Comfort food comes in many shapes and flavors. Classics like macaroni and cheese, lasagna, and pudding fit the bill, and I don't think I'm the only one to find comfort in a bowl of ice cream. There's also that hard-to-pin-down category of childhood comfort foods. There are as many of those as there are of us, and one person's comfort food might not have the same appeal for those who didn't grow up eating it. This Portugese soup is an example of one of my childhood staples. Just one spoonful of that, and things start to look up.
Soup is in a league of its own when it comes to comfort. There is just nothing more warming on a cold winter's night. We eat a lot of soup this time of year. Our current go-to soup when someone is feeling under the weather is tomato-based vegetable soup, essentially any variation of minestrone. Our children, who would wrinkle their noses at a cabbage or turnip if served on its own, slurp this soup down by the bowlful.
But I've been thinking for a while now that we need a vegetarian version of chicken noodle soup, that classic soup that is supposed to cure everything from the common cold to the soul. The idea of a noodle soup with a rich broth has been calling me. What is a vegetarian to do?
After years of noodling over it (sorry, I just couldn't resist the pun), I've finally got it. This soup fits the bill for me. It has a rich, flavorful broth, but is still mild enough to appeal to the younger set. We served the soup with extra cilantro and the chili paste passed at the table so that anyone who wanted a flavor boost could have it.
Chloe was the only one who resisted any of it and even she picked out the noodles and carrots, which is as balanced a meal as many she eats on many days. As for the rest of us, I think we'll be eating a lot more of this soup.
Second Helping: Vegetarian Matzo Ball Soup (another family favorite)
Thirds? Potato-Leek Soup (we still make this regularly, almost as often as minestrone)
For the soup:
3 fresh lemongrass stalks
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 3-inch section ginger, unpeeled, sliced into rounds
1/2 large shallot, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and coarsely chopped
10 cups vegetable stock
3 medium carrots, thinly sliced
2 cups small broccoli florets
1 10-ounce package Thai rice noodles (white or brown)
1/2 pound firm tofu, cut into small cubes
2 tablespoons lime juice (about 1 lime)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro for serving
For the chili-garlic paste
1 small fresh green chile (jalapeno for mild, serrano for medium, habanero for hot)
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon olive oil
Trim the root ends off the lemongrass and remove any outer leaves that are tough or brittle. Chop off the tops if they are dry. Coarsely chop the remaining lemongrass.
Heat the olive oil in a large stock pot over medium heat. Add the lemongrass, ginger, shallots, and garlic. Cook until the mixture is fragrant and golden, about 3 minutes. Add the vegetable stock, raise the heat to high, and bring the broth to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and let the broth simmer for a couple of minutes. At this point, if you do not plan to serve the soup right away, cool the stock and store it until you are ready to use it.
Before you are ready to serve the soup, pour it through a strainer into a soup pot. Using the back of a wooden spoon, mash the solids against the strainer to remove all of the liquid.
Bring the broth to a boil. Add the carrots and broccoli and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 8 minutes. Add the noodles and cubes of tofu and cook until the noodles are just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Gently stir in the lime juice.
While the soup is cooking, make the chile paste. Finely chop the garlic and chile. Using a mortar and pestle, mash the chile, garlic, and olive oil together until the mixture becomes a chunky paste. If you don't have a mortar and pestle, just mince the chile and garlic finely and mix them together with a fork. You will just have a chunkier mixture.
Serve the soup steaming hot, with a generous sprinkle of cilantro. Pass the chile paste at the table for anyone who would like to stir it into their soup. I recommend eating the soup with chopsticks and drinking the broth right out of the bowl.
YUM. I made this tonight for dinner. We have a few lemon grass plants in our yard here in Rabat, and I love using them! Thanks, this was a perfect meal; my husband thinks I'm sooooo gourmet!
Posted by: Olivia | February 09, 2011 at 02:41 PM
as a lemongrass aficionado, i am giving you a virtual fist pump for this recipe!!!
Posted by: chronicles of momnia | February 10, 2011 at 11:48 AM
We made this over the weekend and it was a huge hit! Thank you for another wonderful recipe!
Posted by: Leticia- Tech Savvy Mama | February 21, 2012 at 10:24 PM