Minimalism in the Kitchen

Get back to basics for a broth-based soup.

When it comes to cooking, people get tied up in the details of following recipes that they forget that soup is a simple meal that people have made for centuries out of the little bits of food that they had on hand.

Making a soup should be easy, just above boiling water on the “cooking difficulty scale”.

Many European soup recipes are based on simmering bones on the stove for a few hours. The long cooking process extracts the flavor and nutrients out of the bones and the remaining meat. I love to prepare stock like this, usually letting everything simmer overnight. Still, I have found that when you are looking for an easy meal to make, it is better to take soup-making tips from Asian cultures, where soup is fast and flavorful from the additions of fragrant herbs added at the last minute.

Making soup is the ultimate way to use up leftovers. Even if you didn’t cook the food in the first place, like repurposing leftover Chinese take-out. Start with chopping up a handful of cooked meat and vegetables, add rice or noodles and a sprinkle of salt, barely cover the meat and vegetables with water and heat on the stovetop until hot. Taste and add a little soy sauce and hot sauce to give the soup more flavor.