Korean Stuffed Chicken with Fresh Ginseng Soup (SamGyeTang)

This soup reminds me of the wonderful visit I made to South Korea a few years ago. Our friends took us to a different restaurant each day. One of my favorites was this quaint restaurant, where we all sat down on the wooden floor around a low table. We were served with a variety of colorful dishes, piping hot ginseng soup and Makgeolli, a milky colored rice wine. I love the sweet taste of this wine, and I am quite smitten by it's unique taste and flavor. It reminds me of Chinese rice wine, that my mother used to make in Malaysia.Ginseng is a popular health food in Korea, and the Koreans eat ginseng and other herbs to recuperate strength and for youthful complexion. Ginseng has been used as medicine for thousand of years both in China and Korea, and Korea is one of the largest producer of ginseng.I bought some fresh ginseng roots in a Korean supermarket to make this nutritious soup. This soup calls for young chicken, preferably 100-day old hens. You can also use black silky chicken, or raise your own pullets. I used Cornish game hens for this recipe. Enjoy!

Cannellini Beans and Kale Soup

This vegetarian soup is hearty enough for winter, yet has enough different delicate flavors to work well with a light meal. Normally this soup, which features cannellini beans (white kidney beans), calls for cabbage among its ingredients. I enjoy cooked cabbage, but I don’t think it does so well as a leftover. In this recipe, I’ve substituted Lacinato Kale (dinosaur kale) for the cabbage. Dinosaur kale or Tuscan kale is a hardy cooking green with dark curly wrinkled green leaves. I really like the flavor it brings to this soup and it maintains a firm texture even when served the next day.

Root Cellar Soup with Smoked Ham

Fall is nearly here and this reminds me of Halloween, the spooky month of October. The neighbors had already started with the Halloween decorations of scary ghouls, spiders, and carved pumpkins. It also means that it's time to put away the summer clothing’s and think about warm hearty soups. This brings to mind a soup that is my family’s favorite. It is made with root vegetables: turnips, carrots, leeks, onions, and rutabagas. I've added another root vegetable, rutabaga. If you like turnips you'll love rutabagas is it has a mild bitterness that is balanced with a sweet earthiness. Hope this coming fall brings you much warm and a season of joy.
Ingredients: (adapted from Bon Appetit, Dec-94 issue)

¼ lb smoked ham, cut into small cubes

½ stick butter (¼ cup)

3 chopped leeks (use white and pale green parts only)

½ white onion, chopped

3 medium sized turnips (peeled and chopped)

1 rutabaga (peeled and chopped)

5-6 cups low-salt chicken broth

3 bay leaves

3 sprigs fresh thyme (or ½ tsp. dried)

Method:

1. Melt butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add chopped ham and saute until it beginning to brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drained off any excess fat into a bowl.

2. Add carrots, leek, onion, thyme and bay leaf and stir until onion and leeks are translucent. Add in broth, turnips and rutabaga and bring to a simmer. Cook until vegetables are tender about 30-35 minutes.

3. Remove bay leaves, and thyme if using fresh ones. Puree soup in small batches in a blender when it is cool enough to handle. Stir in the ham. (Soup can be made a day ahead and chill in the refrigerator)

4. Bring soup to a simmer, thinning with more broth if necessary. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into warmed tureen or bowls and serve with toast or freshly made bread.
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Lentil Soup

Here's to an ultimate soul food to warm the holidays. Lentil soup is nutritious and wholesome and full of flavor. It is low in saturated fats and high in protein, iron and a good source in dietary fiber. It is great served with toasted crusty bread.

Ingredients:
1 cup French lentils (packaged from Trader Joes)
1 small red onion, chopped finely
1 carrot, chopped finely
1 stalk celery, choped finely
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2-3 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. thyme
3 cups organic chicken stock
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 green scallion, sliced
1 lemon, cut into wedges
Method:
1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, celery and fry until onion is translucent, stirring to prevent sticking. Add garlic, cumin and thyme and fry for another 5 minutes. Stir in curry powder and fry for another minute, stir in stock (add more water/stock to thin to desired consistency)
2. Stir in curry powder, cumin and thyme and fry until fragrant. Add in the lentil and stock, salt and pepper to pot. Increase heat and bring to a boil, then simmer until lentils are tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3.Serve warm with scallions onions, lemon wedges and crusty bread.
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Mulligatawny Soup

