Part 61 (2/2)
2 cups cooked dried chickpeas, or 1 (15-ounce) can, drained and rinsed
6 ounces soba noodles
We use brown rice miso here, which has a nice winelike taste and isn't too salty, but you can use any kind of miso you like. If using a stronger miso, such as barley miso, first use cup and add more to taste from there.
Some soba noodles come wrapped in 3-ounce serving sizes. If yours aren't wrapped, you can measure 'em this way: the circ.u.mference of one 3-ounce bundle is about the size of a quarter.
Soba noodles expand a lot when they're soaking, so this isn't the best soup to keep in the fridge overnight. If you don't plan on eating it all in one day, use instead regular pasta noodles broken in half or thirds.
Need a little green? Add some chopped greens toward the end of the cooking process. Spinach, kale, chard-whatever you've got. Let them wilt and then serve.
PREHEAT A soup pot over medium-high heat. Saute the onions and carrots in the oil for about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, mushrooms, and herbs, and saute for another 5 minutes. Deglaze the pot with the mirin (or just a splash of water). Add the 6 cups of water and the chickpeas. Cover and bring to a boil.
Once the broth is boiling, break the soba noodles into thirds and throw them in. Lower the heat to medium so that the soup is at a low boil. Cover and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the miso and stir until it's incorporated. Taste and adjust the salt, and add a little extra miso if you would like a stronger, saltier flavor.
PORCINI-WILD RICE SOUP.
SERVES 6.
TIME: A LITTLE OVER 1 HOUR, MOST OF IT INACTIVE.
Woodsy and earthy, this soup is rich with mushroom flavor. It is topped off with fresh chervil, which has a delicate, lemony taste that is not quite comparable to any herb, though if you can't find it, chopped fresh parsley works nicely. Go on a mission to find the chervil; if nothing else, it would make a great blog entry.
Garnished or not, this is an easy recipe for what tastes like a ten-dollar bowl of soup at a sw.a.n.ky Manhattan sidewalk cafe. Perfect for serving your yuppie friends.
ounce dried porcini mushrooms
2 cups boiling water
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion, sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
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