Coconut curry soup (tom yom variation)

The story: Well when I lived in Manhattan, I lived down the street from this nice little Thai restaurant, called the Blue Angel. When Kourtney and I would eat there, we would often get the spicy vegetable soup. We both loved it, though Kourtney always gave me the baby corn that was in it. We often thought of recreating the soup, and so we got the ingredients, at least as best as we could find them. I decided to make this soup on a very cold November night, when I had been out doors for a while. This is a great pick me/you up for a day like that. The soup recipe is essentially a tom yom recipe, though I adapted it to a more vegetarian friendly version. Tom yom soup is a very popular, and I might add a rather tasty, Thai soup. I replaced some of the standard ingredients simply because I used what was on hand , as I couldn't find a few necessary ingredients for the original recipe. The resturant has since closed down, but its soup lives on. (sort of)

* Note: Unlike most of the pictures posted, this is not a photo of my own. It is just similar stock photo found on Google images. Obviously mine would not have shrimp on top.

the dish: coconut curry soup (a tom yom variant)
3 cups of rich vegetable broth
1/4 cup of dry sherry cooking wine
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
1/4 cup of water
2 heaping tbs of coconut milk
2 heaping tbs of red curry paste (green works just as well)
1/3 cup of chopped shitake mushrooms
1/4 cup of thinly sliced red bell pepper
1 largish lime ( this replaces lemon grass, which can be a pain to deal with)
1/3 of a block of cubed tofu
4 scallion stalks
4 lime leaves
2-3 Thai bird chili peppers
2 ramen noodle blocks (optional. I used a egg noodle version of the ramen style noodles)


Pour the broth into a large pot and bring to a boil. While it is heating up, add the lime leaves and the bird chilies. I don't suggest chopping up the chilies, as they are spectacularly hot, and this is coming from someone who sucks down sambal with the best of them. Andrew Zimmern, from bizarre foods, described these peppers as "nuclear" so be careful of them. The leaves and the peppers will be removed before serving so don't chop them or break them up. When the broth comes to a boil, add the wet ingredients. Wait till the soup returns to a boil and then add the mushrooms and the bell pepper. The mushrooms with create a much richer broth, while the bell pepper will add a mild sweetness. Let the soup continue to boil for another 5-6 minutes, and then add the cubed tofu. Now for the lime. Cut the lime in half, and squeeze out the juice from both halves into the pot. If you really want the lime flavor to stand out, grate a little of the lime zest into the soup as well. Lastly, add the scallions. Stir and lower the temperature to a simmer. Get another pot, a small one preferably, and boil 3 or four cups of water. It should come to a boil very quickly, and when it does, add the noodles. The noodles shouldn't cook more than 3 minutes. Drain the water, and spray them with a small amount of oil. Do not add them to the soup itself, place them in your bowl and them pour the soup on top. This way the noodles don't get overly soggy. Don't forget to take out the lime leaves and the chilies before serving!!!

Eat and enjoy!!

Quick Asian Fix

The story: The story for this one is that I was hungry and in the mood for some form of an Asian dish. I took a look in the fridge and tossed together what I could find. The sauce was something of an experiment of mine. I have tried simple from scratch sauces before, with varying degrees of success. I think this one was a little different but with a nice tang to it.

The Dish: simple stir fry with a tangy sauce

1/2 pound of pasta
1 cup of broccoli
1/4 of a red bell pepper
4 scallions
1/4 cup of shitake mushrooms
1/4 cup of vegetarian chicken strips (seitan)

The sauce: ( I mostly did this one by feel so measurements are not precise)
1/2 cup of cooking sherry
1/4 cup of soy sauce
2 tbs of sesame oil
1 tsp of miso paste
1/2 tsp of corn starch
1 tsp of sugar (brown or white, doesn't matter)

As usual boil the water for the pasta. In the meantime spray a pan with oil and heat to a high temperature. When the oil is hot, toss in the peppers and the broccoli, as they tend to take longer to cook. Allow the veggies to cook for 3 to 4 minutes, and then add the mushrooms and the chicken strips. Cook for another 2 to 3 minutes and then lower the temperature. Mix all of the sauce ingredients in a separate bowl, stirring well to blend the corn starch. Add the scallions to the pan, pour in the sauce and stir. Let the veggies absorb the sauce for a minute and then turn off the heat. Drain the pasta, plate and add the veggies over.

