shared.

3. Soy – Use light or all-purpose soy sauce but not dark soy sauce – too strong! More on different soy sauces here.

4. Chinese cooking wine – Substitute with mirin or dry sherry. For a non-alcoholic substitute, use another 1½ teaspoons fish sauce.

5. Smashed garlic – place the side of a knife on the garlic clove, then hit the palm of your hand on it to make the clove burst open but mostly hold together.

6. Noodles – Use any type you want! Try vermicelli or lo mein noodles.

7. Veg – Feel free to sub with anything of your choice.

8. Sesame oil – toasted sesame oil is brown and has more flavour than untoasted (which is yellow). Default sesame oil sold in Australia is toasted, untoasted is harder to find.

Leftovers – Store broth and noodles separately for 3 days in the fridge. Reheat separately then put together!

Nutrition per serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 365cal | Carbohydrates: 53g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 2717mg | Potassium: 805mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 5232IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 4mg

Life of Dozer

When you see Dozer in a window display of the flagship Dymocks bookstore that thousands of people pass by every day – who cares about the recipes in my cookbook!!?? 😂

The post 15 minute Spicy Korean Noodle Soup appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

This Chinese Rice Soup is a really quick and easy soup recipe that’s filling and nourishing. The Asian infused soup broth adapted from my Chinese Noodle Soup has a depth of flavour that belies the few ingredients called for.

In the spirit of simplicity and speed, I’ve just used fish and choy sum. But it’s excellent with shrimp/prawns, chicken, pork or even leftover cooked meats!

Quick and Easy Chinese Rice Soup

This rice soup is a really good, quick low effort meal that’s extremely versatile. Based around a simple Chinese soup broth used in several recipes I’ve previously shared, including this Chinese Noodle Soup, I think the feedback from a reader is all you need to know about this broth:

“The depth of flavour is incredible for such a simple, quick, easy soup.”
– Jay, 2 September 2020 on Chinese Noodle Soup

Succinct, and to the point!

What goes in the Chinese soup broth

In this recipe, I’m using the Chinese soup broth to make a rice soup. Here’s what you need for the broth:

Notes on the ingredients:

• Rice – virtually any standard white rice will work just fine in this rice soup. Long grain, medium grain, short grain, jasmine, basmati. I’ve also popped directions for recipe adjustments required to make this with brown rice – most varieties take longer to cook so you’ll need more liquid;

• Chicken stock/broth – low sodium is best, so it’s not too salty once you add the soy sauce and Chinese cooking wine (both of which add salt and flavour). Vegetable stock also works;

• Chinese cooking wine – the key ingredient in all Chinese cooking that adds depth of flavour to anything it’s used in, from fried rice to stir fries, to noodles and marinades such as sticky Chinese Wings, Ribs and even crispy Pork Belly. It’s got a small amount of alcohol in it (wine level), but we only need 1 tablespoon so the alcohol mostly cooks out during the simmer stage;

• Soy sauce – we’re using light soy sauce here so as not to discolour the rice soup broth. Read more about different soy sauces here;

• Sesame oil – toasted sesame oil is added at the end for a lovely perfume of sesame flavour. Untoasted sesame oil is yellow and the flavour is not as strong, so don’t use that. Here in Australia, toasted sesame oil (which is brown) is the standard – it’s harder to find untoasted;

• Fresh garlic & ginger – simmered in the broth to infuse with flavour; and

• White pepper – white rather than black pepper is the standard in Chinese cooking so you don’t get black specks. But black pepper works just fine too.

Chinese Rice Soup Add-ins

This is the part that’s entirely customisable. I’ve just used choy sum and fish, both of which are low effort to prep plus super-quick to chop. Plus green onion to add a touch of freshness at the end.

See below for an extensive list of alternatives. Basically, anything that’s blanch-able!

Rice Soup Add-Ins

These are the add-ins I used, but see below for a rather extensive list of alternatives. I did say this was a flexible recipe!!

