[shel]

I'd like to add a few good recipes to my Hot and Sour recipe collection. Anything you think might be interesting would be appreciated. Here's a little something I whip up from time to time - it's not traditional, and I vary the recipe and ingredients according to my mood and what's on hand, but I enjoy the flavors and textures.

Uncle Shel’s Cheap and Quick Hot and Sour Vegetable Soup

½ carrot, sliced matchstick style
½ zucchini, sliced matchstick style
some greens like chard, kale, etc., chopped to your liking
Some red, yellow, or orange peppers for color and flavor, sliced matchstick fashion
1 small piece pork in matchsticks
a few pieces matchsticks chicken breast (optional)
a few shrimp (optional you can chop ‘em into small pieces or use whole)
2 thinly sliced dried black or 2 - 3 fresh shitake mushrooms, thin sliced
(crimini ‘shrooms will do in a pinch)
bamboo shoots, matchstick
1-2 tsp ginger, grated or smashed and chopped fine
1 tsp red chili pepper (or to taste) or chile sesame oil or chile paste (to taste)
½ tsp fresh ground black pepper or to taste
2 - 3 cups chicken stock *OR*
2-3 cupswater + ½ packet ramen noodles seasoning, shrimp or ckn flavor
½ pkg ramen noodles (optional)
cornstarch in water for thickener
1 tsp toasted sesame oil (unless chile sesame oil was used)
2 tbs light soy sauce
1 tbs finely chopped scallions
1 - 2 tbs unseasoned brown rice vinegar
Add grated carrot, zucchini, mushrooms, pork (chicken or shrimp can be added as well), ginger, red pepper flakes, black pepper to stock with noodles. Bring to a boil for a couple of minutes. Add cornstarch mixture to thicken soup a little. Add vinegar, sesame oil,soy sauce, remove from heat, garnish with scallions.

Some thoughts: Boil stock and add cornstrarch to thicken as possible first step.
White instead of black pepper, or pepper melange with some Szechuan pepper is fine.

[Mezzaluna]

You want CHEAP???

When I first started teaching in 1974 my salary was $8,450 per year. The salary was doled out during the 38-week school year so you had to save up to make it through the 12-week unpaid summer "vacation" (translation: forced layoff). I was POOR toward the end of that first summer, I can tell you!

I found some pork chops on sale (that package of odd-cut ones with five or six different muscles running through them). I bought a head of cabbage (a local product, so it was cheap), bunch of green onions, a can of water chestnuts and one of bamboo shoots, a can of mushrooms and a dozen eggs.

I broiled the pork chops until they were browned, then put them in an 8-quart soup pot I had. I put in about 6 quarts of water and let it simmer. Later I took out the pork and cut it into strips. The veggies went in and simmered. I had some white vinegar and ground black pepper, so that's what I used for the flavoring besides some boullion cubes and soy sauce I already had. I added some corn starch and four beaten eggs. A few minutes later I had soup I could eat from until my first paycheck came in for the new school year.

It was a long time before I could eat that soup again, I can tell you!

[shel]

Originally Posted by Mezzaluna

You want CHEAP???

Not neccessarily ... I want good above cheap, but good and cheap is hard to beat

Shel

[Mezzaluna]

True, true, true!! But sometimes you have to get along with what you've got.

[shel]

Originally Posted by Mezzaluna

True, true, true!! But sometimes you have to get along with what you've got.

Oh yeah, babe <LOL> I do like cheap - in fact, I whipped up a nice clam chowder tonight for about $3.12, enough for two meals ;-))

And believe me, I've had my share of "ramen weeks."

BTW, I just resad that the guy who invented the dried ramen noodles so many of us have gotten by on, has recently died

Shel

[linguini]

Heres one for you, nice and simple ..

Spicy Hot & Sour Soup

orientalcookbook.co.uk/chinese.php?recipe=19

[shel]

Originally Posted by linguini

Heres one for you, nice and simple ..

Spicy Hot & Sour Soup

It's the same recipe you posted in another thread about hot & sour soup. Curiosity compells me to ask if you've made this recipe and, if so, how you liked it.

scb