Community Corner
Not Your Traditional Chicken Soup
Everybody loves warm soup on a cold day. Step out of the chicken soup box with a quick and easy Asian inspired soup, that is simple enough to make on a week night.
After college, I moved to Seattle where I spent 10 wonderful years.
One of the things I miss most is the wide range of Asian cuisine available in Seattle. We never said, “Let’s get Chinese.” It was always a question of whether we wanted Korean, Vietnamese, Cantonese, Hunan—the list of options was vast.
Moving to the Midwest, I found my options in St. Charles County a bit more limited. I learned to cook different styles when I lived in Seattle, thanks to a diverse group of friends. Living here, I had to learn to get creative. My ingredients were more limited, but my tastes had not changed.
Find out what's happening in Wentzvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
One of my favorite places to go in Seattle served the most magnificent soup. With a little imagination and a few minutes in the Asian section at , I came up with a reasonable substitute. All of the soup ingredients are available at Dierbergs.
Dierbergs sells a curly Chinese noodle in the Asian food section that looks like the typical "ten for a dollar” ramen style noodle, but it is not fried and tastes more like the noodles I remember. In the produce section, Dierbergs sells Melissa’s Ground Ginger in a jar. I keep a jar in my refrigerator to add an Asian flair to many dishes. It is more convenient than grating fresh ginger root.
Find out what's happening in Wentzvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Serves 4
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil, plus 1 additional teaspoon to coat the cooked noodles
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce (more or less to taste)
- 1 1/2 teaspoon fish sauce (a condiment found in the Asian food section)
- 1 pound fresh chicken breast, sliced into strips approximately 1”x2”
- 8 ounces diced ham
- 1 package China Bowl Chinese Noodles
- 1 bunch green onions, sliced for garnish
- Fresh ground pepper, to taste
Bring the first 6 ingredients to a boil in a large dutch oven. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the chicken and simmer for 10 more minutes, or until the chicken is tender and cooked through.