Whole Foods Lifestyle - Healthy Asian Soups

A request from Hope on another thread. Wow, thanks Jayde! Yes, the tofu, soybean paste, chili paste, seaweed & fresh greens all sound quite refreshing and would be a welcome change to my same ol same ol food choices.

Here is a cut and paste of a recipe I posted in Mediterranean... for seaweed soup.

ingredients:
dried miyok (wakame seaweed) About the size of a fist if you could ball it up.
about4 tablespoons chopped lean beef (the beef should be fairly tiny pieces) chopped garlic... maybe 3 cloves
1/2 to 1 tsp sesame salt (roasted sesame seeds freshly ground with a sea salt)
a teaspoon or so of sesame oil or olive oil be generous but don't overdo it
black pepper to taste
6 cups of water or weak beef broth...(homemade broth...if you don't have it water is fine)

1. Soak the miyok (wakame seaweed) in water for about an hour. It will poof up ten times it's volume so be conservative when you decide how much to soak. Discard the water.. rinse once then cut up into 2 inches pieces.. (I usually cut them into bigger pieces but most people prefer them small.)

2. In a small bowl (or directly in a large pan) mix the beef with garlic, sesame salt, oil, and black pepper. Sear it in the bottom of the pan you will use to make the soup. You just want to brown the meat not cook it through.. careful not to overdo it or the garlic will become bitter.

3. Add the seaweed cook it for a minute or two stirring the whole time. Then add the 6 cups of stock or water. Boil on medium heat for at least 30 minutes. The seaweed should be tender. I also add small cubes of tofu.. about the size of large dice. Usually I cook it a lot longer than this. Just be sure too much of the broth doesn't evaporate because you can't just add water at the end like you can other soups as you don't want to dilute the broth which should have taken on a sort of creamy color and taste from the seaweed.

Check for taste. If it needs more salt add sea salt but bring back to a boil.

We eat this with steamed rice and kimchi.

Seaweed is one of the healthiest things you could eat on this planet. With the added tofu it gives it a little different taste, texture, and look. As an added plus this soup is sooooooooooooo easy!

Thank you Jayde!:hug:

With all of these wonderful recipe ideas, I'm gonna be cookin' now!:stir:

You are certainly welcome! Here's another from you (Hope)..

Pork Neck Potato Soup

Ingredients: about 400 grams of cut pork neck bones with a little meat attached of course (the butcher has them), 4 medium potatoes peeled and cut into large pieces.. quarters or eighths..., one or two large onions cut each into 8ths..chunky.., 1 large leek rinsed carefully then sliced lengthwise, (green onions are ok.. but leeks are better), generous amount of whole garlic cloves, 1 knob of fresh ginger either sliced grated with a microplane depending upon how you feel about finding large ginger pieces in your soup, and , 1 Tbsp of rice wine.. like Sake, sea salt, fresh ground pepper to taste

1. Soak the neck bones in cold water for awhile then discard the water and rinse the bones.

2. Boil the bones in fresh water briefly.. just enough to cook through...DO NOT OVERCOOK. Throw out the water .. rinse the bones... rinse out the pot. (you are getting rid of the scum)

3. Boil again in fresh water, this time add the garlic, onions, rice wine and a little sea salt. This time you need to simmer/boil it for a long time. From a few hours to up to several hours depending upon how rich you want the soup, how busy you are etc.. You want to make sure that you simmer it at least long enough for the meat to easily fall off the bones. I usually begin boiling it several hours before bed.. allow it to cool when I am sleeping, and then simmer it again for several hours the next morning. But sometimes I just boil it lightly for 2 hours and leave it at that.

4. Add the potatoes (they need to be large pieces so they won't cook too fast and break apart.. but not so big that they are uncomfortable to eat.), more garlic (minced), grated fresh ginger and boil until the potatoes are cooked.

4. Serve in bowls. (Taking care to not put the bones themselves in the bowl). Add sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste, garnish with fresh green onions if desired.

