Tag: soup

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tom ka

Last weekend, we went to Sacramento to meet our caterer for the wedding and visit our families. It was a quick visit, just for the day, but it was a good one. We began planning our wedding menu, reserved glassware and dishes, ate the culinary perfection that is a Dos Coyotes burrito. We thumbed through Jordan’s family’s old photo albums, finding that nothing has changed about the way Jordan poses for photographs today and the way he did at 4 years old. Once a ham, always a ham. (Thanks to these albums, I now also harbor a not-so-secret hope that one day Jordan will have a mustache as phenomenal as his dad’s in many of the photographs).

We brainstormed our must-play list for the DJ, tossing ideas back and forth around the kitchen island, occasionally (incessantly?) teasing my mom about her taste in music. I can’t remember the last time I laughed that much on a visit home. We ate red beans and rice. To close out the night, we looked at a bunch of old photos my mom had brought back from a recent visit to my grandmother’s—my grandparent’s wedding photos, photos of my mom as little girl, photos of my great grandmother. I hadn’t seen many of the photos before, and they were all so beautiful. Beautiful in the very particular way old photographs are always beautiful. And full of the characteristic, big round eyes that will forever remind me of my mother. Strong genes right there.

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Meanwhile, back in SF (insert a more eloquent transition if you’ve got one), we’ve been hitting the crock pot pretty hard. You’ve heard about the chili verde, but there’s also been chicken tinga (recipe forthcoming, thanks Billy for the inspiration), bourbon pulled pork (thanks Liz!), my mom’s red beans and rice, ‘baked’ potato soup, and tom ka. Tom ka is a thai soup, heavy on the coconut milk and just a tad spicy. It’s one of my go-to orders at one of the Thai restaurants in our neighborhood. Our neighborhood has so many Thai restaurants that I’ve got a restaurant for curry, a restaurant for larb and garlic quail, a restaurant for soup. The glory that is San Francisco.

So I decided to see if I could make a half-decent version of tom ka at home. In my crockpot. Dun, dun dunnnn. It really wasn’t half the challenge I though it would be. As it turns out, it’s hard to screw up anything with a can of full fat coconut milk. The revelations of a home cook. They are why you come to this blog.

But this soup is delicious. It’s stupidly simple to make if you have a crockpot, and pretty darn simple even if you don’t. Combine everything and simmer until the chicken is cooked. It calls for some unique ingredients, but most of them have a long shelf life (fish sauce, curry paste), and will happily hang out in your fridge until you want to make the soup again.

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Crockpot Tom Ka (Thai Coconut Chicken Soup)
6 cups chicken broth
1-14 oz can coconut milk
1-2″ piece of ginger, peeled and sliced
1 stalk of lemongrass, sliced lengthwise
2 garlic cloves, sliced
2 shallots, sliced
2 – 3 boneless chicken thighs, cut into strips
1/2 – 1 cup button mushrooms, sliced (how much do you like mushrooms?)
2 – 3 teaspoons thai red curry paste (or 2 thai chilis, sliced)
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 limes, juiced
salt, to taste
bell pepper, cilantro and green onion for serving
rice or rice noodles (optional)

In a crockpot, combine chicken broth, coconut milk, ginger, lemongrass, garlic, shallots, chicken, mushrooms, chili paste and fish sauce. Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours. If serving with rice noodles, add the rice noodles into the soup and let them cook through. Then add the lime juice and season with salt to taste. Garnish with bell pepper, cilantro and green onion.

I really like to dip rice into the broth of my tom ka like the soup is a dipping sauce. This isn’t traditional by any means and causes confusion in Thai restaurants, but that rarely stops me. Take a page from my book and serve your soup with a side of rice and salad. Live on the wild side.

-Emily

PS. Four hams. From an old roll of film, finally developed.

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Recipes

simple tomato soup

For once I don’t have much to say. The past two weeks have really been tough and my brain refuses to remember what spurred me to make tomato soup in the first place, not to mention the struggle to come up with anything in the way of creative prose.  This soup is simple and good. It wouldn’t hurt to pair it with a sage grilled cheese sandwich or perhaps a cheesy bun. A simple salad wouldn’t be amiss.

In case the idea of tomato soup intrigues you, but you don’t feel up to making it from scratch, I’d recommend the creamy tomato soup from Whole Foods – either their prepared version from the deli or the boxed one – and would avoid the creamy tomato soup from Trader Joe’s – it’s strangely sweet and needed a fair amount of doctoring to be palatable.