Mulligatawny is an Indian-inspired curry flavoured soup, which literally means "pepper water" in Tamil. This is my version of a hearty soup, Enjoy!
Ingredients:
2 skinless chicken breast, cut into cubes
½ fennel bulb, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
1 small red onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
¼ cup butter
1¾ tsp. curry powder (2 Tbsp. for spicy)
5 cups chicken broth
1 apple, cored and diced
¼ cup barley, or ¼ cup white rice (rinse with water and drain)
1 bay leaf
pinch of thyme, tarragon
1 tsp. cumin
½ tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. cumin
salt and pepper
Method:
1. In a large pan, melt butter over medium heat. Saute onions until soft, add in carrots, celery, fennel and fry for about 5 minutes. Add in curry powder, bay leaf, thyme, tarragon, dried spices, barley or rice, chicken and stock. Stir to and bring to a boil for about 5 minutes. Lower heat and simmer for about ½ hour.
2. Add in apples and continue to simmer for another 20-25 minutes until rice or barley is cooked. Serve warm.
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Fresh Tomato Basil Soup

A simple soup made with freshly picked tomatoes from our garden.
Ingredients:
3 cups chopped tomatoes
1 cup chicken broth
5 stalks fresh basil leaves
½ cup butter
whipping cream for garnishing
shredded parmesan cheese for garnishing
salt and pepper to taste
Method:
1.In a large saucepan, bring the tomatoes and broth to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add basil and season to taste. Reduce heat to low and stir in butter, stir until butter is melted. Remove and let cool.
2. Blend soup in small batches until smooth. Serve warm with cream and parmesan cheese.
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Chinese Dumplings/Won Ton Soup

Won Ton is basically, Chinese dumplings filled with spiced minced pork and wrapped in a flour skin. It is usually served in soup or deep fried. My former kids' babysitter makes the best wonton! She would make batches of them and freeze it in freezer bags, and she would often give me some. It is delicious and wholesome--nothing like a freshly home-made wonton!

Ingredients: (makes about 30)
1 lb freshly ground chicken (pork or beef can be used)
1/2 lb prawns, shelled, deveined and minced
1 tsp. wine (or sherry)
1 tsp. salt
some pepper
2-3 drops of sesame seed oil
2 tsp. water
1 tsp. cornstarch
3 tsp. minced scallions
2 tsp. minced ginger root
2 cups chicken stock
1 package store-bought wonton wrappers
fresh vegetables of your choice
Method:
1. Add the ground meat and minced prawns in a large bowl, mix all the ingredients, except the chicken stock together to a smooth paste.
2. Put about a teaspoon of filling in the center of the wonton wrapper. Moisten the top edges, fold it diagonally in half to form a triangle. Make another fold from the bottom up about ½-inch. Bring the two points together, moisten one edge and overlap the corners together by pinching it together.
3. Bring chicken stock to a boil, add a drop of sesame seed oil, season with salt and pepper. Simmer and keep warm. In another pot, heat water to a boil and drop wonton into the water to cook for about 2-5 minutes, until the skins are transparent and cooked. (dumplings will float on top). Remove with a slotted spoon and cook the vegetables.
4.To serve, put the cooked dumplings and vegetables in individual bowl and ladle some soup on top. Serve warm.
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Lotus Root Soup

     

A bowl of soup is customary to the Chinese as it is designed to digest food, or used medicinally to balance a person's yin-yang. My mother is a firm believer that a meal is not complete without a soup, simple or elaborate. She once quote me a famous saying, "When there is soup there should be rice, the relationship between the both is like water to a boat," from a great Chinese poet, Li Yu. I asked my Chinese teacher about it one day in class and she gave me the full version of this poem. "As long as there is rice, there should be soup. The relationship between soup and rice is like that between water and a boat. When a boat is stranded on a sandy bank only water can wash it back to the river; thus rice goes down better with soup." This is one of my mother's exemplary soup and is also one of my favorite.

Ingredients:

1½-2 lbs. pork neck bones, washed and drained

1½-2 lbs lean pork, washed and drained
1 lotus root, skin scoured and cut into 1/2-inch rounds
1 piece dried octopus, presoaked with water to soften
10-12 pitted dried red dates (jujube)
½ cup raw skinless peanuts, washed and drained
12 cups water (approximate)
sea salt and pepper to taste
Method:
1. In a large deep pot, add enough water to cover meat and bones. Bring to a fast boil, remove and wash meat in cold running water to remove scum and impurities.
2. Put meat and bones, lotus root, red dates, peanuts and water, making sure water should cover the ingredients completely. Cook without the lid on high for 30 minutes. Replace lid and simmer for another hour and half, until the meat and lotus root are soft and fragrant. Season to taste and serve with rice.
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Spicy Kabocha Pumpkin Soup

This is a variation of the standard pumpkin soup that uses Kabocha (Japanese pumpkin/squash). Kabocha is naturally sweeter than the regular pumpkin. It has a nutty flavor and is great for digestion.