Eat and enjoy!

A simple dish that shouldn't take more than 15 -20 minutes to make from start to finish.

General Tso's tofu

The story: I don't really know if there is a story behind this particular dish. I suppose I might talk about the sauce for this recipe. I do not make the sauce myself, it uses the iron chef general tso's sauce. The sauce, if I might say so, is terrific. My cousin hunts for the stuff with a passion, and when he finds a store that carries it, he buys two or three bottles at a time. Other aspects of the dish are common in my cooking. The tofu, for example, is cooked in a certain way, which really makes its crisp and chewy. Other than that, its just a dish I like to make when I don't feel like spending a huge amount of time to make an easy Chinese dish.

The dish: General Tso's tofu (serves 1-2 people)

1/4 -1/2 of a standard block of tofu (cut into small cubes)
1/4 pound of spinach
1/3 cup of onion
1/4-1/2 pound of fresh udon noodles
1/2 cup of Iron chef's General Tso's sauce (specifically THIS sauce)
1/4 cup of fresh radish sprouts

To start, you need to boil some water for the pasta. When the water is boiling add the pasta, and allow to cook for 3-4 minutes. After this, drain the pasta and place to the side. Now cube up the tofu into small blocks. Take a microwavable plate or bowl and spray it with oil. This will make sure that the tofu doesn't stick to the plate. Put the cubed tofu into the microwave, and cook for 3 minutes or so. This is going to drain moisture out of the tofu, making it crisp up and allow it to become chewy. In the meantime take a frying pan and spray it liberally with oil. Raise the heat to a high temperature. Once the tofu is done in the microwave, place it in the pan. Spray a small amount of oil on the top side of the tofu. Keep an eye on it, allowing it to crisp. After a few minutes, take the onion, which should be sliced into thin ribbons, into the pan. Spray with a little more oil. When the onion begins to brown a little, add the spinach. Try to drain as much moisture from the spinach as you can before you add it into the pan. Allow it to cook for another minute or two. Then add the sauce, lower the temperature, and allow the pan to simmer. You may need to add a small amount of water to thin it out. After 5 minutes, at most, add the pasta into the pan, and toss it all together. Let it cook for another minute or two. When done, place in the bowl or plate, and add the raw radish sprouts on top. The raw radish sprouts add a really nice earthy and surprisingly hot flavor. In addition to that, you might want to add a little sambal or fresh ground chili paste. It gives it a very nice zing!

Eat and enjoy!

Miso noodle soup

The Story: I have been enjoying miso soup for many years now and I kept wanting to make it myself but for various reasons it never came together. The soup is a simple one, often served as a first course with sushi. The simplicity of the soup in no way detracts from the fact that on a cold night, it really hits the spot. The reason that this recipe happened now began with an episode of "Chicago tonight" on PBS. The show talked about this great supermarket , the H mart, that was opening a new location in a south western Chicago suburb. It has a huge selection of Asian foods, including a spectacular amount of fresh vegetables and seafood. Also in the market are a number of small restaurants as well as other small stores. Kountney and I discovered that there was one quite close by, in fact it was just five minutes away. We had driven by it all the time but never really knew what it was. So tonight we decided to explore it and found all kinds of goodies, including the ingredients for the miso soup. For me this soup was a whole meal, not just a first course. I was gonna make steamed red bean dumplings, but after eating a bowl of this it really wasn't necessary.

* The photo is not of the actual soup, just one that looks very similar. Ours doesn't include scallops.

The dish: Miso noodle soup
4 cups of water
1 1/2 -2 tbs of Fuero Wakame dried seaweed
4 tbs of Miso paste (we used a reduced sodium brand)
1/4 standard block of tofu
1/4 pound of fresh udon noodles
3-4 keefer lime leaves

The dish is extremely quick and easy to make. Bring the water to a boil, but drop the lime leaves into the water before it reaches a boil. When boiling, add the tofu and the noodles. 1 minute later add the dried seaweed. Allow to cook for another 3-4 minutes. Next, add the miso paste into the water and stir well. Serve hot. Eat and enjoy!