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Tomato Soup, adapted from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, sliced
1 – 2  leeks, sliced and rinsed of their grit
3 garlic cloves, sliced
2 – 28 oz cans of  tomatoes, or four pounds fresh tomatoes
2 tablespoons white rice
1 bay leaf
2 springs of thyme, basil or oregano
1 cup water
2 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper

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In a large heavy-bottomed pan, saute onion and leeks in olive oil and butter. Cover and cook until soft but not brown, 5 -10 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook for another two minutes. Add the tomatoes, rice, bay, herbs and salt.  Saute for 10 minutes. Add the water and continue cooking for another 10 minutes.

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Remove the herb sprig and bay leaf. Blend the soup until as smooth as possible. Strain the soup through a fine mesh strainer into another pot. It is worth the straining, trust me.

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Rewarm the soup and add the remaining two tablespoons of butter. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with creme fraiche and croutons.

Bite-Sized Croutons
several slices day-old bread
olive oil
salt

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I like my croutons to be manageable. Huge croutons that fill your mouth and seem like they’ll crack your teeth are not my thing. Make these using any old french bread you’ve got lying around.

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Slice the bread into 1/3″ – 1/2″ cubes. Toss with olive oil. Spread onto a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt. Bake 20 minutes, until browned and just slightly crunchy. They’ll get crunchier as they cool.

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-Emily

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Recipes

french onion soup

A while back, we made Julia Child’s french onion soup. It was delicious, but a serious undertaking. First you make a beef stock, then you caramelize onions for a few hours, and then you make the soup. This recipe is less time intensive and uses homemade chicken stock instead of beef, which I usually have on hand. (Whole roasted chickens make up a rather large portion of our meat consumption and their little frozen carcases become stock about once a month). This soup turned out beautifully and while I don’t know if it is better than Julia’s, it’s certainly just as good.

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One Year Ago: Mock Porchetta
Two Years Ago: Nonnie’s Carrot Cake

French Onion Soup, from Tartine Bread
6 large yellow onions, cut into slices
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon duck fat (use another tablespoon of butter if you don’t have duck fat)
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups dry white wine
2 cups rich chicken stock
4 slices day old bread
5 oz gruyère cheese, grated

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Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F. Combine onions, cream, butter, duck fat and salt in a large saucepan. Cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat until the onions are translucent, about 15 minutes. Adjust the heat so that the onions and cream are at a slow boil. Spread the onions over the bottom of the pot and cook, without stirring, until the onions begin to brown, about 10 minutes. Stir the onions and scrape the browned bits off the bottom of the pot. Add 1/2 cup of wine to deglaze. Continue cooking the onions without stirring for another 10 minutes, until they brown again. Add another 1/2 cup of wine and scrape the bottom. Repeat this process two more times, until the soup takes on a deep caramel color.

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While you’re caramelizing the onions, toast the bread. Spread the bread in an even layer on a baking sheet and toast until dry and brittle. About 15 minutes in a 400 degree oven.

Pour in the stock and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook until the broth is well flavored by the onions, about 15 minutes. Season with more salt if needed.

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Ladle the soup into ovenproof bowls, float a piece or two of toasted bread on each serving and top with the grated gruyere cheese. Put the bowls on a baking sheet and carefully put the sheet into the oven. Bake until the cheese is bubbly and caramelized, about 20 – 30 minutes.

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This soup is delicious—simple and satisfying. I wholeheartedly recommend you bake the soup for 20 minutes with the cheesy crouton on top, instead of just topping the soup with a piece of cheesy bread. Something magical happens when you bake the soup and bread together for a while, you don’t want to miss out on it.

-Emily

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Recipes

corn chowder with tomato salsa

It might be chilly and foggy here in SF, but that doesn’t stop us from enjoying summer produce. Those 100+ degree days in the Sacramento valley are good for something, and that something is corn and tomatoes. Nothing tastes more like summer.

This soup combines both of those flavors, plus a little southwestern flare thanks to a tomato and corn salsa. It is great for a summer day because it is quick to make and doesn’t require turning on your oven. I haven’t lived in San Francisco long enough to forget what that is like.

Corn Chowder with Tomato Salsa
For the soup
1 small onion, diced
2 leeks, sliced
1 carrot, diced
1 T butter
4 ears of corn, removed from the cob
1 sprig of thyme
1 bay leaf
4 cups broth (we used vegetable, but chicken would also be good)
1/4 cup cream
salt and pepper

In a large stock pot or dutch oven, melt the butter over low heat. Add the onion, leeks and carrot and saute until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the corn, thyme and bay leaf and saute two minutes more.

Add the broth and simmer for 10 minutes. Puree the soup in a blender and return to the pot. Bring back up to a simmer and add the cream. Season well with salt and pepper.

If you find that your soup is too runny once you’ve pureed it like I did, make a quick roux in a small saucepan. Melt two tablespoons of butter over medium heat. When the butter is foamy, add two tablespoons of flour. Stir to combine.  Cook for a few minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture is light brown. Whisk into the simmering soup to thicken.