• Fish – I like using fish because it drops juice that adds extra flavour into the broth, plus it’s super quick to cook and requires no seasoning prior to use. You can use virtually any fish here – white fish fillets, salmon, trout. For white fish, firm-fleshed fish are ideal, such as:

• • tilapia

  • cod (all types)

  • mahi-mahi

  • halibut

  • basa

  • snapper

  • barramundi

  • ling (this is what I used)

Fish best avoided include:

• • Fish that easily goes dry if cooked too long – tuna, bonito, swordfish, marlin, kingfish

  • Very oily fish – sardines, mullet, herring, mackerel (too strongly flavoured for this soup)

  • Delicate-textured white fish – flathead, gemfish/hake, sole (not ideal as they can break up easily, but are still OK if you’re careful)

(Tip: These fish selection guidelines are good for any recipes where fish are braised or poached like this, such as Moqueca (Brazilian Fish Stew) and Goan Fish Curry.)

• Choy sum – this is a Chinese vegetable which is widely available here in Australia. The stem has a juicy bite to it like soft celery and the leaf is similar to spinach but it’s not as fine. Quick to chop and cook. Any other Chinese vegetable will be an ideal substitute – or other vegetables that can be simmered; and

• Green onion – for a sprinkle of freshness at the end.

Alternative Add-ins

Here are some other add-ins that will work really well with this recipe:

• Prawns/shrimp – very quick to cook, just plonk the raw prawns straight into the broth. No need to season beforehand. Large prawns will take 3 minutes to cook, medium 2 minutes, small 1 minute;

• Chicken  – slice it thinly, then tenderise it using this simple Chinese velveting method to ensure it stays soft and tender even after simmering. After tenderising, toss with a pinch of salt and pepper prior to cooking. Use breast or boneless thigh, simmer for 2 minutes;

• Pork – as above with chicken (including tenderising). Use tenderloin, scotch fillet or chops, thinly sliced into strips. Simmer for 2 minutes;

• Firm Tofu – cut into small batons, like in Hot & Sour Soup;

• Cooked chicken – make poached chicken (use this Foolproof Method for the juiciest poached chicken of your life!), then slice it and place on top of soup once served in bowls. Or use any cooked chicken, shredded or diced;

• Other cooked proteins – any other cooked protein that’s relatively plain or has Asian flavours. A bit of leftover Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork or Chicken), or perhaps if you have some leftover Asian flavoured mince (ground meat) such as from these quick Asian Beef Bowls, Vietnamese Caramelised Pork Bowls, or even the stuffing for San Choy Bau (Chinese Lettuce Wraps) or Thai Lettuce Wraps. Any of these would be terrific!

• Other vegetables – any vegetable that cooks well in liquid will work well here. Think: sliced carrots, zucchini/courgettes, broccoli/broccolini, cauliflower, asparagus, beans.

How to make Chinese Rice Soup

This recipe has a nice flow to it, which is partly what makes it so low effort:

• Pour chicken stock into pot and as it comes to the simmer, slice the ginger, peel the garlic, measure out the soy sauce and Chinese cooking wine and plonk it in;

• As the broth simmers for 5 minutes to infuse with flavour, prepare the rice, fish and choy sum; then

• As the rice and fish are cooking, get the bowls out and your choice of toppings out for serving.

Toppings

As for toppings – a little pinch of store bought crispy fried shallots and crunchy noodles really elevates this soup to another level. Don’t get me wrong – this rice soup is delicious as is and I’ve eaten it naked plenty of times, but crunchy toppings are the cherry on top!

Using both is the ultimate combo, but even using one of these is terrific / highly recommended.

1. Crispy Fried Shallots

One of my favourite Asian garnishes to add a pop of crispiness and salty goodness into Asian soups and salads. They are literally shallots fried until crunchy, then sprinkled with salt.

Sold in the Asian section of grocery stores, but much cheaper at Asian stores!

2. Crunchy fried noodles

The big sister of the thin crunchy noodles used in things like Chinese Chicken Salad, these are like the strips of fried wontons that come with Congee, the traditional slow cooked, porridge-like Chinese rice soup. Excellent crunch factor!

Sold in the Asian food section of mainstream grocery stores, here’s what it looks like:

What to serve with Chinese Rice Soup

This soup as written is a bit light on the vegetables so by all means, feel free to increase the vegetable quota by adding more greens.

Alternatively, serve it with a side salad or steamed greens tossed in a simple Asian Sesame Dressing, or a big Asian Slaw.

Storing leftovers

Rice left in soup will continue to absorb the liquid and become unappealingly bloated, so if you’ve got leftovers, it’s essential to separate them. Either scoop the rice out with a slotted spoon, or drain using a colander, then store the rice in a separate container to the broth.

