somen in chicken soup

Chicken breast
Chicken bones/leftovers
Ginger, sliced
Carrots, roughly chopped
Chinese cabbage, roughly chopped

Somen (wheat noodles)

Salt & pepper
Coriander, chopped with stems
Add in some dried chili flakes if you like
And if you want more flavor, serve it with some crunchy fried shallots

In a pot, boil chicken meat and bones. Skim the top for access scum and fat. When the chicken breast is cooked, remove and set aside to cool. Add carrots and cabbage into the pot. When the vegetables are almost cooked, add in the fried tofu/tofu pok. Cover the pot and let it cook some more. Add salt and pepper to taste.

In another pot, cook the somen. When it’s done, drain and toss in some shallot oil to prevent noodles from sticking. When the chicken breast is cooled, use fingers to shred it into pieces and set aside.

To serve, pour soup with vegetables and the fried tofu over noodles. Garnish with coriander, chilies and/or fried shallots.

This is a really simple noodle dish I ate when I was young at a friend’s house. Her aunt would serve the noodles with bamboo chopsticks and we would eat at the mahjong table facing the television. One of my favorite comfort foods.

pumpkin soup

1kg pumpkin, peeled and chopped into small pieces
2 onions, diced into cubes
2 carrots, diced into cubes
1 leek, diced too
2 sticks celery, more dicing
4 cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped
1 tbsp thyme leaves (or according to taste)
1 liter chicken stock

Salt & pepper

leeks

1. Sauté onions, garlic, celery, leeks and carrots and thyme. Once they turn golden brown, add pumpkin and sauté some more.

2. Add chicken stock, cover and bring to boil. Turn down heat and simmer until pumpkin is fully cooked.

3. Toss it into the blender and blend till smooth. Season with salt & pepper. Pour into bowls and serve with a swirl of cream. Serve with bread.

When I made this, I accidentally left out the celery but it still tasted great — only less fibrous.