Tofu noodle soup

This is a great soup, a meal in itself, with a distinct asian flavour : the combination of turmeric, cumin, ginger , chilli paste , garlic ,,,and coconut milk + fresh coriander ....ummm you will love it




This was originally a vegetarian recipe, which I picked up from the Australian's women's weekly, and most time i use it as a vegetarian recipe ...but at times i use a slightly different version, a sea-food version using prawns and fish stocks instead of tofu and vegetable stock



Ingredients

1.5 litre of vegetable stock  ( for non vegetarian version you can use fish stock )
125 g of dried wheat noodles
250mil of coconut milk
250g of firm tofu , cut into cubes
some bean sprouts
4 spring onions , chopped finely
2 tablespoons of fresh chopped coriander
some mushrooms

+ SPICY PASTE
Some coarsely chopped fresh coriander (particularly the stems )
1 table spoon ground coriander
1 table spoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
2 cloves of garlic crushed
2 teaspoons  of chilli paste (sambal oelek )  (the original recipe goes for 2 tablespoons !)
2 teaspoon of  grated fresh ginger





Some of the ingredients : here i used a it of long white radish as had some , some thai chilli (so i used a bit less of the chilli paste: sambal oelek , mushrooms , tofu , bean sprouts,  ginger , turmeric , cumin , coriander , ( and some prawns as tonight was not a vegetarian one )
noodles , coconut milk ....





you can vary some of the ingredients according to availability ; i sometime add Okra , mange-tout ,
in the case of mange-touts , make sure you add them in the last minutes with the noodles to ensure they remain crunchy ...in the case of okra , fry them slightly in a frying pan as i do the mushrooms
You can also use dried shiitake mushrooms , which you would rehydrate before hand and use some of the mushroom water in the soup ....

Put the vegetable stock on medium heat and add any hard vegetables if you are using any (such as carrots , radish ,) or if you are doing a non vegetarian version add the whole  prawns



Heat the sesame oil in a sauce pan , add all the ingredients of the spicy paste and stir for 1 minute or so on medium heat until fragrant




Gradually add a bit of the stock and continue stirring for a min , then add all to the remaining stock and bring to the boil

Separately fry the mushrooms in a little sesame oil and add a tiny bit of soya sauce when they get very hot, it will sizzle and get a good glaze ..transfer to the soup





Add the chopped tofu

Then add the noodles , reduce the heat and simmer  for a few min ( in some cases, depending on the noodles you use , you may need to withdraw from the fire and just leave to rest for 5 min )  until noodles are just tender

Then add beans sprouts ( and mange-touts if you have any )

Add the coconut milk, stir well , add the chopped spring onions
leave away from the fire for a couple of minutes

Serve in deep plates or bowls   and top up with fresh coriander leaves








When you do the non vegetarian version, and are using prawns , if you do not want your guests to use their fingers and get messed up, before you serve , take out the prawns , and peel them (under cold water ) and put them back in the soup for a while





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