Resist the temptation to cook the rice separately and place in bowls before ladling broth over because we want the rice to absorb the tasty flavours of the broth as it cooks! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Chinese Rice Soup

Recipe video above. This is a really quick and easy soup recipe that's filling and nourishing. The Asian infused soup broth adapted from my Chinese Noodle Soup has a depth of flavour that belies the few ingredients called for.

As for add ins - in the spirit of simplicity and speed, I've just used fish and choy sum. But you're only limited by your imagination!

Course Mains, Soup

Cuisine Asian, Chinese

Keyword asian soup broth, chinese rice soup

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 3 - 4 people

Calories 243cal

Author Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Ingredients

Broth

• 1 litre / 32 oz chicken stock/broth, low sodium (Note 1)
• 1 cup water
• 2 garlic cloves , smashed (Note 2)
• 1.5 cm / 1/2" ginger piece, cut into 3 slices
• 1 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce , or normal all purpose soy sauce (Note 3)
• 1 1/2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine , key ingredient (Note 4 subs)
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp sesame oil , toasted (optional) (Note 5)
• 1/4 tsp white pepper (sub black, can omit)

Add Ins

• 3/4 cup uncooked white rice - long grain, medium grain, short grain, jasmine (Note 6)
• 3 stems choy sum , cut into 2cm / 1" lengths, stems separated from leaves (Note 8)
• 250g / 8 oz white fish fillets , cut into 2.5cm / 1" cubes (Note 8)
• 1 green onion , finely sliced

Toppings (1 minimum, all best!)

• Crispy fried shallots (Note 9)
• Crunchy fried noodles , pictured in post (Note 9)
• Chilli oil or paste

Cups - Metric

Instructions

• Combine broth ingredients: Place chicken stock, soy sauce, Chinesse cooking wine, garlic and ginger in a small pot over high heat.
• Simmer to infuse: Place lid on, bring to simmer then reduce to medium and simmer for 5 minutes to allow the flavours to infuse.
• Add rice: Add rice and cook uncovered for 10 minutes - broth surface should be bubbling very gently.
• Add fish & stems: Add fish and stems of choy sum, cook for 2 minutes.
• Pick garlic and ginger out of soup.
• Stir through choy sum leaves (they will wilt almost instantly), sesame oil and pepper. Serve immediately.

Notes

1.  Chicken stock/broth - just store bought chicken broth is fine here, but get a good quality one (Campbells in Australia is my favourite brand). Don't use chicken stock powder with hot water for this recipe – the flavour is too artificially chicken-y.

2. Smashed Garlic - whack the side of your knife onto a garlic clove using the heel of your hand so it bursts open but remains mostly in one piece. This allows the flavour to seep into the soup but can be picked out before serving (or leave them in if you prefer). You could just mince the garlic using a garlic crusher but you'll have little bits of garlic visible in the broth, rather than being a clear clean broth.

3. Light soy will season broth without discolouring it. All purpose soy works nearly as well, do not use dark soy (too strong flavour and colour). Read more about different soy sauces and when you can sub with what here.

4. Chinese cooking wine is a key ingredient to transform store bought chicken broth into a restaurant-quality soup broth. Dry sherry is an excellent substitute. Otherwise, Japanese cooking sake or mirin are good substitutes.

If you cannot use alcohol, I think the best sub is as follows:

• Reduce soy sauce to 2 tsp
• Add 1 tbsp Oyster Sauce (this has umami and will add complexity into the broth flavour to compensate for leaving out cooking wine).

5. Sesame oil - use toasted (brown colour, more intense sesame flavour), not untoasted (yellow, not common in Australia).

6. Rice: Virtually any white rice will work in this, except speciality rices like risotto or paella rice. All these white rice will work well:

• long, medium or short grain white rice
• jasmine
• basmati

Brown rice - cook time differs depending on rice type (see How to Cook Brown Rice to learn more), amend recipe as follows:

• Brown basmati - follow recipe as written
• Medium and long grain brown rice - add 1 cup water, simmer rice for 30 minutes with lid open a crack

7. Vegetables - anything that cooks well in liquid will work great here. 

• Any Chinese veggies - bok choy/buk choi/pak choi, gai lan/Chinese broccoli, choy sum. Cut Bok Choy into half or quarters lengthwise (pictured / video). For other veg, cut per recipe
• Carrots and zucchini sliced, green beans, asparagus, broccoli/broccolini, cauliflower, beansprouts
• Put vegetables in the order of time it takes for them to cook. Delicate veg like beansprouts at the end, veg that take longer like carrots halfway through rice cooking time.

