Green pea soup

The weather is cooler, it is time to make some soup to keep us warm! :) Many people don't like eating green pea, yet it is very nutritive and actually it can be delicious. 

This recipe is good, you don't actually see the pea as it is mashed. The color is very bright, which raises your appetite!

If you do not like green pea, give it a try, you might like it since then!

Ingredients
1 small onion
1-2 small carrot

90g butter
2 tsp salt

1/2 cup white wine

4 cups chicken broth

600g fresh or frozen green pea

Black pepper

Optional: crème fraîche & mint leaves

Instructions

1. Finely chop onion, peel carrot & cut into 1/2" pieces

2. In a big pot, at medium heat, melt butter

Add in onion, carrot & salt, stir regularly, let it cook for 15 mins

Normally you can insert slightly the fork in carrots but you can feel that they are a bit firm

3. Add wine, increase the heat & bring to boil, let it boil for 5mins

After 5 mins, add in chicken broth, again bring it to boil

Then add pea

Optional step: if you like to chew carrot, you can remove some carrot pieces & set aside, put them back after blending the green pea

4. You can test the pea, if they are tender, you can use a hand blender to blender the soup until smooth

If you removed the carrot pieces earlier, put them back and let it simmer for 5 mins

5. Add several twist of pepper

If you want to, you can add crème fraîche & mint leaves

Serve hot!

If you want to make it the night before & want to stay bright...

set up a big bowl of ice water & place another big bowl inside. Once the soup is done, pour it into the bowl and stir until it's cold. reheat to serve

Enjoy!

Creamy mushroom soup

Sometimes I just want to make something simple, so soup is good. It is easy, fast and yummy.

Ingredients
2 tbsp unsalted butter

3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, diced

250g mushroom

3 carrots
2 stalks celery

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 cup flour
4 cups chicken stock
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup half & half*

* half & half = half portion of cream + half portion of milk

Instructions
1. Thinly slice mushroom, peel and dice carrots & dice celery

2. In a Dutch oven at medium heat, melt butter
Add in garlic, onion, mushroom, carrot & celery, stir well
Let it cook until tender, about 4-5 mins

3. Add in thyme and let it cook for 1 min or until you smell the fragrance

4. Whisk in flour, stir with all vegetables, stir well
Add in chicken stock & bay leaf, let it cook, stir regularly, until it is thickened a bit (about 5mins)

5. Add in half & half , bring it to boil
Season with salt and pepper if necessary

If the soup becomes too thick, add more half & half until the consistency is well

Serve hot
Enjoy!

Radish leaves soup

When I was first moved to France, I first tasted radish at my husband's parents home. They like eating radish with salt. For the leaves part, my mother in law makes the soup. No waste at all! The soup is delicious too :)

If you like radish and do not know what to do with the leaves part, then now you know what to do!

Ingredients
A bunch of radish leaves

1-2 onions
20g butter (original recipe = 50g)

700ml - 1 liter water
salt

Instructions
1. Soak the leaves, rinse them and chop them briefly
Chop the onions

2. In a medium pot at low heat, melt butter
Then fry with onions and radish leaves for about 5 mins or until golden

3. In another pot, boil water and add salt
When it comes to boiled, pour it to the leaves. Cover with a lid and let it simmer for 20 mins at low heat

Enjoy!

Taco soup

I love Mexican food, my friend gave me this taco soup recipe, every time I make it, people just love it! It's great for many people. This Christmas I made it for my husband's family and the soup is gone very fast!

Ingredients
2 cloves of garlic
1 onion
500g minced beef

1 can/ 398ml pinto beans (drained water)
1 can/ 398ml kidney beans (drained water)
1 can/ 398ml corn (drained water)
1 can/ 398ml tomato including juice
red or green chili
3 tbsp taco seasoning mix*

1 can/ 398ml tomato sauce
2 cups water
1 cup salsa (I used medium hot salsa)

Sour cream
Grated cheese
Tortilla chips

*You can make it yourself, click here to get the recipe

Instructions
1. In a large pot, pour oil, fry with garlic and onion with beef

2. Add in beans, corn, tomato, chili and taco seasoning

3. Add in tomato sauce and water
Let it boil for 15mins or until the beans become soft

4. Serve hot with sour cream, grated cheese and tortilla chips

Enjoy!

Chicken dumpling soup

I always make Chinese soup and it takes long time to cook. Usually I make Western soup with short time cooking, it is easy and delicious. So... this is the first time I make Western soup with long hours cooking!

