Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Thai-Spiced Mushroom Noodle Soup

I feel like I am living in Sleepy Hollow. Does anyone remember Sleepy Hollow, the horror movie? I don't remember anything about it except that the village was perpetually swamped in a dense fog in that movie (oh yeah, and some headless guy was riding around in the swirling mist).

Well, St. Louis has been enveloped in a dense fog for days now, and in the middle of the sickly weather, V has a nasty cold of the sneezing, sniffling, hacking variety. Where cutting edge medical science can do nothing about the rhinovirus, the old-fashioned route of "food as medicine" often works, and we have been eating lots of soups and soupy khichdi lately.

Last night, I made up this soup as I went along and we were very pleased with the results, so I decided to write up a quick recipe here. With flavors borrowed from Thai cuisine, this pot of soup goes to the soup-and-salad challenge No Croutons Required where the theme for January is Thai cuisine.

The aromatic, soothing ingredient here is lemongrass; I have a pot growing at home that I bought from Bowood Farms last summer. A whiff of the sweet, citrusy aroma of lemongrass pierces though clogged sinuses and makes one go ahhh....



Thai-Spiced Mushroom Noodle Soup

1. In a soup pot, heat 2 tsp. oil and saute until slightly browned:
2 bunches green onions (white parts only)
1 10 oz. box of cremini mushrooms, sliced thinly
2 small carrots, cut in small dice

2. Add 3-4 cups mushroom stock/vegetable stock/water and a tsp. or so of minced lemongrass (this post has great tips on working with lemongrass) . Bring to a boil.

3. Stir in a heaped tsp. of Thai red curry paste (or more or less to taste), 1 tsp. sugar and some soy sauce if the soup requires salt (taste first). Add a handful of dry (uncooked) udon noodles.

4. Let the soup simmer for 10 minutes or so, until the noodles are tender.

5. Turn off the heat and garnish the soup with the green parts of the green onions, cilantro and lime juice to taste.

This is such a slurpable soup! The noodles plump up with all the aromatic flavors, and add some heft to the broth.

See you in a few...

34 comments:

  1. Wish I can get that bowl of soup now. Yes, we are also having foggy days and I can definitely use a hot bowl of spicy soup.

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  2. I love lemon grass..oooooooooooohhhhhh

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  3. Slurrrrrp! So lovely soup Nupur. Loved all ingredients you used here. :)

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  4. This sounds like an absolute comfort bowl. Mmmmm..

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  5. I'm not feeling sick (knock on wood) but this soup sounds so appealing with its combination of Thai flavors and Japanese noodles. Bookmarking!

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  6. This soup looks great and yummy!!! Mmmmm

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  7. lemongrass in soup is fabulous... the aroma!! what a filling comforting soup this is!!

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  8. I have to try this now :)

    I hope V gets well soon. Delhi is covered in heavy fog too... S has been waiting on the runway en route to Bombay since early morning.

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  9. These soups with noodles are the best thing ever. I make them when I am hard pressed for a recipe. We had some sun the last few days and now it is gloom :(

    I saw Kramer Vs Kramer on your reading list. I bet you have seen the movie, two of my favorite actors at their very best. Thanks for the book list, they have helped my selections a breeze.

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  10. Shilpa- Yes, the spicy soup is like a dose of medicine in winter :)

    Trendsetters- I love it too.

    Sonia- These were all ingredients that I luckily had on hand that evening :)

    Soma- It was; it hit the spot!

    Lydia- The Japanese noodles added a chewy heartiness that I loved.

    Rachana Kothari- Thanks.

    Rekha shoban- Thanks.

    arundati- Yes, the aroma of lemongrass is unbeatable!

    Raaga- V is still pretty miserable, this virus is really something. I can just imagine the flight delays in foggy weather!

    indosungod- Actually I have not seen Kramer vs. Kramer, I know it is a classic drama but somehow I never get around to watching even these famous movies :)
    The book was a great read, though.

