Soy Ginger Pork Vermicelli Soup
Soy Ginger Vermicelli Soup with Pork or Chicken
Crowd pleaser, especially with kids. Super quick to make once you've got the hang of it.
Ingredients
- a heaping tsp each of fresh ginger & garlic (or about 6 cloves & a 1" piece of ginger; pre-minced from the jar always an ok cheat!)
- a lb of ground pork or chicken
- a pack of vermicelli noodles (I like the longer, thinner ones)
- 1 container of low-sodium chicken stock
- about 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce or tamari
- about 2 tbsp of ponzu sauce (if you can't find, no problem, just add extra lime juice)
- about a lb of bok choy, cleaned & cut into bite size chunks
- 3 fresh limes
- large handful fresh basil leaves (just pull the leaves off the thick part of the stems, don't be precious about it. It's ok to eat the stems, anyway.)
- if you can find crispy wontons at the store, they're good for crunch, or see below for making your own
Directions
- Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat with a little oil, add the ginger and garlic, and cook for about a minute until fragrant. Add the ground pork or chicken and cook about 6 minutes, breaking it up occasionally until just starting to brown. Meanwhile, cook the vermicelli noodles according to the package, then drain and rinse with cold water and place in a serving bowl. Add the chicken stock, soy sauce (or tamari), ponzu, and the juice of one lime to the pot and bring to a simmer. Taste the broth and adjust with more soy sauce or lime if needed, then just before serving stir in the bok choy and basil so they wilt but don’t overcook. Serve assembly-style with noodles in bowls topped with the hot soup, plus extra lime wedges, herbs, red pepper flakes, and crispy wontons if desired.
A note on crispy wontons - want to make them yourself?
You can usually find wontons or dumpling wrappers in the veggie section. They come in packs of square dough sheets about 4 x 4 inches big. You can cut these into strips and sauté in a pan with olive oil over medium high heat until they get brown and crispy.
Heat about 1/4 inch of oil in small sauté pan. Pull off a pile of about 20 wontons (freeze the rest for later). Cut wontons into 1/4" strips and separate by hand (it's ok if some stick together). In batches, drop wontons in pan in a single layer covering the pan (it's ok if some overlap). They should start to sizzle immediately if oil is heated. After about 2 mins, gently flip the wontons with a pair of tongs. When golden brown, transfer to a paper towel and lightly salt. Repeat!