The broth in this soup is rich... as are all broths where nutrients are leached from bones. ... It is a hearty soup that goes well with sticky rice, kimchi and light side dishes.. steamed greens, etc. Sometimes it is eaten by actually putting the cooked sticky rice in the same bowl you are serving the soup in.

Not a lot of superfoods.. but a good soup. It is not a soup that you can freeze though so be sure to enjoy it with lots of company.

Is this your own creation? It sounds like a blend of cultures! Southern American and Asian...

I LOVE ginger! :lol: We call my daughter that and I laugh everytime I say it now! Her name is Angelina, but my mom and DH both started calling her Gingie. DH got it from Shrek (the gingerbread character). Where mom got hers from...the world may never know. But, I started calling her Ginger, go figure! Anyway, when I was pregnant, I had indigestion and nausea so bad. The only thing that helped was ginger candy from Berman's health food store. It was chewy and covered in a powdered sugar type coating. Mmmmmmmm Did I mention that I love ginger???

I can only imagine what great flavor it adds to this soup!

Is this your own creation? It sounds like a blend of cultures! Southern American and Asian...

No, it isn't mine.. though I wish it were. ;) It is actually a very popular Korean soup called 'kamja tang' (potato soup).

Ginger.. what a sweet name to call your daughter!! How old is she? (You might have already told me this...:dizzy: )

Ginger.. I love it too... fresh ginger tea, candied ginger, ginger in nearly everything that has meat in it. I always have ginger on hand.. fresh or ginger I've peeled and frozen... you have to have an emergency supply just in case you run out!

Tomorrow's soup... soybean sprout soup... I'll buy the sprouts on the way home and make it.. then I'll post after dinner. :hug:

Angelina is 1. Olivia is 5. They drive me bonkers most days! But I love, love, love to see the dynamic between them as sisters! Here's a link to the photo album of them. In a couple of them, they had both just eaten...chocolate! It's all over Olivia's mouth!

http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p=999&gid=11925246&uid=6105412&members=1

Gosh, Hope, those are 2 adorable little girls! :)

Oh my goodness, Hope... those precious girls are adorable ! Now I can really see why exercise might be a challenge... (other than running around with them at play.) And what beautiful beautiful pictures. Are you the photographer?

Awww, thanks guys! They truly light up my life! Yes, I take ALL family photos...so I won't be in them! Well, I get in sometimes, but I'm the designated photographer!

I've had seaweed soup before and well I'd leave it to the sea :) My DF would love it though. In fact they served on Korean Air when I flew them a few months ago.

The other soup I may try without the pork neckbones. I know it makes a broth but maybe some veggie broth instead will do.

With Fall fast approaching here in the US, I LOVE all of these soup ideas! Comfort food at its finest (and most nutritious!)

Your girls look amazing and so do your photos.

Oh, thank you trishn222! Well, the girls thank you!

I've had seaweed soup before and well I'd leave it to the sea :) My DF would love it though. In fact they served on Korean Air when I flew them a few months ago.

Well you know what they say about airplane food! :D
Still it is not for everyone.

*Editing to add... I didn't make it to the market so I didn't make the soybean sprout soup or even post the recipe. I'll get the stuff .. and when I do I'll post. :)

Jayde,

Do you have the bean sprout soup recipe?

Jayde, Do you have the bean sprout soup recipe?

Sure... even though I'm too :censored: busy to go to the Korean market to get the sprouts, I'll share the recipe. :cool:

100 g of soybean sprouts (콩나물 kongnamul)... for those of you who might not know these are NOT the sprouts you usually find in a supermarket. Those sprouts are mung bean sprouts. Soybean sprouts look like this:

http://health.chosun.com/wdata/photo/news/200512/20051212000006_01.jpg

1 piece of daikon radish (무 mu) sliced into long matchsticks... preferably use the short fat Korean kind.... the skinny long Japanese kind does not taste the same. I usually prep the sprouts by pinching off the dry tail. It takes time but is a pleasant chore if you do it while talking to someone or even watching a movie or sitting outside. I know several people who don't do this but just rinse the sprouts. I prefer the tail off. The soup looks better, tastes better, and is more pleasant to eat this way.