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  11. Slurping a piping hot soup in cold cold winter - Nirvana! I loved the simple pantry ingredients you used! Please send some to me Nupur :)

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  12. Hi Nupur,I want to say Thank you for creating such a wonderful blog. My knowledge in cooking has increased ten fold because of u.I must say u are an excellent cook.Once again thank u for this excellent blog.
    Nupur(London)

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  13. Oh my, how I wish I had a bowl of this hot soup today! It hasn't been foggy over here but it has been raining like crazy for last few days and those cheerful people on weather channel say that same continues for few more days ahead! I love thai soups and your looks delicious! perfect remedy for a stubborn cold.

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  14. So nourishing! Thanks so much for your lovely entry.

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  15. wowo the soup looks yummy!!!!!
    i should try it. soup eating is good too
    vivari

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  16. Hey Nupur! Just tried it, came out delicious!! though I used basil instead of lemongrass and Instant noodles.. it was really full of flavors! thank you and get well soon to V :)

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  17. My fav and I have several versions on my blog along with one posted 2 weeks back i think...this is just perfect for the horrid foggy weather we are having (yes us too!)

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  18. Nupur,
    I've been following your blog for quite some time now and have had great success with all of your recipes. esp the birthday chocolate cake (the one with raspberries on top) Your blog is wonderful and you're doing a fantastic job with it!

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  19. notyet100- Thanks

    Ashwini- Yes, it was a sip of heaven ;)

    Nupur (London)- Thank you for the kind words!

    PJ- I know, I have been watching the California weather reports; how is it now? Do you still have torrential rain there?

    Lisa- Thank you for hosting, I really enjoy your event :)

    vivari- Thanks

    Abhi- I bet basil gave it a wonderful flavor too! I'm so glad the recipe worked for you :)

    Miri- I heard about the foggy weather in Delhi!

    Shwetha- I'm so glad the recipes are working for you, thank you for taking the time to leave me a note!

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  20. soups are my husbands fav, it looks delicious

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  21. Slurpable..Noodle soups are the easiest ones to put together when I dont' have time(or can't think)..
    Hope the weather gets warm soon.

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  22. Yep, sleepy hollow (and dreadfullllly cold) here too! This is the perfect solution to cut through both ... and how! Lemongrass ... ahh lovely!

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  23. I made this for lunch today and it was really good. My FIL loved it too. Didn't have lemongrass so added some lemonjuice and some sriracha for spice. Thanks!

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  24. love the pic..am definitely going to try this one out!

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  25. Nupur, if you liked that movie you should visit the actual Village of Sleepy Hollow, along the Hudson river, 25 miles north of Manhattan. It is a quaint, charming town steeped in history and you will probably recognize the landscape, may be the fog too!

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  26. Preety- Thanks!

    ruchikacooks- Very true, these are great last minute pantry meals.

    Sheetal Kiran- Lemongrass does bring a whiff of warmth, it is very cold here too.

    Laavanya- I'm so glad it worked for you!

    Vinaya- Thanks

    Mekhala Nag- No, I did not like the movie or anything, it was quite silly in fact :) the village on the other hand sounds like a lovely place to visit!

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  27. wow, look at that, I'm already drooling, great color, looks delicious

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  28. I want a bowl of soup right now! Oh, I am drooling over it now. Perfect for the cold weather.

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  29. I tried this Thai mushroom soup that my dear friend Jui made for our potluck. Since then I am hooked on to this bog. Good collection of great receipes that I can actually make for my family and friends!!! Thank you for sharing with us. sangeeta

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  30. I've been looking for a spicy soup recipe for a while now and this seems like just the thing. Heading out now to try and hunt out lemon grass. Hope I can find it. Cold weather also makes me crave khichdi and I've used your recipe a couple of times now and it was really good. Thanks for posting such great and easy to make recipes :)
    - Uma

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  31. Hey, I was just surfing since its Monday and waiting for 5 pm ( time to leave office) and saw your blog with lot of pictures...Wanted to let you know that its pretty creative and good job and keep at it.. but I see you already have quite a following and don't need encouragement...

    Cheers.

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  32. How comforting! Just what is needed when the weather is dull.

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