Gingery Mustard Greens And Tilapia Soup Recipes

GINGERY MUSTARD GREENS AND TILAPIA SOUP

Steps:

• In a 3- or 4-quart saucepan, combine the water, fish, half of the sliced onion, and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and bring almost to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to a simmer and use a ladle to skim and discard any scum that rises to the top. Let simmer for 10 minutes, or until the flesh of the fish is opaque. Transfer the body sections to a plate, but leave the head in the broth. Let the broth simmer for another 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, let the body sections cool for a few minutes, then remove the meat and discard the skin and bones. A fork and a soupspoon are handy for this task. It is okay if the flesh does not come off in large pieces.
• When the broth has finished simmering, remove from the heat and pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean saucepan. Discard the solids. Add 1 tablespoon of the fish sauce and cover and set aside if not serving right away.
• In a skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the remaining onion and cook gently, stirring occasionally, for about 4 minutes, or until fragrant and soft. Add the fish and heat for about 1 minute, or until heated through, gently breaking it up into 1-inch pieces as it heats. Add the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce and the 1/8 teaspoon pepper and cook for 1 to 2 minutes to allow the fish to absorb the flavors. If you are not serving the soup right away, turn off the heat and cover.
• Just before serving, return the broth to a simmer. Add the mustard greens and cook for about 1 minute, or until they have wilted and turned deep green. Add the ginger and the fish and stir gently to distribute the fish evenly. Taste and add extra salt or fish sauce, if necessary. When the soup is at a simmer, turn off the heat and ladle into a serving bowl. Sprinkle with black pepper and serve immediately.
• The soups in this chapter, as well as many other recipes in this book, include gently cooking onions until they are fragrant and soft. This unhurried step is called phi hành and takes about four minutes to complete over medium heat. The purpose is to coax the sugars from the onions without browning them. You know the onions are ready when you stick your nose over the pan and the harshness of onion has been transformed into a sweet aroma. The onions will have lost their opacity and turned translucent, and they will have lost all their crispness and become limp. Note that phi hành shouldn't be confused with the crispy fried shallots called hành phi.
• Th ere are two schools of canh making: the drop-into-boiling-water school and the sauté-first-then-simmer school. Cooks who follow the former practice argue that their method produces a pristine, clear broth. I prefer to extract extra flavor from some of the ingredients, such as onion, by sautéing them first and then adding the seasonings and water. A brief simmer follows and the soup is done. The broth is not quite as clear as with the drop-into-boiling water method, but the flavors are stronger.

CLEAR SOUP WITH SWEET POTATOES, SILKEN TOFU, AND MUSTARD GREENS

Steps:

• heat vegetable oil and half of sesame oil in soup pot. when hot, add garlic, ginger, chile, and cilantro. stir-fry for 2 minutes. add broth, five-spice powder, and salt. bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. strain and return to the pan, or simply lift out the chopped flavorings with a small skimmer. press out as much liquid as you can, then discard.
• add sweet potatoes to the pot and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes or until tender when pierced with a knife.
• add greens and tofu. cook gently, uncovered, until the greens are bright and tofu is hot, about 5 minutes. add scallions. taste for salt and add remaining sesame oil. add soy sauce to taste, if dish seems to need a little extra punch.

MUSTARD GREENS AND UDON NOODLES WITH SHIITAKE-GINGER SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring 5 quarts water to boil in a big pot.
• Bring broth, vinegar, mirin, mushrooms, ginger, chili sauce, soy sauce, and sesame oil to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat.
• Simmer briskly until liquid thickens and reduces by half, 8-10 minutes.
• Off heat, remove ginger using a slotted spoon.
• Season broth with salt and pepper to taste and cover to keep warm.
• Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon salt and greens to boiling water; cook until greens are almost tender, 2-4 minutes.
• Add in noodles, stir to separate, and cook until both greens and noodles are tender, about 2 minutes longer.
• Reserving ¼ cup noodle cooking water, drain noodles and greens, and return to pot.
• Add sauce and reserved cooking water to pot; cook over med-low heat, stirring to meld flavors, about 1 minute.
• Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper; serve immediately.
• **If you cannot find fresh udon noodles, then use dry; add them to the pot of boiling water in step 6 first; cook for about 3minutes, then add the greens and continue cooking until both the noodles and greens are tender, another 2-3 minutes.