Ingredients
4 Chicken thighs (keep skin & bones)
2 cubes chicken broth
1 1/2 L water
6 peppercorns

olive oil
2 onions (chopped)
3 large carrots (diced)
3 stalks celery (diced)

1 cup fresh or frozen peas
2 potatoes or 250g of celeriac (diced) => I didn't use it

200g mushrooms (cut into half)
1 bay leaf

250g all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

a pinch of salt

125g cold unsalted butter

1 egg

100ml cold water or milk

Instructions
1. In a large pot, fry chicken thighs until golden color, add in peppercorns, water, bouillon. Cover and bring to a boil; skim foam. 

Reduce heat, cover and simmer 45-60 mins or until chicken is tender. 

Remove chicken thighs from the pot, place them on the chopping board, let them cool

2. Add onions, carrots, celery, peas & potatoes to the pot & cook for 10 minutes

3. When the chicken cooled down. Remove chicken skin and bones, chop or tear chicken into smaller pieces

Set aside

4. Add mushrooms, bay leaf & chicken, let it simmer at low heat for 1 hour

Open lid, increase heat, let it boil gently

5. During 1 hour simmering, in a mixing bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt

Add in butter and egg, mix well

Add in cold water or milk, mix well

Divide into 12 portions and roll each portion flat (0.3cm thickness) 

6. When the soup brought to boil, add in dumplings into the pot, cover and cook for another 20mins

Enjoy!

Spiced red lentil carrot soup

I make soup each week & I have been making celery soup since long time, I love it but I think it is time to try something new :)

Ingredients
2 tsp cumin seeds
chili flakes

1L hot water
1 cube vegetable/chicken stock

2 tbsp olive oil

600g carrots

140g red lentil
125ml milk

plain yogurt (I used greek yogurt)
naan bread


Instructions
1. Heat a large pot, dry-fry the cumin seeds and chili flakes for 1 min, or until they start to jump around the pot => release the aroma
Scoop out 1/2 seeds with a spoon. Set aside

2. Add the oil, carrot, lentils, stock, water and milk to the pot and bring to boil
Reduce the heat to low heat, simmer for 15 mins until the lentils become soft

1. 3. Blend the soup with a stick blender or in a food processor - smooth or chunky
2. Serve with yogurt, 1/2 toasted spices & naan
3. Enjoy!

Pumpkin lentil soup

I saw some pumpkins in the supermarket, they are cheap, so I bought some home to make a soup :) It's great to eat soup during cold days!

I asked my husband to cut it into pieces. It's quite hard and I am not strong enough :s

About the portion of the ingredients I used, I didn't measure them precisely, just do according to your preference and adjust yourself.

Ingredients
1 kg pumpkin
1 cup red lentils
water
1/2 tbsp cinnamon
1/2 cup cream

Instructions
1. Cut the pumpkin into small pieces, remove the skin & the seeds

2. Put the chopped pumpkin and red lentils into a large pot, add water until it is cover the ingredients

3. When the water is boiled, let it cook at medium heat until the pumpkins are soft
Notes: It takes about 10-15mins, but just use a fork and poke into the pumpkins to see if it is easy to poke in, if yes = ready!

4. Add in cinnamon & cream (some people might like to add cloves/nutmeg.... be creative!)
Use a hand mixer to mix the ingredients to purée like soup :)

Oh you can add grated cheese on the top... yummmmm

Serve hot!

Enjoy!

Tom Yum Goong - Thai soup

Since I moved here, I visited a Chinese supermarket, so excited, I found some lime leaves, that is why today I would like to make some Tom Yum soup :)

I like spicy food, this soup is just very delicious and easy to make. Whenever we have guests, I like making it to them and they like it :)

Ingredients:
4-6cups chicken stock
1 stalk lemongrass, remove head and leaves
3-4 lime leaves, torn into half
8 slices Galangal
Big sliced of 2 red chilies - according to your tolerance of spicy taste

Sliced Shiitake mushrooms - can be replaced by any Asian mushroom you like

Raw shrimp (shells removed)

1/2 cup lime juice
3tbsp fish sauce
3tbsp chili paste
1-2tsp sugar

fresh coriander, chopped

Instructions:
1. Boil stock in a pot
Use the back of the knife smash the lemongrass

2. Add lemongrass, lime leaves and sliced chili and boil for 2 mins
Add mushrooms. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 2 mins

3. Add shrimp. Simmer 3-4mins until shrimp is pink

4. Turn the heat down to medium low, add fish sauce, chili paste and lime juice.
Stir well and let it simmer until hot.

5. Test the soup -
If too sour, add more sugar
If too salty, add more lime juice

6. Serve with fresh coriander and serve hot

Enjoy!