The post Creamy Tuscan Chicken Soup appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.
]]>My current favourite chicken soup! Creamy broth, juicy little bits of chicken, pasta shells and swirls of spinach with a sprinkle of sun dried tomato I use in place of croutons. Think – under the Tuscan Sun. Except – sweater weather food!
Let me just say upfront – I call this Tuscan but there’s nothing authentically Tuscan about it (as far as I know). To me, it has Tuscan vibes, so I gave it a cute name with the hopes to pique your interest. Just in case my photos and writing doesn’t do the job well enough to convince you that you really need to try this creamy chicken soup!!!
In all honesty, I was gazing longingly at my Tuscan Chicken Pasta Bake from my cookbook, trying to muster up the energy to make it. Because that big bubbling pasta bake does require a semi-modest commitment of time to make. Worth it, but sadly, time is not always on my side.
This Tuscan Soup was born from similar ingredients. A faster, soup version of the pasta bake. I hope you fall in love with this soup as much as I have!
Those of you who have made the Tuscan Chicken Pasta Bake will recognise most of these ingredients. All the star players are present – sun dried tomato, spinach, chicken, pasta, cream, cheese!
Here are the things that are bobbing about in the creamy soup broth:
Chicken – I prefer thigh because it’s juicier, has better flavour and is thin enough to cook whole, so no raw meat chopping called for. But breast can be used too. If using chicken breast, slice horizontally into thin steaks to sear. The thick whole breasts are too thick.
Pasta – I use small shells. Any small pasta is fine here. Think – ditalini, small macaroni, risoni/orzo (you’ve got half the packet left from last weeks’ salad, right!?). Anything small enough to be easy to scoop up with a spoon that cooks in around 10 minutes. Broken spaghetti or other long pasta will also work – break into 4cm / 1.5″ pieces.
Sun dried tomato – This is the garnish for this soup! Instead of using croutons, nuts etc. Little chewy pops of concentrated savoury tomato flavour with swirls of the red oil from the sun dried tomato jar.
Garlic and onion – Flavour base!
Celery – Vegetable of choice here. I like it because the colour sort of blends into the soup, keeping it lovely and white so the bright red sun dried tomato and swirls of spinach stand out. Plus, celery is a classic flavour base for many savoury things. Substitute with other cook-able vegetables. Think: diced zucchini, corn, carrots.
Butter – The cooking fat of choice, because it’s got more flavour than oil.
A splash of white wine, good handful of parmesan and finishing with cream gives the Tuscan soup broth great flavour!
Cornflour/cornstarch – This is what is used to thicken the soup. I opted to use this over flour for calorie control reasons. Using flour, I would’ve needed an extra 30g/2 tbsp of butter to stir the flour into at the beginning to make a roux. With cornflour, you just mix with a bit of water then stir it into the soup right at the end. Also, cornflour makes the soup nice and shiny, which I like in this soup (flour makes broths dull).
Wine – Just 1/2 a cup, adds extra depth of flavour so you there’s enough flavour using half stock, half water, rather than 2 litres / quarts of water. Money saving tip. It’s like free stock! Doesn’t make the broth taste winey, because we cook out the alcohol, just leaving behind lovely savoury flavour.
Can’t consume alcohol? Switch half the water for more chicken stock/broth.
Cream – Gives the soup a lovely creamy mouthfeel finish as well as making the soup white. You can opt to use milk instead, but reduce water by 1/2 cup and use 1 1/2 cups milk (else soup colour not as white). To get a nice finish, I’d add a knob of butter!
Parmesan – Another flavour boost. Normally I recommend shredding your own but I used store-bought pre-shredded for convenience here and it melted fine in the hot soup (unlike in cheesy sauces). The sandy-type, from the fridge (not aisle please! If it ain’t in the fridge, it ain’t real cheese! )
Searing our own chicken makes this soup tastier than just adding pre-cooked chicken into the soup broth. Because colour on the chicken = tastier chicken, and the soup broth gets extra (free!) flavour from the golden bits left in the pot from searing the chicken.
Sear the chicken in the butter, just to get some colour on the surface. It doesn’t matter if it’s not cooked all the way through because after we chop it, it gets added back into the soup. As noted above, cooking our own chicken gets us on the path to a more delicious soup!