2 green onions sliced in thin 3 cm long strips
1 fresh red pepper sliced into 3 cm strips
1 Tbsp minced garlic
a little sea salt
about 4 cups of fresh cold water

step 1: put the cold water in a pot with the sprouts and radish. Boil for 15 min.

step 2: when the sprouts seem to be just cooked through add the salt, green onion, red pepper, garlic, ..cook for a while longer until the flavor has seeped into the broth. Add a little red pepper flakes (not the kind with seeds) and cooked sliced beef if desired. Or just eat it vegetarian.

Usually if I am going to add beef.. I cook it differently. I chop up a tablespoon or 2 of beef, mix it with crushed sesame seed, add a little garlic and sea salt, and then brown it very slightly in the pan before adding the water and sprouts...oh, if you cook it this way the radish becomes an option because the soup will take on flavor from the beef. The radish still makes a good soup I just don't want you to think that it is necessary... make the soup even if you don't have it.

Angelina is 1. Olivia is 5.

Liv and Gingie! Darling names for two very beautiful girls!

Liv and Gingie! Darling names for two very beautiful girls!

:D I'm a very proud mom! Thanks for your kind words!

Sure... even though I'm too :censored: busy to go to the Korean market to get the sprouts, I'll share the recipe. :cool:

100 g of soybean sprouts (콩나물 kongnamul)... for those of you who might not know these are NOT the sprouts you usually find in a supermarket. Those sprouts are mung bean sprouts. Soybean sprouts look like this:

http://health.chosun.com/wdata/photo/news/200512/20051212000006_01.jpg

1 piece of daikon radish (무 mu) sliced into long matchsticks... preferably use the short fat Korean kind.... the skinny long Japanese kind does not taste the same. I usually prep the sprouts by pinching off the dry tail. It takes time but is a pleasant chore if you do it while talking to someone or even watching a movie or sitting outside. I know several people who don't do this but just rinse the sprouts. I prefer the tail off. The soup looks better, tastes better, and is more pleasant to eat this way.

2 green onions sliced in thin 3 cm long strips
1 fresh red pepper sliced into 3 cm strips
1 Tbsp minced garlic
a little sea salt
about 4 cups of fresh cold water

step 1: put the cold water in a pot with the sprouts and radish. Boil for 15 min.

step 2: when the sprouts seem to be just cooked through add the salt, green onion, red pepper, garlic, ..cook for a while longer until the flavor has seeped into the broth. Add a little red pepper flakes (not the kind with seeds) and cooked sliced beef if desired. Or just eat it vegetarian.

Usually if I am going to add beef.. I cook it differently. I chop up a tablespoon or 2 of beef, mix it with crushed sesame seed, add a little garlic and sea salt, and then brown it very slightly in the pan before adding the water and sprouts...oh, if you cook it this way the radish becomes an option because the soup will take on flavor from the beef. The radish still makes a good soup I just don't want you to think that it is necessary... make the soup even if you don't have it.

Are you supposed to cover the sprouts when you first boil them to avoid the smell?

Are you supposed to cover the sprouts when you first boil them to avoid the smell?

I cover it so it will boil quickly and retain heat.. the smell doesn't bother me... does it smell bad to you?

I cover it so it will boil quickly and retain heat.. the smell doesn't bother me... does it smell bad to you?

When I make them as a side dish in Korea, the cookbook I use and my cleaning lady both said to cover them as they get a strong fish smell when they boil. I took the lid off once and ....yup they were right!!

When I make them as a side dish in Korea, the cookbook I use and my cleaning lady both said to cover them as they get a strong fish smell when they boil. I took the lid off once and ....yup they were right!!

Hmmm, maybe I haven't noticed it because I am so used to it.. or compared to other Korean soups it is not as strong. Or maybe my covering it up to keep the heat in has been a good thing. ;)

Anyway, soybean PASTE soup (dwaenjang chigae) is one that you really want to prepare yourself for. It is a lot stronger than the mild Japanese miso soup and has a reputation for being so pungent that people hesitate to make it in an apartment setting because the smell bothers neighbors.. especially people who are not used to Korean food.