For the salsa
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 ear corn, removed from the cob
zest and juice of one lime
chipotle or cayenne pepper – we used dried
salt and pepper

If you’re feeling up to it, grill the corn (or char it over your gas burners) before you shave it off the cob. The smokey flavor of charred corn plus the chipotle pepper would be great in contrast with the sweetness of the soup. In a small bowl, combine cherry tomatoes, corn kernels, lime juice and zest. Season with a pinch of cayenne or chipotle. Season with salt and a bit of freshly ground pepper. Set aside.

To serve, ladle the soup into the bowl and top with a few spoonfuls of the salsa. We also made a grilled cheese on some of my sourdough. Soup and grilled cheese is a special type of satisfying.

-Emily

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Recipes

grilled cheese and tomato soup

Cheese sandwiches have been pretty popular in Chez Jojonoodle as of late. We’re both in the thick of things at work and at school; we need quick and satisfying meals in a big way. Bread + cheese + hot pan = an undeniably good thing in less than 15 minutes. Plus, not much goes better with grilled cheese on a rainy day than tomato soup.

For the Grilled Cheese
4 slices sourdough bread
2/3 cup cheddar cheese, grated
1 T butter

For the Tomato Soup
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, sliced
2 T olive oil
1 – 32 oz can whole tomatoes
1 T balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
salt and pepper

In a dutch oven or large saucepan, saute the onion in olive oil over medium heat. Once translucent, add the garlic and saute for a few more minutes. Add the tomatoes and their liquid, vinegar, sugar and a good pinch of salt to the onion mixture. Simmer for 20 minutes and then puree. Season with more salt and pepper.

While the soup is simmering, spread the butter the bread. Heat a non-stick pan over low heat, place the bread butter side down, spread an even layer of  cheese and top with another slice of bread. Cover the pan. Let cook for about 5 minutes until golden brown and flip. Cook the other side until golden brown and serve alongside a warm bowl of tomato soup!

-Emily

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Randomness

daikon soup?

Jordan wanted to pickle daikon radishes, which is a great and delicious idea, and so he procured some lovely young little daikons. They sat happily in our fridge awaiting their future pickling—until I accidentally turned them into soup.  Daikons are not parsnips, as it turns out. In fact, they are much more watery, much more radishy and very little like parsnips at all, except for their looks.

I was in the middle of making my potato and ‘parsnip’ soup when Jordan came home from work. The soup had just entered into a mysteriously watery state when he walked through the door asking what was for dinner. Potato and parsnip soup was my cheery reply. Where did you get the parsnips, he wondered out loud. The fridge was my matter-of-fact answer. And that is when the ‘a daikon is not a parsnip’ bomb dropped and the reason behind my very watery soup became clear.

Well, when your soup is the consistency of broth because of an ingredient snafu and you still need to somehow turn that mess into a dinner, add half a pound of dry pasta and it will soak the excess water right up. Your potato soup will become a sort of pasta sauce and you’ll now be able to enjoy a carbtastic meal. I won’t torture you will the recipe, but keep the pasta trick in mind.

-Emily

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Recipes

fennel and rice soup

This is another recipe from David Tanis’ The Heart of the Artichoke. I decided to go for it because I’ve never had a fennel soup. It did not turn out as I expected, but was good nonetheless. I had anticipated a much more prominent fennel flavor, but the fennel was subtle and balanced by chicken broth, onion and rice. Jordan thought that the soup was super comforting and he was a big fan of the herb sauce on top. Not only is this soup inexpensive, it will also use up any herbs lingering in your fridge.

Fennel and Rice Soup with Herb Swirl, adapted from The Heart of the Artichoke by David Tanis

For the soup
1/4 cup olive oil
2 – 3 fennel bulbs, sliced
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves
salt and pepper
1/4 cup long grain rice
6 cups chicken broth or water

For the swirl
1 cup fennel fronds, roughly chopped (from the tops of your bulbs)
1/2 cup parsley
1/2 cup basil (I didn’t have basil and instead used dill)
1/4 cup scallions (I didn’t have scallions and instead used shallot)
1/2 cup olive oil
salt and pepper

In a dutch oven or stock pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the fennel, onion and garlic. Season well with salt and pepper. Saute until the vegetables are softened and lightly browned.

Add the rice and broth. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to simmer. Add more salt. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the herb sauce. In a food processor or blender, puree the herbs and scallions with the oil. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Puree the soup in a blender until you have a smooth puree (or, in my case, with an immersion blender until you have a chunky puree). David recommends that you strain the soup after you’ve pureed it, but I skipped that step. I like rustic food and I was attached to the idea of little rice pearls in the soup.

