Recipe: Tara's Mother's vaguely Asian chicken-corn soup

I rarely ever cook from blogs.  I guess that makes me, well, not a hypocrite exactly, but definitely a form of poseur since I obviously expect that you cook from mine. It's not that I'm biased against the blogosphere; I don't cook much from the paper's food section or from magazines, either. I used to tear out salivating recipes or even just the interesting ones (dill pickles filled with homemade pimento cheese, anyone?) until the hot pink binder I had set aside for my clippings refused to open its pages for another slip of paper. That's when I realized a Truth About Me: I'd never made most of the recipes that I'd thoughtfully torn from the pages of some prized place. And I never would.

I realized that their main service was to inspire, to make me rethink the ingredients in my pantry, to send me running into my kitchen to open the fridge and start removing herbs, vegetables, and meats at random, to pick through my spice cabinet with pursed lips looking for just the right flavor. That is purpose enough, most of the time.

But this recipe was one that I knew I would make from the moment I read it. Who can say why? I simply liked it. Its simplicity, both of method and ingredient. Its hominess. Its melting pot of flavors that I adore -- the almost minty rush of cilantro, the heat of chilies, the unctuousness of a few heavy drops of sesame oil.

Tara's Mother's vaguely Asian chicken-corn soup
Serves 6

I tweaked this just a smidgen, not enough to call it my own but enough to go to the bother of retyping it. I had planned to use udon noodles because I just love them so much, but then we ended up with gads of yummy rice from our take-out last night, and I hated to let it go to waste. Next time, Mr. Udon, next time...

3 cups chicken stock (I used homemade, but obviously that's not necessary)
2 scallions, white part separated from green, all thinly sliced
1/2-inch piece of ginger, grated
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
2 cups cream-style corn (about 1 1/2 14-oz. cans)
1 cup cooked chicken, shredded
5-10 dashes chili oil
1 cup cooked rice
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1 TBSP sesame oil
scant 1/8 tsp salt
1 serrano chili, seeds removed, julienned
1 lime, cut into quarters

In a stock pot, heat the chicken stock with 1/2 cup water, the white part of the scallions, the ginger and the garlic over medium heat. Bring stock to a simmer and allow to steep until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add the corn, chicken and chili oil, reduce heat to medium-low and gently simmer for 8 minutes. Stir in the rice and heat, about 2 minutes. Add the cilantro leaves, sesame oil and salt (adjust amount to taste). Garnish with chili and a squirt of lime.

Comments

[emily]

This does sound really good.I usually print out recipes that catch my eye on blogs,but I've only made a few so far.

[Beth - Zen Foodism]

I know what you mean about cooking from blogs. I started doing a weekend roundup post on my blog each week, just to help me keep track of all the yummy dishes I wanted to try from other bloggers. But I've only made less than 5 so far.

One was your Butternut Squash Risotto, actually. But I don't think I ever mentioned to you how much I loved it and how I've made it several times. So here's a belated THANK YOU for that scrumptious recipe, fellow blogger.

Happy Monday!

[Robyn]

I think I read somewhere that something like only 30% of the pple who buy cookbooks actually cook from them ... the rest just like to read them. I'm sure food blogs, mags, and newspaper sections serve the same purpose. (I've got recipes from the Chron dating back to '94 - YIKES! - that I *still* haven't tried ... maybe time to ditch 'em?).

Say Catherine, when are you gonna try out that rice salad? I'm mucho curious!

[Tea]

Ha! I just spent a weekend looking through my "recipe file," one of those flat-bottomed hanging file folders that is 4 inches thick and weighs 7 lbs! (seriously, I weighed it) It was funny to see clippings that go back nearly two decades (and I'm not even that old, apparently I started clipping recipes in high school). Some of them are so dated they made me laugh. In the end I selected half a dozen I would like to try.

But I have been cooking off blogs something fierce. Initially I would print the recipe out but last week I broke down and dragged the laptop into the kitchen with me. Slightly difficult when I have to touch the keyboard to "wake" it up with fingers that are sticky...

I saw this recipe and thought it looked good too.

[T.]

Oh, yum. This soup looks like the perfect, delectable ending to yet another rainy March day.

I do cook from blogs, with by far the most recipes coming from Food Musings--and I always love the result.

Reading this blog is one of the high points of my day. Thanks so much for writing it, Catherine.

[tara]

My goodness! My mother will be thrilled to hear that her humble soup inspired you to create a dish of your own. I look forward to trying your variation!

[Rorie]

The soup sounds yummy! I always find tasty things to cook here!