Chop the chicken once it’s cool enough to handle. I do this while the pasta is cooking. Don’t worry about raw bits, they will cook through quickly once added back into the hot soup broth.
Sauté the onion, garlic and celery in the same pot using the residual butter.
Broth & pasta – Deglaze the pot by simmering the white wine rapidly until reduced by half. Deglazing just means to dissolve the chicken-searing golden bits on the base of the pot into the liquid for extra flavour in the soup broth.
Pasta – Once the broth is brought back up to the boil, add the pasta and cook it for the time per the packet directions (10 minutes for the small shells I used).
Chopped chicken – Once the pasta is in, I chop the chicken then just add it into the broth about halfway through the pasta cooking time.
Thicken soup – Mix together the cornflour/cornstarch with a smidge of water then stir it into the soup broth. We only use a bit of cornflour because the soup gets thickening help from the gluten in the pasta and the cream.
Soup finishes – Then stir in the parmesan, follow by the cream and spinach. Once the spinach has wilted, which should only take a minute or so, the cornflour will have thickened the soup. And that’s it – ready to serve!
Sun dried tomatoes – Chop sun dried tomatoes into scattering-size-pieces.
Ladle the soup into bowls. Sprinkle with sun dried tomato and a little drizzle of the oil from the sun dried tomato jars (love how the red looks against the white soup). A sprinkle of extra parmesan wouldn’t hurt either. Then dig in!
Pasta loves to absorb liquid. So if you leave the pasta overnight in the broth, it will bloat and become overly soft.
So to store leftovers, it’s best to separate the broth from the pasta. Just use a slotted spoon to scoop out the pasta bits then store the pasta and broth in separate containers in the fridge. They will keep for 3 to 4 days.
This is a great soup to prepare ahead to reheat later! Just cook the pasta, drain, thicken the soup , then store the chicken with pasta and soup broth separately. They can be refrigerated for 4 days or frozen for 3 months. Reheat the soup broth first, then add the pasta and chicken to reheat. I’ve popped these directions in the recipe card too.
Hope you enjoy! – Nagi x
Licking up drips from dirty dishes. He’s such a grot.
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]]>The post Hungarian Goulash (beef stew-soup) appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.
]]>Sweater weather is officially here – let’s get cosy with Goulash! This Hungarian recipe is a slow cooked beef soup or stew that’s boldly flavoured with stacks of paprika which makes the sauce a deep, vibrant red colour. Think traditional beef stew – with extra character!
If you think Hungary and think hearty food, then Goulash is probably exactly what comes to mind. Unsurprising given it is Hungary’s greatest food export!
Is it a stew? Is it a soup? It sort of lies between the two in terms of the amount of broth vs the stuff in it. Though one noticeable thing about traditional Goulash is that the broth is thinner than what you think of with stews, and it’s not thickened with flour or cream. Also, it’s not typically served over mash like stews, it’s served in bowls like soup.
As for flavour, I describe it as a beef stew with a sauce that reminds me of chorizo flavours thanks to a big hit of paprika and savouriness from a good amount of garlic, capsicum (bell peppers) and onion. It’s really, really good. Bolder than typical beef stew!
Note on authenticity: This is a recipe that is intended to respect traditional Hungarian Goulash. But as with all such recipes, every cook and every family has their own version. I am sure some Hungarians will disagree on something I’ve included! Please share your thoughts below but know that I did do my research!
Two things you’ll observe when you make this:
A LOT of paprika. Flavour and sauce colour!
A LOT of vegetables. 2 each onions, capsicum/bell peppers, carrots, tomato, potatoes. Flavour and heartiness!
Beef – The classic beef cut to use is beef chuck which is a tough cut of meat that becomes meltingly tender when slow cooked. If you can, get a single piece so you can cut it into cubes of the size we want, else get a thick steak. Always look for beef that is nicely marbled with fat. All too often, the grocery stores ones are disturbingly lean. We want the fat marbled throughout, it makes the beef so tender and juicy!
Substitute – Beef osso bucco (boneless) and beef cheeks. The meat cubes will twist and buckle more once cooked but these are actually juicier than chuck. Gravy beef and brisket will also work but meat is a little leaner.