To serve, ladle the soup into a bowl and then spoon some of the herb sauce on top. Jordan requested that I bring the herb sauce to the table, so I’ll recommend that to you as well. Some cheesy toast never hurt either.

-Emily

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Recipes

my first indian foray—dal and naan

Inspired by a delicious dinner at our friend Ted’s, I decided to try my hand at Indian. For a first attempt it was successful, but could still use some tweaking. The dal was good, but a little over-spiced for my tastes. I’ve adjusted the recipe below to how I plan to make them next time.

And, because I like to take an easy meal that would normally be ready at 7 pm and turn it into an epic culinary adventure that we sit down to at 10:30, I decided to make naan from scratch. It was totally worth it though. This naan is really good, especially considering our clear lack of tandor oven.

Dal, adapted from Smitten Kitchen and the San Francisco Chronicle

2 cups yellow split peas, soaked in cold water for 1 hour or more
1 large tomato, cut into 8 wedges
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
5 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon coriander seeds, finely ground
3/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 cup minced cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon salt

Drain the peas and place in a dutch oven. Add 6 cups of water and the tomato. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 45 minutes, until the peas are tender. Pick out the tomato skins and whisk the dal break up some of the peas. Reduce the heat to low and keep warm.

Heat the oil over medium heat. Once the oil is hot add the cumin seeds. Saute the seeds until golden, 1 – 2 minutes. Add the onion and saute for a few minutes. Add the garlic, turmeric and cayenne. Pour this mixture into the pea soup. Stir to combine and and season with salt. Add the cilantro leaves and butter just before serving.

Naan, adapted from All Recipes
1 package active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup sugar
3 T milk
1 egg, beaten
2 t salt
4 1/2 cups bread flour
1/4 cup butter, melted

In a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes. Cover with a towel and let rise for 1 hour.

Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a baking sheet. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

Heat a grill—we used a cast iron pan— over medium high heat. Lightly oil the grill or pan. Roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle.  Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with melted butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue with the rest of the balls of dough.

While I’m sure the following statement won’t surprise you in the least, it is all about the butter with this naan. Don’t skip that step. It makes the bread heavenly.

-Emily

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Recipes

julia child’s onion soup

I’ve been talking about making French onion soup for a while now and the stars aligned on Monday after my weekend stock-making adventure. What better way to showcase my labor of love than in a ultra-simple dish like onion soup. Again I turned to Julia for the recipe.

Soupe A L’Oignon, from Mastering the Art of French Cooking
1 1/2 lbs (about 5 cups) of yellow onions,  thinly sliced
3 T butter
1 T oil
1 t salt
1/4 t sugar
3 T flour
2 quarts brown stock, hot
1/2 cup dry white wine
salt and pepper
crusty bread
gruyere cheese

In a heavy stock pot or dutch oven, cook the onions slowly in butter and oil covered for 15 minutes.  Uncover, raise heat to medium and stir in the salt and sugar. Cook onions for 30 – 40 minutes, stirring often, until golden brown. Sprinkle in flour and cook for 3 more minutes. Take of the heat and stir in the broth. Add the wine and simmer for 40 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper.

Just before serving, toast bread on both sides. Sprinkle cheese onto the top of the crouton and broil until melted and bubbly. Ladle soup into bowls and top with cheesy crouton (or two or three). The cheesy crouton and soup combo is amazing.

-Emily

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Recipes

butternut squash soup with fresh ginger

Despite San Francisco’s sunny, 70 degree days—70 degrees in late October is so worth sky-high rent—it is officially fall and high time to bust out the squash dishes. Butternut squash is cheap, delicious and versatile. You can make soup, roast it, throw it in risotto, on a pizza, in pasta … endless possibilities. This recipe will make enough soup for lunch the next day or to freeze for the next time you don’t feel like cooking.

Butternut Squash Soup with Fresh Ginger
1 medium butternut squash, cubed
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 quart vegetable stock or water
2 t fresh ginger, grated
olive oil, salt, pepper, chili flake

The hardest part of cooking squash is peeling the dang thing. Here is my technique for cubing a butternut squash. Cut the squash into two pieces separating the round part from the neck. Standing the neck up in a cylindrical sort of way, cut off the peel. For the bulbous portion, cut it in half and scoop out the seeds. Peel off the skin like you would a melon. Cut into rough cubes.

Sauté the onion in a bit of olive oil until translucent. Add the garlic and sauté for another few minutes. Add the cubed squash and stock or water. Boil the soup partially covered for 30 – 40 minutes, until the squash is fork tender. Once the squash is tender, puree it with an immersion blender or in a standard blender. Add the grated ginger and season with salt and pepper. I served it topped with a little creme fraiche and chives.

Happy fall!