Ingredients:

1½ lbs Kabocha pumpkin, quartered, peeled and seeds removed

2 gloves garlic, minced

1 leek, trimmed and sliced thinly

2 tsp. ground ginger

2 tsp. ground cumin

½ tsp. cayenne pepper

4 cups vegetable or chicken stock

sea salt and pepper to taste

cilantro for garnishing

plain yogurt or cream for garnishing

Method:

1. Heat some oil in a large pan and gently fry the leeks and garlic until softened. Add the spices and stir for a minute.

2. Add the pumpkin, chicken stock and season to taste. Bring to a boil for about ½ hour, until the pumpkin is tender. Remove from heat to cool.
3. Process soup in batches in a blender or food processor. To serve, simply reheat soup in warmed bowls, with a swirl yogurt or cream on top and garnish with cilantro.

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Lemon Barley Chicken Soup

Whenever I have some leftover cooked chicken, I would prepare his simple and tasty soup. This is an adapted version of the famous Avgolemono, a Greek soup. I used barley instead of the orzo pasta and added celery to the soup. You can use home made chicken stock or substitute with 3 cans of low-sodium chicken stock instead.
Ingredients:
6 cups chicken stock
1 cup cooked chicken, shredded finely
½ cup celery, finely diced (about 3 sticks)
3 Tbsp. barley, washed and drained
1 Tbsp. onion, finely diced
3 eggs, beaten
juice of 1 large lemon
salt and pepper to taste
Method:
1. In a large pot, heat some oil and fry the onions until soft, then stir in the celery and fry for about 5 minutes. Add in the stock and barley and bring to boil and cook until barley is cooked, about for 15 minutes. Stir in the chicken and simmer for another 10-15 minutes.
2. Mix the lemon juice to the egg mixture and a ladleful of the warm chicken soup. Stir this mixture into the soup, season with salt and pepper. Do not let soup boil once you've added the egg mixture as this will cause the eggs to curdle. Remove from heat and serve with lemon slices.
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Hot and Spicy Soup/Tom Yum

I was trimming my kaffir lime bush this morning and this gives me and idea for tonight dinner. Tom Yum is a simple soup that cooks in a one pot in less than an hour. You can serve this soup with shrimp or chicken, I decided to use salmon tonight and serve warm with rice and a stir-fried vegetable dish.
Ingredients:
1 lb shrimps (washed, shelled leaving tails intact, keeping the heads and shells)
4 cups chicken stock/water
2 fresh tomato, sliced in chunks
1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 pcs. lemon grass, cut in lengths and crushed
4 pcs. galangal (crushed)
2-3 pieces ginger
2 Tbsp. best quality fish sauce (nam pla, buy the one with the 3 crabs)
4-6 pcs. fresh kaffir lime leaves (crushed)
2 pieces of dried Thai fresh chilies (optional)
2 Tbsp. nam prik pow (Thai chili paste in soya bean oil)
3 Tbsp instant tom yum paste
juice of 2 limes or lemon
pinch of sugar
cilantro and mint leaves for garnishing
Method:
1. In a pot heat a little oil, fry the shrimps heads/shells until fragrant and red color. Add enough water to cover and lower heat to simmer for an hour. Strain the stock and press out as much juice from the shells.
2. In the same pot, add chicken stock, lemon grass, galangal, ginger, kaffir leaves, fresh chillies, and bring to a boil for about 10 minutes. Lower heat to simmer and cook for another 20 minutes. Remove and let it sit longer to get as much flavor and essence from the ingredients.
3. Reheat the #2 stock, add the shrimp stock and bring to a fast boil. Stir in the tom yam paste, nam prik pow (if used), tomato, mushrooms, fish sauce and lime juice. Cook this for another 5 minutes, then add the shrimp meat and season to your taste (do not overcook the shrimp)
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Pork and Vegetable Soup

Whenever I feel like having a simple soup, this often comes to mind. It reminds me of my mother's famous sour salted mustard greens soup. The sourness of this soup comes from Asam Gelugur (garcinia atnoviridis) or can be easily be substitute with tamarind paste or pickled sour plums.
Ingredients:
¼ lb lean pork, cut in bite-sized
1-2 bunches mustard greens or "sher li hom"
3 pieces of Asam Gelugur
1 Tbsp. tamarind paste (if using)eg
2 pieces star anise
1 can whole tomatoes
2 cups chicken broth
1 tsp. brown rice vinegar
Method:
1. Washed greens and cut in 3" lengths. In a pot bring broth, pork, star anise, and tamarind peel to a boil. Remove scum on top of soup. Then add tomatoes and greens.
2. Cover and simmer  for about 20 minutes till greens are cooked and soft. Season to taste with vinegar and salt. Remove tamarind peel and serve. Serve with rice.
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French Onion Soup

