Chicken Soup for the Soul?

This is intended to be the first in a series of occasional recipes based on my misadventures in the kitchen

A few weeks ago, I received a WhatsApp message on one of the groups I am a part of. My sister in law was looking for recommendations for a clear chicken soup. In a fit of madness, I offered to make her some. Clear chicken soup; how hard can it be, right?

I took as inspiration the noodle soups common in Thai and Vietnamese cooking, and while the result is something that isn't by any means an authentic offering, it takes inspiration from South East Asian cuisine in general and mashes up a few western influences for good measure. Basically, I looked up a few recipes online, figured out what people do with this generally, and then went ahead and developed something for myself based on the flavour and fragrance notes that I like. What was key to me was that the broth needs to be packed full of flavour, so I basically threw in whatever I thought would help on that account. 

Serves 6

Ingredients

For the stock:

1 whole chicken (I used desi murghi, with the skin removed)

1 large onion, chopped into four pieces

2-3 carrots, chopped into large segments

2-3 sticks celery, chopped into large segments

5 sticks of lemongrass, bruised with the back of a knife

1 length of galangal, roughly chopped (about the size of your index finger)

6 cloves garlic, whole, with the skin removed

10-15 whole peppercorns

10-12 kaffir lime leaves, whole

8-10 button mushrooms (fresh, not canned)

Salt, to taste

Fish sauce, to taste

For the soup (per portion):

1 handful Vermicelli noodles

1 handful beansprouts

A generous pinch of chopped coriander

1 kaffir lime leaf, chopped very fine

A dollop of chili paste

1-2 fresh basil leaves for garnish (optional)

Method

In a large pot (preferably a stock pot but I just used whatever was available at home) add the chicken, onion, carrots, celery, lemongrass, galangal, garlic and peppercorns. Add enough water to cover, and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer, and let this simmer for at least 1 hour, ideally 1.5 hours. If you are using fatty chicken or chicken with the skin on, a white "foam" will come to the surface of the water, and this will need to be skimmed off every ten minutes or so. 

For the last ten minutes of cooking, add the whole mushrooms and kaffir lime leaves. After the cooking time is complete, add salt and fish sauce, and keep tasting until you are happy with the seasoning. Since fish sauce is already quite salty, I used that as the primary seasoning, and only put in a couple of pinches of salt. depending on how much stock you have, this may take quite a bit of fish sauce, so don't be timid. 

Once you are happy with the seasoning, take the stock off the heat. Remove the chicken and mushrooms and set aside; these will be used in the soup later. Strain the soup into a container that you can put in the fridge later. it should be a clear broth with a small layer of fat from the chicken on top. Don't discard this layer of fat, it is full or flavour and energy. 

To assemble the soup, take the dried vermicelli noodles and place them in a plastic bowl. Pour over boiling water and leave them to steep in it for 5 minutes. This will cook the noodles. Remove the meat from the chicken and slice into bite size strips, and slice the mushrooms.

Take a large handful of the noodles out of the plastic bowl, and place them in the bottom of your serving bowl. Place a portion of chicken over the noodles, as well as 1-2 mushrooms, sliced, over this. Sprinkle over the chopped coriander and lime leaf (it is critical that you add your greens before adding the stock, as the heat from the stock will give a huge boost of fragrance to the dish). Pour over the hot stock. Top with a small handful of bean sprouts, and a dollop of chili oil. Garnish with a couple of basil leaves (that's really a Vietnamese touch in my book, and adds a really nice fragrance element).

Serve with chili oil and light soy sauce on the side.

PS: The stock will keep in the fridge for a few days, so you can prepare the stock one day and assemble the soup on another. The base stock is quite versatile and can be used in any recipe that requires one.