Showing posts with label soups. Show all posts
Showing posts with label soups. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

World Cup Fever- cooling it down

What is the hottest topic in town recently? Definitely the World Cup! Ok, I confessed. I am one of those who has caught the fever, staying up late nights and waking in the wee hours to catch 22 men chasing one ball (that is how non football fan view this world's most loved game, isn't it?) I must say after more than 2 weeks of ball chasing (not on the pitch but by the side of my TV set), the regime has taken a toll on my body. I find that my throat is starting to parch and the heat in my body is rising. I guess the yin and yan are not in sync now. Sigh... so today's soup of the day is vital. Well, it may not be the best remedy, but it helps in abating the heatiness in my body albeit not the soul in the ball chasing... Come on!!!












Apple Soup (vegetarian version)
Ingredients:
3-4 red apples (try not to use China Fuji apples)-cut into chunks
1 large carrot-cut into chunks
a handful of nanxing and beixing (sweet and bitter almonds)
2 honey dates
10 wu hua guo
1 /2pc tangerine peel (optional)
mock meat
water

Wash all ingredients.  Boil sufficient water in pot. Put in all ingredients and boil for 2 hours over low heat. Before serving, add salt to taste.

This soup is healthy and easy to make. Enjoy!

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Softmeal Buns and Vegetarian Kelp with Soya beans soup

These buns were made using water roux (better known as 'tangzhong') which, if I am not wrong, was originated from Japan. It was popularly raved by many bloggers. Breads made by 'tangzhong' were known to be soft and keep well for a longer period as compared to breads  made by other methods. Basically, it is similar to direct method of making bread but requires an additional step of cooking part of the bread flour with water prior to the mixing of the ingredients. This method allows better hydration and thus the flour absorbs more water resulting in a softer texture.

After a day of breadmaking, I boiled a pot of nutritous soup: kelp with soy beans. Kelp is a good source iron and is low in calories and fat. So, it is really good for those who wish to consume soup without the fear of putting on weight. But one note, do wash it with lots of water and thoroughly as it is coated with lots of grime and white deposits.

I substituted pork ribs with mock meat to make the soup vegetarian. It is really and easy soup to boil though it took me 2 hours to boil it but the end result was really good. It was light and refreshing. So if you would like to try, I have included the recipe here.

Kelp and soya beans soup

50-60g Dried kelp
60-80g soy beans
adequate amount mock meat (use pork ribs if you like)
salt to taste
adequate amount of water

1. Wash the dried kelp thoroughly and cut into smaller pieces.
2. Put all ingredients (except salt) in a pot and bring to a boil with high heat. Lower fire and boil for 2 hours.
3. Before serving, add salt to taste.