Golden turmeric coconut chicken noodle soup
A fresh and zingy sinus-clearing take on the classic
“No one who cooks, cooks alone. Even at her most solitary, a cook in the kitchen is surrounded by generations of cooks past, the advice and menus of cooks present, the wisdom of cookbook writers".
I love this quote from one of my favourite food writers, and writers generally, Laurie Colwin. It’s true, no one who cooks, cooks alone. There’s so much comfort in the process of cooking, whether doing it just for yourself or people you love, or perhaps sometimes for people you don’t know or don’t even like! Working as a private chef I sometimes had to contend with the latter but fortunately not very often…actually probably only once but that’s another story. The end result in cooking is important of course, but if you learn to love cooking, you love the process just as much as you love the food. I think this quote is particularly apt when talking about chicken soup.
There are so many different recipes for chicken soup, and you’ll meet a lot of people who think their mothers is the best, or perhaps their grandmothers, or perhaps their mothers chicken soup is the recipe given to her by her mother. I have a theory for this, chicken soup is the ultimate comfort food, it’s what someone makes you when they think you might be coming down with a cold and need cheering up. It’s filled with love and care and that’s why people love it. Does that sound sentimental and soppy? Perhaps it does but I really think it’s true.
The cold weather has settled in for the winter, the rain is lashing at the window as I write this and the inevitable lurgys are doing the rounds and I can think of no greater comforter than a steaming bowl of chicken soup. One slurp and you’ll feel the restorative effects begin to work their magic, in fact for me just the mere mention of a hot bowl of chicken soup is healing for both the body and the soul. It’s a much loved classic for a reason.
Sticking to my own theory, this soup is built on the soup my mama makes me, full of zingy sinus clearing garlic, ginger and chilli, sweet with a little honey and a warming gentle heat from the curry paste. Healing turmeric is added as much for its medicinal benefits as the gorgeous golden hue it gives this soup.
This recipes has a longer list of ingredients then I tend to err towards but these are all things I feel confident you have at home already and if you do need to pop to the shops these are all ingredients you will use readily and regularly. I know there is nothing worse than an obscure ingredient bought at great expense that sits sadly on the back of a cupboard for the next 10 years gathering dust.
It wasn’t really until I started writing this newsletter that I realised how completely obsessed I am with a garnish. Dear reader, I admit it. I’m obsessed. But I will say it until I’m blue in the face, it’s a garnish that can take something from good to really truly excellent. Here I’ve used lots of fresh herbs, peanuts for crunch, a drizzle of chilli oil and fresh lime. Such a good combo and really elevates the flavours of the soup. There is something so delicious to me about a bowl of something hot where all the flavours have mingled and got to know each other being served with the raw, freshness of the herbs. It’s the contrasts, and that is after all what makes things really delicious.
Ingredients
serves 2 generously, with left overs