Paprika – Use Hungarian or Hungarian-style if you can, the paprika is smoother and sweeter than ordinary paprika. Don’t use hot paprika – we’re using lots of paprika here, it will be way too spicy! Smoked paprika will make the sauce a little too smokey, though you could mix-and-match a little if you want.
Caraway seeds – A traditional spice used in Goulash used in central European cooking. Not the end of the world if you don’t have it but you’ll love the little unique pops of flavour if you do!
Beef stock/broth – The liquid used to make the sauce. Traditionally water was used, but no one can deny that using stock makes the sauce a whole lot tastier! I personally would not make this with water. If you use homemade beef stock, you could sell bowls of this for a pretty penny.
Butter and oil – The fat for sautéing. I like to use both so you get the best of both worlds – butter for flavour, oil for effective searing (butter is ~15% water and susceptible to burning at high heats).
Bay leaf – For flavour. Fresh if you can, or dried (pictured).
We don’t need flour to thicken the sauce – see next paragraph.
Some recipes use flour to thicken the sauce. I don’t find that necessary if you use fresh tomatoes rather than canned tomatoes, as they break down to thicken the sauce. It also makes the stew sauce taste less tomatoey which lets the paprika and other flavours come through more.
Onion and garlic – flavour base.
Capsicum/bell peppers – One each red and yellow if you can, or 2 red. Don’t underestimate the flavour this brings to the sauce! You can substitute the potato and carrot but don’t skip capsicum!
Tomatoes – These break down to naturally thicken the sauce rather than using flour.
Carrot and potato – Vegetable adds ins that fills it out. Feel free to switch with other root vegetables such as celeriac, parsnip, or even non-root vegetables like green beans. Note: These get added at the end of the cook time so the potato doesn’t disintegrate.
Parsley – optional garnish
Usually, stews will call for beef cubes to be browned first, removed, then added back into the pot after sautéing the vegetables. Goulash goes all in. I doubted it at first but when I saw it go all stewy and the flavours mingling together before I even got to the slow cooking part, I understood.
And when I tasted the finished dish, it sealed the deal!
Cut beef into nice size chunks then sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Cook onion first for 6 minutes until the edges are light golden.
Cook beef – Next, add the beef all in one go and stir until the surfaces changes from red to brown. You won’t be browning on the beef because there’s too much in the pot and that’s just how it’s supposed to be. All the flavours meld and come together in the next steps!
Add garlic, capsicum and tomato. Stir for 3 minutes to coat the vegetables in all the flavour in the pot. The tomato will mostly breakdown – it will break down completing during the slow cooking phase and thicken the sauce.
Spices – Add paprika, caraway and bay leaf. Stir for 30 seconds to coat everything in the tasty flavours.
Simmer – Add beef stock, stir, bring to simmer.
Slow cook – Cover with a lid and transfer to the oven for 1 1/2 hours. At this stage the beef should be pretty tender but not quite “fall-apart”, there’s still another 30 minutes to go. Stir in carrot and potatoes then cook for another 30 minutes. By this time, the potatoes (if you cut them the exact size I specify!!) should be soft and the beef should be “fall-apart”.
Serve – Sprinkle with parsley if you’re feeling fancy then ladle into bowls!
That’s Friday’s cheese bread pictured above, being dunked into the Goulash. Though you could do ordinary crusty Artisan bread. Both are no-knead, no stand-mixer, 3 minute dough making situations. Not mandatory…..but any kind of bread elevates soup-stew eating experiences, right??! – Nagi x
PS One final point – as with any stewy / slow-cooked recipes, Goulash tastes even better the next day. Completely and utterly company-worthy.
Office bathroom. Now doubles as Dozer’s playroom. Staff who walked into this had a good laugh!!
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]]>The post 15 minute Spicy Korean Noodle 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.)
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!
This soup is undeniably spicy from kimchi and gochujang, but not blow-your-head-off spicy. While I declare myself to be able to handle the heat, I actually can’t. But…….shhhhh!!! Let’s keep that secret between the two of us – can’t have everyone knowing what a chilli-wuss I actually am. 😂
Can’t handle spicy food at all? Make my Chinese Noodle Soup instead which has zero chilli it. You really can’t dial down the spiciness in this Korean noodle soup without affecting the flavour.
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.
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.
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.
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!
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.
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!
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.
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.
Cook noodles – Cook the noodles according to the packet directions while the broth is simmering, then drain.
