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Sunday Suppers: Potsticker Soup
Saturday, we took an excursion to Boston to see the Huntington Theatre’s matinee of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. The plan was to have a quick lunch at the Prudential Center’s Food Court before the show. Our usual favorite there is a bowl of Boston Chowda chowder, but as we passed through, I noticed a new place, CheeseBoy, serving grilled cheese sandwiches, a favorite of mine. It was fast, but tasty! I had a simple grilled cheese (American cheese on Italian bread) with pickles added. Howard had a fancier grilled cheese sandwich (Cheddar on rye) with bacon and pickles. All around, a good fine.
Sometimes, after a matinee, we’ll stay in the city for dinner, but we headed home to relieve Bella. We decided on more fast food for dinner. Five Guys opened nearby in Burlington, and we wanted to check it out. We made the mistake of ordering regular hamburgers, instead of little ones. That’s a double instead of a single, and a single would have been plenty. Next time, we’ll know.
So, today, healthier homemade food seemed in order. There’s nothing like a soup when trying to eat a lighter meal. I found a bag of Trader Joe’s potstickers in the freezer, so I put together an Asian-flavored soup. Chicken stock was simmered with aromatics to flavor the broth. Then, I added carrots and leeks and cooked them until they were no longer crispy. Then, the frozen dumplings cooked in the broth. Finally, I wilted baby spinach in the soup, garnished the bowl with cilantro and Sriracha, and it was dinner. The soup was hearty, but at the same time, not heavy, and most importantly, delicious!
Potsticker Soup
Serves 4
8 cups chicken stock
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and julienned
1 tablespoon soy sauce
¼ cup dry sherry
2 tablespoons black vinegar
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon sugar
Pinch of salt
3 or 4 carrots, peeled and sliced thin on the diagonal
1 leek, white and light green part only, quartered and sliced thin
1 pound bag of frozen potstickers (chicken, pork, or vegetable)
4 cups baby spinach, washed
Cilantro leaves
Sriracha
In a large soup pot, combine chicken stock, ginger, soy sauce, sherry, vinegar, sesame oil, sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes until the broth tastes gingery.
Add the carrots and leeks and simmer until just tender, about 5 minutes. Add frozen potstickers, and cook another 5 minutes. Stir in spinach, and cook until it just wilts, just a minute or two.
Ladle into bowls and garnish with cilantro leaves and a squirt of Sriracha.
Liquid Gold
I’m the kind of person who saves all kinds of scraps in the freezer. It might seem crazy, but, at the same time, I think of these scraps as treasures. I once read somewhere that the Eskimos teach that if you are going to eat meat, it is respectful to use all of the animal’s parts, and I’ve taken that to heart.
Mostly, I save bones, particularly chicken bones. When I roast a chicken, I save the neck and the carcass. When I bone pieces of chicken, I save the bones. All these jewels get stowed in the freezer, and when enough are saved up, it’s time to make stock. The only thing about stock is the time it takes. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it can be a challenge to find the right block of time to make it happen.
Then, I came across the idea of making chicken stock in the slow cooker. All the usually aromatics get added to the pot along with the bones, and it does its thing overnight, while I sleep. The slow cooker cooks low and slow, and I don’t have to be nervous and babysit the gas flame on the stovetop. Perfect!
I love the convenience of the aseptic boxes of chicken broth, which I buy in quantity at Costco. But when the soup is brothy, there’s nothing like using homemade stock and letting the flavor shine.
I’d been craving a bean soup with pancetta. I made stock while I was sleeping, and then put together a hearty pot of soup in the morning to be ready in time for lunch. The soup was chock full of vegetables and beans, and really hit the spot.
I also tried my hand at this recipe for Rosemary Focaccia. I enjoy making homemade bread, but can never seem to get the timing to mesh with my schedule. It was a weekend, so I was able to make it work. Plus, focaccia doesn’t involve quite as much rising and waiting as loaves of bread.
What a perfect weekend lunch!
Tuscan White Bean Soup
Adapted from Joanne Weir’s More Cooking in the Wine Country
Serves 6-8
½ cup dried navy beans
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 oz pancetta, cut into ¼-inch pieces
1 stalk celery, cut into ¼-inch pieces
2 carrots, peeled and cut into ¼-inch pieces
1 onion, cut into ½-inch pieces
2 leeks, cut into ½-inch pieces
2 red potatoes, unpeeled, cut into ½-inch pieces
1 Tbsp tomato paste
3 cups chicken stock
3 cups water
1 bunch kale, stems removed and discarded, leaves cut into ½-inch ribbons, about 1-inch long
Salt and pepper to taste
Sort the beans to remove any rocks or other debris. Place the beans in a large bowl, cover with boiling water, and soak for 4 hours. Drain and transfer to a large saucepan. Cover the beans with cold water, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until they are tender, about an hour. Drain the beans, reserving the cooking liquid.
Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot. Add the pancetta, and cook until it starts to brown, about 10 minutes. Add the celery, carrots, onions, leeks, potatoes, tomato paste, stock and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the kale, and continue to cook, until the vegetables are tender, about 15 more minutes.
In the meantime, puree half the beans with ½ cup of reserved bean cooking liquid. Add the whole beans and the bean puree to the pot. Simmer for 5 minutes, until everything is warm. Season with salt and pepper.
A Plateful of Happiness 