8. Fish - Firm white fish work best in this dish. Salmon and trout are also mild enough to use here. Avoid tuna, bonito, swordfish, marlin and kingfish (too easy to overcook) and very oily fish (sardines, mullet, herring, mackerel). Delicate-fleshed white fish like flathead, gemfish/hake and sole can be used, but be careful as they can break up.

Alternatives:

• Prawns/shrimp - plonk the raw prawns straight into the broth. No need to season beforehand. Large prawns will take 3 minutes to cook, medium 2 minutes, small 1 minute;
• Chicken  - slice thinly, tenderise using this Chinese velveting method to ensure it stays soft and tender. After tenderising, toss with a pinch of salt and pepper prior to cooking. Use breast or boneless thigh, simmer for 2 minutes;
• Pork - as above with chicken (including tenderising). Tenderloin, scotch fillet, chops, thinly sliced into strips. Simmer for 2 minutes;
• Firm Tofu - cut into small batons, like in Hot & Sour Soup;
• Cooked chicken - make poached chicken (use this Foolproof Method) or use any other cooked chicken. Dice or finely slice, place on soup after serving;
• Other cooked proteins - any other cooked protein that's relatively plain or has Asian flavours. See in post for ideas - halfway down the page.

9. Crispy Fried Shallots & Crunchy Noodles - both sold in the Asian section of everyday grocery stores, see post for photos. A little goes a long way to adding an extra special touch! BUT even without toppings, it's still fabulously delicious - I often have it naked!

10. Extra broth flavouring options: star anise, chilli (whole, split lengthwise), green onion (whole, just fold them and tuff in) or onion quarters.

11. Leftovers: Separate rice from broth (use colander or slotted spoon). Keeps 4 days in the fridge, or freezer up to 3 months.

12. Nutrition is per serving, assuming 4 servings, excludes Toppings (because I have no control over how much you will use!).

Nutrition

Serving: 585g | Calories: 243cal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 31mg | Sodium: 483mg | Potassium: 438mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 105IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 1mg

Life of Dozer

A lot of golden retrievers are coordinated enough to do this on dry land. Dozer needs the full assistance of water buoyancy to get up on this hind legs without slamming his paws onto someone for support (usually me).

(PS This is his “pretty please, play with me?!” pose)

The post Chinese Rice Soup – quick and easy appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Chinese Noodle Soup is incredibly quick and easy – if you know the secret seasonings! You’d swear the Asian soup broth is from a Chinese restaurant, it’s that good. 10 minutes and just 352 calories for a big bowl. Use any noodles, any vegetables, any protein – or not! It’s terrific fridge-forage food.

This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!

Fast Chinese Noodle Soup!

This Chinese Noodle Soup is one of my classic “back pocket” recipes because it’s so versatile and incredibly quick. Because people who cook all day for a living need quick dinners for real life – ask any chef!!

Here’s a run down of how it goes:

• Broth: Plonk and simmer 6 ingredients for 10 minutes (no trip to the Asian store required!);

• Noodles: Prepare fresh OR dried noodles according to packet directions;

• Toppings: Rummage in fridge and locate vegetables & proteins of choice. Chop roughly and cook with the noodles or in the soup. broth; and

• Serve: Place noodles in bowls. Pour over soup and toppings.

See? 10 minutes!

Seasonings for Chinese soup broths

If you’ve ever been disappointed by a recipe for an Asian soup broth before, it’s probably because it was missing basic but essential flavourings. It takes more than just chicken broth and soy sauce to make a Chinese soup broth!

Here’s what all you need:

• Chinese cooking wine – the key ingredient. Just 1.5 tablespoons adds complexity and depth of flavour to the store bought chicken stock. Without it, the broth will taste “flat” ie missing something. Substitute with: dry sherry, mirin or cooking sake. Best non alcoholic sub for this recipe: substituting some of the soy sauce with oyster sauce (which adds extra “umami” into the broth to compensate);

• Garlic and ginger – smash the garlic and slice the ginger to allow the fresh flavours to infuse into the broth. Keeping them whole makes it easy to pick out later – you could very well grate them straight into the broth using a fine grater, but you will get little bits in the soup (rather than being a clear broth);

• Sesame oil – for the flavour!

