Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients

Serves 2-3

500g pumpkin peeled, roughly chopped

2 tbsp Olive / vegetable oil

1 large onion chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground turmeric

1 tbsp vegetarian tom yam paste (Thai ingredient can be found in Asian stores)

1 tbsp curry powder

Salt &  pepper to taste

1 bowl of vegetable stock, or 1 stock cube dissolved in 1 bowl of water

1 tsp sesame seeds and fresh coriander leaves to garnish

Method

Heat oil in a large pan, sauté onion, and minced garlic and ginger for a minute. Add pumpkin, vegetable stock, turmeric, coriander and bring to boil for about 15 minutes till pumpkin is soft.

@ this stage if you prefer a creamy soup, let the soup cool and blend.

Otherwise in the same pan add tom yam paste, curry powder, salt and pepper to taste and stir well.

Ladle soup into  bowls, garnish with sesame seeds and coriander leaves. Serve immediately.

Noodles in Soup (Tang mein)

Among chinese, noodles in soup (Tang mein) are far more popular than fried noodles (chow mein). This soup is originally chicken soup, converted to vegetarian version using tofu.

Ingredients

Serves 2

100g firm tofu cut into cube size

50g shitake mushrooms sliced

100g kalian or choy sum chopped

2 spring onions chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger 

200g noodles

1 cube vegetable stock

2 tbsp vegetable oil

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp tomatoes puree

10 spring onion thinly chopped

Method

Heat oil in a pan, add  tofu, mushroom and soy sauce, sauté for few minute’s till they are slightly brown. Set them aside

In the same pan add oil sauté ½ of spring onion, garlic ginger paste for a minute. Add tomato puree, vegetable stock and one bowl of water and bring to boil.

Separately boil water in a sauce pan, add noodles cook for 2 minutes. When noodles are cooked add chopped kalian/ choy sum. Drain water set aside.

When soup is simmering, add salt and pepper to taste.

In soup bowls serve noodles, kalian / choy sum, pour soup over noodles, add tofu and mushrooms, garnish with spring onion.