When precious little seems appealing

2011-2-13

Sliced Rice Cake Udon Soup

I'm taking a forever lasting hiatus from trying new recipes. Alright, I'm just kidding about the forever bit. But, I am taking a break.

Unfortunately, these days, precious little seems appetizing to me. Puts me between a rock and hard place, when eating is kind of important. Anything, everything I cook seems repulsive to me right now.

Udon hasn't reached that status, yet, thankfully. And, I purchased Korean sliced rice cakes at the Asian grocery store recently. So with just a bit of sea salt, green onions, and a touch of soy sauce, along with rice cakes and udon, I made a little soup.

Shiitake Mushroom, Udon Soup

2011-1-5

Shiitake Mushroom, Udon Soup

I love, love, love udon. Anyone else? Am also a super huge fan of shiitake mushrooms. Thought of it as a treat whenever we had it growing up. They were usually dried, but I've been getting mine fresh, at Sunflower Farmer's Market. Compared with other types of mushrooms, this one's expensive. . . something like $9/pound. But, I usually buy four or five at a time, which is affordable. Perhaps some day I can grow my own; for now, I have Sunflower Farmer's Market.

Here's a simple recipe I can offer. None of that caramelized, Americanized stuff Noodles & Co. offers.

Udon is needed.

Doesn't this look heavenly already?


Here's what the shiitake mushroom look like.


Ingredients:

• udon
• water
• chicken broth
• green onions - sliced thinly
• shiitake mushrooms = sliced thinkly
  
• garlic - diced
• sea salt
• soy sauce

Directions:

• Bring water to a boil. Boil the udon for six minutes.
• Dump out a fair portion of the water (not all) and add some chicken broth, green onions, garlic, and shiitake mushrooms. Once the green onions and garlic have had a chance to boil for several minutes, add some sea salt and tid bit of soy sauce.

Delicate slices of udon soup

One of my British friends once told me that he thought it rather drab and boring that a dish be named by some of its contents. I tried to explain that Americans are not interested in trying anything mysterious or choices that do not include a description in the titles. Didn't convince him. I guess Europeans go for menu choices that have creative titles.

My best shot at compromising between the two is: delicate slices of udon soup. There are slices of "fish cake," in the soup. Made this sort of soup for the first time last night, and yes, it is entirely my creation.

I've been craving udon for some time now. And, as many of you know, I am an avid soup maker and consumer. What better meal to be enjoying in cold weather?

I have one other apology to make. This recipe is extremely imprecise. For the most part, I am just going to list the ingredients, in case you are interested in trying this. I figured that would be better than nothing. Otherwise you can come over and try it!

Ingredients:
water
tofu (I used 2 packages of firm tofu)
shittaki mushrooms (a handful)
bamboo shoots (I used one large can - around 15 oz.?)
1 package of fish cake (the pink and white thing you see in the picture)
2 bundles of udon noodles
green onions
soy sauce
salt

The udon and the soup were cooked separately. For the udon, once a pot of water is brought to boil, cook the udon for 12 minutes. After the mushrooms have been soaking in water for a few hours (I buy them dried), marinate them in a bowl of soy sauce and set them aside. Bring all the other contents of the soup to a boil adding salt to taste. Once the soup is boiling, drop the udon noodles in and bring the contents back to boiling. A few minutes before turning the stove off, drop the mushrooms into the soup and stir. Viola! Ready to serve.

Here's a bowl of delicate slices of udon soup, ready to eat:

2008-12-20