San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
A ginger & broccoli soup that has it all — plus tempura
Warm up this winter with a creamy soup with a delightful topping
In January, many people make New Year’s resolutions. Changes are good, and the start of the year is a natural reset. Many of us try to employ a more mindful and healthy way of eating, bringing more fresh vegetables to the forefront.
And who says healthy food has to be boring? Bring on soup season! It’s food for the soul, comfort in this dreary weather. Soups are versatile, easygoing, forgiving — and you can make any soup your own. A little extra of one ingredient isn’t going to drastically change the taste of the end product. Substitutions with what you have on hand are often OK.
Winter soups especially make sense with the produce at the market now — there are greens galore! You’ll find tons of leafy greens, celery and cruciferous vegetables like broccoli.
Broccoli comes from the same family as cabbage and cauliflower. It has an ever so slight pungent taste. Packed with vitamins and minerals, broccoli is so good for you, and fantastic eaten raw.
I love simple preparations of broccoli: I steam it for 2-3 minutes then add some freshly ground black pepper, sea salt, a squeeze of lemon and some lemon zest for zing. That’s it! Roasting broccoli with a dash of olive oil, seasoning of your choice and lemon to brighten up the flavor is another great way to serve this beneficial vegetable. And, of course, there’s soup.
Come January, I love making soups for my family. They’re like a warm hug in a bowl, especially on a cold winter day. They keep well for a few days, too, so on days when you don’t feel like cooking, soup comes to the rescue. I love making extra soup and storing batches in deli containers. Having homemade croutons on the side doesn’t hurt.
I make this Vegan Broccoli Soup quite often for my family. It has alliums like onions, scallions, garlic and lots of ginger (because ginger in the winter is truly a wonderful remedy for colds and sore throats). The raw cashews bring body and creaminess. I add earthy spices like cumin and coriander, which form the basis of most Indian cooking, for depth of flavor. Lemon and cilantro brighten the soup and provide the needed herbiness and citrus. I love serving the soup with something crunchy, like good sourdough toast, croutons or my Masala Kale Tempura.
I give the classic Japanese fried preparation a twist by adding Indian spices to the tempura batter. The key to good tempura is a cold batter — make sure to use ice cold seltzer water and keep the batter in the fridge until ready to use. Alternatively, you can add an ice cube to the batter and mix it occasionally as you fry. You also must ensure that the oil temperature does not drop, otherwise the tempura will soak up too much oil and get soggy. If that happens, wait for a minute for the oil to get hot again and then continue frying. The best part about tempura is that it fries up very quickly. Sprinkle on chaat masala to make it extra punchy!
The Masala Kale Tempura is so beautiful as well. Garnish with scallions and sesame seeds for even more crunch. This recipe makes more than enough tempura for the soup so you can munch on the extra — it is irresistible!
The key to good tempura is a cold batter — make sure to use ice cold seltzer water and keep the batter in
the fridge until ready to use.