Chicken Corn Soup

It's a cold, drizzly winter day in Pakistan. Lining the streets are vendors selling Chicken Corn Soup. These vendors can be seen stirring giant steel pots with large ladles. Surrounding the pot are stacks of clean soup bowls, like the ones you get at your favorite Chinese restaurant, and stainless steel spoons. As my fiance tells it, twenty years ago, you could get a steaming bowl of Chicken Corn Soup for 1 rupee (about 30 U.S. cents). You will see groups of people standing around these stands, chatting, and eating their soup. After you have licked your bowl clean, you can return the bowl and spoon to the vendor to be washed and reused. Who wouldn't enjoy a bowl of peppery chicken soup to warm your heart and soul?

In the summer, when fresh corn is plentiful, I roast and freeze it to use in this wintertime soup. I also usually double this recipe because it makes only about 16-20 ounces of soup and that is just not enough!

Chicken Corn Soup

t = teaspoons; T = Tablespoons

1 chicken breast or 3 chicken tenders

2 cups water

½ t black pepper

¼ cup corn (frozen or fresh off the cob)

1 t Shan vegetable curry

1 cube chicken stock (Maggi brand)

3 T corn starch, 2 cups water

2 T vinegar

Chopped green onion and/or crispy fried onion pieces for garnish

Boil chicken in water (takes about 15 mins). Save water. Shred chicken. To water, add pepper and vegetable curry. Add chicken and corn, cook on low about 5-7 mins. Mix corn starch and water. Pour corn starch mixture into pot, bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook 5-7 mins. Add chicken stock and vinegar. Turn off heat, cover for 4-5 minutes. Serves 2.

I like to top it with chopped green onion for a little color and another layer of flavor. Faisal likes those crispy fried onion pieces - like Americans put on their green bean casseroles at holiday time.

Indo-Chinese Noodles with Shrimp

Seeing this meal ready on the stove for the first time gave me a chuckle. Amina vehemently professes her distaste for Chinese food, yet produces what is very obviously a Chinese dish. Just last week, she even made chicken fried rice. I just rolled my eyes as I served myself a bowl of that deliciousness!

A dish such as Indo-Chinese Noodles with Shrimp, coming from a Fare East home cook is not really bizarre though, as the region is a major melting pot. Just like North America, many different ethnic groups settled in the region. With them, they brought their culture, religion, and their food, but sometimes they left their language behind. You'll encounter many Chinese individuals that do not speak a word of Chinese, but are happy to carry on a conversation with you in Hindu. The Far East is an interesting place to be!

Feel free to sub the protein for any other that you enjoy more (chicken, pork, or beef). Vegetarian is good too! You can also use whatever type of noodles you prefer. I love rice noodles, so that is what I make it with. Amina's original recipe calls for thin spaghetti. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! 

Indo-Chinese Noodles with Shrimp
t = teaspoons; T = Tablespoons

1 T vegetable oil

1 bunch green onions, chopped

2” fresh ginger, chopped

6 cloves garlic, chopped

½ bell pepper, chopped

¼ t black pepper

¼ t turmeric

1 t vegetable curry

1 chicken stock cube

1# shrimp, peeled & deveined, tails off, cut in half

½ white cabbage

4 T shredded carrot

16 oz thin spaghetti or rice noodles, cooked to package directions

Boil noodles per package directions. Heat oil. Add green onion. Sauté for a few mins. Add garlic, ginger, bell pepper, all spices, chicken stock, and shrimp. Stir. Cook on high for a 5-7 minutes or until shrimp is cooked. Add cabbage and carrot and cook for 3-4 minutes. Stir, add cooked noodles and stir to combine. Cover. Remove from heat and let stand for 4-5 mins. Stir and serve.

Bhartaa (Roasted Eggplant)

Baingan bhartaa (roasted eggplant) is a great vegetarian dish. It's simple to make and is on the milder side, if you're someone that likes it spicy, but not too spicy. Eggplants were sold per item instead of by the pound at the store, so I bought the biggest one they had. Because of that, cooking times may vary, but I roasted this gigantic eggplant in about an hour and it yielded 4 cups of bhartaa. Also note that bigger eggplants can be sweeter than smaller ones. 

Take note of the Ninja food processor in the picture below. This is a must-have in Indian cooking, since many ingredients are usually blended together before being added to the pot. The Ninja works pretty well, but any food processor would do the job. 

Scoop up your finished bhartaa with some warm garlic naan, or spread it on some toasted slices of french bread. It makes a great main dish or an appetizer. You won't be disappointed!

Bhartaa (Eggplant)
t = teaspoons; T = Tablespoons

1 large eggplant

2 T oil

1 small red onion, sliced

4 cloves garlic

2 tomatoes

½ t cumin seeds

2 green Indian peppers

1 t Bharta Masala

1 t kashmiri chili powder

¼ t turmeric

1 t ground coriander

¼ t garam masala

2 T water

Salt and pepper to taste

Toasted crostini or warm naan to serve

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prick eggplant with a fork and cover with 1T vegetable oil. Roast in oven for 45 mins. Peel off skin and cut off top. Slice eggplant. Blend together garlic, tomatoes, cumin seeds, and peppers. Heat 1T oil, lower to low heat, sauté onion. Add eggplant and mash as you cook, add blended ingredients, add spices, rinse blender with 2 T water and add to pot. Cook on medium for 5-7 mins, stirring occasionally. Add salt and pepper to taste. Turn off burner, cover, let stand 8 mins. Serve on toasted crostini or with warm naan.