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
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!!?? 😂
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]]>The post Sweet Potato Soup – simple but great! appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.
]]>*** BIG THANK YOU for all your lovely messages in response to the news that Dinner made the New York Times best sellers list! Who ever thought a cookbook with a dog on the cover would become a NYT best seller. 😂***
As for today’s recipe – a healthy dose of cumin plus a good amount of onion and leek keeps things interesting with this Sweet Potato Soup! If leeks are a bit pricey, use more onion instead. Serve with a shower of something crunchy – croutons, nuts, crispy shallots. I used flatbread ribbons and pistachios.
A basic sweet potato soup is made with garlic, onion and sweet potato boiled in stock that is then blitzed. It’s fine, but it’s kind of boring (sorry!).
A carton of cream and giant hunk of cheesy garlic bread will go a long way to make it more interesting. But as a general rule, I like my soups to be able to stand on their own two feet without relying on too many extras to prop it up.
Today’s flavour dial ups come in the form of lots of onion and leek, plus a whole tablespoon of cumin. Gosh, it’s amazing what a difference it makes to turn “fine” into “OMG THIS IS SO DELICIOUS!!”
Here’s all you need. The recipe only calls for 1/3 cup cream (80 ml!) for a touch of creamy mouthfeel. We don’t need much because the generous amount of leek & onion plus the cumin adds great flavour. Without these, I’d be using a lot more cream!
Leeks and onions – These add a flavour boost without having to resort to loads of cream or tons of spices to make this soup really tasty. If leeks are a bit pricey (as they can be during some months of the year) just use an extra onion instead. Just one onion to replace two leeks. Why? Because leeks have a more subtle, mild taste than onion. Two extra onions would make this soup too oniony, I think.
Bonus – Leeks don’t make your eyes water when you cut them! 👏🏻
Sweet potato – 2 medium ones totalling 1 kg / 2 lb (unpeeled weight), or one gigantic one.
Cumin powder – A spice that really compliments the sweet flavour of sweet potato. Gives this a flavour reminiscent of Moroccan food which you know is a good thing!
Garlic – This soup was never going to happen without garlic!
Butter and oil – Because of the sheer volume of onion and leek that is sautéed, we need 4 tablespoons of fat to cook them. I felt like using just butter makes the soup a little too buttery, but using just oil isn’t as fun. So I took the best of both worlds by using equal amounts of each.😎 You can double up on either of them, if you prefer.
Chicken stock (or vegetable stock) – I know it’s counterintuitive to use chicken stock for an otherwise vegetarian soup. But it really does give the soup deeper flavour than vegetable stock. However, I freely substitute vegetable stock.
Cream – Any dairy cream will work here. Thickened or heavy cream, pure cream, single cream, double cream etc.
Alternatives – I haven’t tried coconut milk or cream but I think they’d work nicely here. Sour cream and yogurt can also be used but they won’t add that touch of creamy mouthfeel that cream gives this soup. I’d rather use an extra knob of butter, personally.
I’m a stick blender girl, when it comes to soups. So much less mess than using a blender.
Sauté leek, onion and garlic for 5 minutes until sweet and softened.
Stir sweet potato and cumin for 3 minutes so it’s nicely coated in the flavoured oil and the cumin gets toasted, which brings out the flavour.
Simmer 20 minutes – Add the stock and simmer for 20 minutes with the lid off.
Blitz with a stick blender until smooth.
Stir in cream.
Serve – Ladle into bowls and shower with something crispy! More chat on this below.
I know I said at the beginning that this is a soup that stands on its own two feet. And it does. I drink it by the mugful, plain.
That said, I am a soup toppings gal and I will always encourage you to make soups more interesting with toppers. And wow, yes, we can do something different to the usual croutons and a swirl of cream!!! Today – crispy flatbread ribbons, a sprinkle of pistachio and swish of olive oil. Chosen as a nod to the Moroccan vibes in this soup.
I fried the crispy ribbons – for shooting speed purposes – but they are just as easily baked. Directions in the recipe. – Nagi x
PS And yes, you can absolutely do croutons instead if you prefer. Don’t let me deter you!
Crashed out in his kennel at the end of a big Easter long weekend. (By “big”, I am obviously referring to extreme amounts of food scavenging and play time.)
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