One of my favorite soup during the winter is Onion Soup, a popular food for the poor in Roman times, as onions were plentiful and easy to grow. French Onion Soup is the French version using caramelized onions in beef broth, (a significant culinary improvement in my opinion). The basic and important trick to this soup is a good beef stock and the proper caramelization of the onions. It takes hours of slowly stirring and cooking the onions over a high to medium heat to get a rich brown color, until the juices from the onions has evaporated and the sugar in the onions begins to brown or caramelized. Tips: Keep onions in the refrigerator the night before cooking or soak them in water to prevent eyes from tearing when chopping. :()
Ingredients: (serves 6-8)
10 large red or yellow onions, peeled and slice thinly
6-7 cups beef broth or 5 cans of low-sodium beef stock
½ cup dry red wine
3-4 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar (optional)
1 bouquet garni (bay leaf, thyme, rosemary)
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil
Gruyere cheese, grated
French bread, sliced and toasted

Method:

1. Peeled, quartered and sliced onions thinly.

2. In a large saucepan, heat 2 tablespoon oil and sauté the onions over high heat, stirring frequently till it softened and reduced in size. Stir well scraping the brown from the bottom of the pan.

3. Turn heat to medium and let it simmer until it turns brown and caramelized, but not burned. This process of stirring takes me about 2 hours.

4. Add bouquet garni, stock, wine and stir to mix, cover and let it simmer on low. Season to taste with balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to taste.

   

5. While soup is simmering, prepare the croutons. Spread bread with oil or butter and arrange bread slices in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake in 400°F oven until bread is toasted and crisp, about 10-15 minutes. Remove and set aside.

   

6. To serve, ladle soup in individual oven-proof soup bowls or deep ramekins. Place one or two slices of toast and sprinkle top with cheese. Reduce oven heat to 350°F, put soup into the oven for about 10-15 minutes until the cheese bubbles and is slightly browned. You can use the broiler to melt the cheese, and be careful as soup is very hot! Serve immediately.
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Chicken Essence Broth

My mother is a strong believer in homemade soup, and this is one of them. It is cooked by steaming or double boiling the chicken in a separate container to collect its essence or juice. The chicken essense is in its purest form with no water added. The essense from this broth is nutritious for one's health and especially beneficial for those pre- and/or post-operation/maternity. Whenever I am feeling letargic I cook this to boost my energy. As a matter of fact, it is good if you can have this soup at least once or twice a month. It may be a bit time consuming, and I think it is worth the effort! You can prepare them ahead of time in batches and freeze them. I recommend using organic free-range chicken!
Ingredients:
2-3 lbs organic chicken (free-range)
8-10 quart pot
1 steaming stand (can be purchased in Chinese grocery stores)
1 deep dish
aluminium foil
Method:
1. Clean chicken, trim excess fat and pat dry. Place chicken in a deep clear bowl to collect the juice.
2. Put the steaming stand in the pot, then carefully put in the chicken. Fill with water in the pot to reach 1/4 way up the bowl, making sure not to get water into the bowl.

3.Tent the chicken with foil and cover with another larger pot as a lid. Turn heat on high and bring to a fast boil for about 15 minutes. Lower heat and cook for another hour. Check the water level in the pot, add more water if necessary. Cook for another 2 hours. Be careful as it is hot--use a pair of tongs!

4 The chicken is done when you see the meat is soft to touch and the broth in the bowl. It should come up halfway or more depending on the size of your chicken.

5. Turn off heat and let cool. Remove foil and chicken from the pot. Pour broth through a sieve to remove residue. To remove fat, simply place the bowl in the refrigerator or freezer to set the fat and remove it with a spoon. Drink it warm without any seasoning.
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Organic Beef Broth

Our son, Kwan got me into purchasing a quarter portion of grass-fed beef from a farm in Marin. We had to borrowed a friend's large cooler to bring all those beef home. I have never seen so much meat in my life! We have enough bones to make this wholesome broth that is nutritious and easy to prepare. If your only experience with soup involves opening a can, it's time to take this soup a little more seriously.

Ingredients:

3 lbs beef bones

2 carrots, cut in chunks (unpeeled)
4 celery ribs, cut in chunks
1 large or 2 medium onions, quartered (unpeeled)
1 small yam, quartered (unpeeled)
4 bay leaves
3 cloves garlic
10 peppercorns
2 tsp. parsley
2 tsp. bouquet garni (thyme, rosemary, marjoram, oregano)
3-4 quarts water
2 tsp. olive oil
Method:
1. Heat oil in a large, heavy saucepan and brown bones to provide favor.  Add water, salt and bring to a boil. Skim off excess froth off the top and discard.
2. Add vegetables and rest of ingredients. Reduce heat to low and cover to boil slowly for about 4-5 hours.
3. Strain liquid with a fine sieve and use as soup base. Freeze the rest for later.
Note: To remove most of the fat, I would freeze it and gently remove the layer of fat on top. Broth can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or 4 months in the freezer.
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