• Chicken broth/stock – use low sodium otherwise the broth may be a touch too salty for your taste. Use a decent one, because it’s the foundation of the soup broth (🇦🇺 I use Campbells. Better than Continental). Best option if you have it: homemade chicken stock!;

• Soy sauce – either all purpose or light soy sauce will work here. Don’t use dark soy sauce or sweet soy sauce – the flavour of these are too intense; and

• Sugar – just a touch, to balance out the flavours.

What goes in the noodle soup

And here’s what I put in the soup:

• Noodles – Chinese noodle soups are traditionally made with thin egg noodles (pictured above, and below in the soup). Fresh ones (sold in the fridge section) have a better texture than dried. But any noodles will be fine here – fresh or dried, rice noodles, white or yellow noodles, Hokkien, Singapore noodles, wide, thin, vermicelli, ramen noodles (yup!), diet noodles (like konyaku – been there, done that), zoodles (been there too). Really. ANY noodles will be great in this broth!

• Bok Choy (also known as buk choi, buk choi, pak choi, or pok choi – crazy right??!) – or any vegetables. I like bok choy because you just split them in half down the middle and bam! You’re done! (Recipe notes includes an extensive list of chopping and cook directions for common vegetables)

• Cooked Chicken (poach it using this method that guarantees juiciness)- or any other protein, as desired. Everybody keeps little containers of cooked shredded chicken in the freezer, right?!

• Green onion or coriander/cilantro, or chives, or even finely sliced onion (red, white, yellow brown) – something for a little hit of freshness.

How to make Chinese Noodle Soup

And here’s how it happens in 10 minutes. (And to all those cheeky buggers who will point out that if you have to simmer for 10 minutes, then it takes longer than 10 minutes – fine! You can take a 2 minutes off the simmer time!😉)

PRO TIP: Never cook noodles in the soup broth unless a recipe specifically calls for it. Noodles suck up loads of liquid when they cook, so if you do that you’ll end up with way less broth than you expect. Learnt this the hard way. 😖

Make it even HEALTHIER!!

Being that this is a noodle soup recipe and all, noodles are a key ingredient here. Even so, it clocks in at just 352 calories for a bowl.

But if you want to cut down on the carbs and calories even further, just skip the noodles and load it up with tons more vegetables to make a Chinese vegetable soup. In fact, it’s one of my “go-to” diet dinners (which should happen more frequently than it does…).

Do I miss the noodles? Of course I do. But I console myself with a healthy dose of chilli paste and lots of fresh herbs, Chicken Pho style.

But before you make it diet, try it the way it’s intended. THEN healthify it!!!  – Nagi x

Watch How To Make It

This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!

Print

Chinese Noodle Soup

Recipe video above. A simple, delicious Chinese noodle soup with a broth that you'd swear came from your favourite Chinese restaurant! This is a midweek version so it's made with store bought soup broth rather than a made from scratch broth. I've kept the toppings very simple because this recipe is more about the broth than the toppings. You can add any toppings you want – vegetables and proteins (refer Note 7).

Course Soup

Cuisine Asian, Chinese

Keyword asian soup broth, chinese noodle soup

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 2

Calories 352cal

Author Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Ingredients

Broth

• 3 cups chicken stock/broth, low sodium (Note 1)
• 2 garlic cloves , smashed (Note 2)
• 1.5 cm / 1/2" ginger piece, cut into 3 slices (optional, but highly recommended)
• 1 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce , or normal all purpose soy sauce (Note 3)
• 2 tsp sugar (any)
• 1 1/2 tbsp chinese cooking wine (Note 4)
• 1/4 – 1/2 tsp sesame oil , toasted (optional) (Note 5)

Toppings & Noodles

• 180g / 6oz fresh egg noodles (Note 6)
• 2 large bok choy or other vegetables of choice (use any blanchable veg – Note 7)
• 1 cup shredded cooked chicken (or other protein of choice)
• 1 scallion / shallot , green part only finely sliced (optional garnish)

Cups – Metric

Instructions

• Place Broth ingredients in a saucepan over high heat. Place lid on, bring to simmer then reduce to medium and simmer for 8 – 10 minutes to allow the flavours to infuse.
• Meanwhile, cook noodles according to packet directions.
• Cut bok choys in half (for small / medium) or quarter (for large). Wash thoroughly.
• Either cook the bok choi in the broth in the soup broth OR noodle cooking water for 1 min (if noodles required boiling).
• Pick garlic and ginger out of soup.
• Place noodles in bowls. Top with chicken and bok choy. Ladle over soup, garnish with green onions. Great served with chilli paste or fresh chillis.

Notes

1.  Chicken stock/broth – just store bought chicken broth is fine here, but get a good quality one (Campbells in Australia is my favourite brand). Don’t use chicken stock powder with hot water for this recipe – the flavour is too chickeny.

2. Smashed Garlic – wack the side of your knife onto a garlic clove using the heel of your hand so it bursts open but remains mostly in one piece. This allows the flavour to seep into the soup but can be picked out before serving. You could just mince the garlic using a garlic crusher but you’ll have little bits of garlic visible in the broth, rather than being a clear clean broth.

3. Chinese cooking wine is a key ingredient to transform store bought chicken broth into a restaurant-quality soup broth. Dry Sherry is an excellent substitute. Otherwise, Japanese cooking sake or mirin are adequate substitutes (if you use Mirin, skip sugar).

If you cannot use alcohol, I think the best sub is as follows:

• Reduce soy sauce to 1 tbsp
• Add 1 tbsp Oyster Sauce (this has umami and will add complexity into the broth flavour to compensate for leaving out cooking wine).

4. Extra broth flavouring options: star anise, chilli, green onion (just fold them) or onion quarters.

5. Sesame oil – use toasted (brown colour, more intense sesame flavour), not untoasted (yellow, not common in Australia).

6. Noodles: Use any you want, fresh or dried but if using less, use less. Here’s a guide of amount of noodles per serving:

• Fresh noodles, thin (ie from fridge section, this is what I use) – 90g / 3 oz per serving
• Fresh noodles, wide and flat (like thick Thai rice noodles) – 150g/ 5 oz per serving (much denser, so you need more)
• Dried noodles, pasta (yes, really!) – 60g / 2 oz per serving
• Ramen – 1 pack / “cake” per person

Prepare according to packet directions – do not add into the broth (it sucks up lots of the broth). 

7. Toppings: Cook proteins separately to keep things simple. My “go to” is shredded cooked chicken because I keep little bags in the freezer (poaching keeps it juicy). Egg is also great – just whisk it lightly, pour it in and whisk to create egg “ribbons” like in Hot & Sour Soup and Chinese Corn Soup. Chinese BBQ Pork Slices is fabulous (I order it at restaurants on soup), but I never have leftover when I make it.

Vegetables – cut and cook in either noodle cooking water (if noodles require cooking) otherwise if the noodles just require soaking, then cook the vegetables in the broth. Put the vegetables that take the longest to cook in first (like broccoli), and delicate ones last (like beansprouts).

Veggie suggestions – toppings commonly found on Chinese noodle/ wonton soups:

• Any Chinese veggies (bok choy/buk choi/pak choi, gai lan/Chinese broccoli, choy sum). Cut Bok Choy into half or quarters lengthwise (pictured / video), for other veg, cut into batons about 5cm / 2″ long
• Carrots – sliced on the diagonal
• Bean sprouts
• Green beans

Other veg – not common at Chinese restaurants, but works great!

• zucchini (sliced)
• green beans cabbage (thick slice)
• asparagus, broccoli / broccolini and cauliflower,
• any other vegetable that can be boiled.

8. Nutrition is per serving, assuming 1/4 tsp of sesame oil is used. The nutrition can be substantially enhanced by adding more vegetables! Reduce sodium even further by using low sodium soy sauce.

Nutrition

Serving: 585g | Calories: 352cal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 53mg | Sodium: 1067mg | Potassium: 493mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 29IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 4mg

Originally published June 2016. Long overdue for a video to be added with brand new photos and process steps!

MORE ASIAN SOUPS YOU’LL LOVE!

Chinese Rice Soup – quick and easy

Wonton Soup

Hot and Sour Soup

Chinese Corn Soup with Chicken

Vietnamese Chicken Pho soup (Pho Ga)

Chinese Ham Bone Rice Soup – Congee (3 ingredients!!)

Vietnamese Pho recipe

Laksa Noodle Soup

Chinese Ham Bone Rice Soup – Congee (3 ingredients!!)

Life of Dozer

Baby Hands and Giant Paws. Evidence for anyone who has wondered how small my hands really are.

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The post Chinese Noodle Soup appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.