Showing posts with label coriander. Show all posts
Showing posts with label coriander. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

La La Soup

Yeah that's right - that's what I call it; La La Soup. It started as Asian Soup A La Marian, but over time has morphed into La La Soup. - 'Cause that's how I roll. So, now that I've shown you a small glimpse of my neurosis, here's the recipe for my famous La La Soup - the soup to eat when you think you're getting sick, or when you're already sick and want to burn that mother virus outta yo self. Check it.

What you need;

half a head of cauliflower
a small broccoli
a big carrot (or 2 little ones)
2 juicy lemons
crushed ginger
crushed lemongrass
5 or 6 cloves of garlic ... yep, I like garlic
1.5 litres boiled water
1 massel chicken stock cube
1 massel veggie stock cube
hot chilli (either fresh or powdered)
fresh coriander
1 cup jasmine rice

What you do;

1) First things first, put the stock cubes in the boiled water and sit aside so the stock dissolves.

2) Heat some olive oil in a pot then fry the crushed garlic and about 2 teaspoons of crushed ginger (I use the stuff in a jar). Add the chopped carrot, broccoli and cauliflower and fry for around 5 minutes.

3) Add the stock/water to the pot, bring to the boil and reduce heat to simmer. Add the juice of two lemons and about 1 teaspoon of lemongrass (if you're using the crushed stuff from the jar - if it's the sliced stuff from the jar, you can use a bit more).

4) Add as much chilli as you like and let simmer, covered, for about 15-20 minutes or until the veggies are cooked to your liking.

5) Meanwhile, cook your jasmine rice.

6) When the veggies are done, add a bunch of chopped coriander to the soup. Serve on a bed of jasmine rice.


I always keep a batch in the freezer so I can do emergency soup-drops when friends are sick. Lately I've started blitzing the leftovers (not with the rice) and having it with crusty bread the next day. Deelish. Between the garlic, the lemon and the chilli, you should be feeling better in no time! 

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Riceroni Rolls

I thought I'd start with the recipe I get asked for the most - especially from non-veg friends. These are best eaten on the day but I always end up making heaps and they're just fine the day after (and even the day after that). I put the sauce IN the roll so the next day they've really soaked through and are super-tasty.

You'll need;

round rice paper sheets
vermicelli
red and green capsicum
cucumber
carrot
coriander
vietnamese mint
traditional mint
dried shallots

and for the sauce;

1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1 tbsp lemon juice
peanuts


What you do;

1) Prep. your stuff; cut the capsicums, cucumber and carrot into strips. Wash and tear the mint leaves off the stalks and cut the stems from the coriander. Put the vermicelli in a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Once soft, rinse and drain under cold water.

2) Make the sauce; add the soy, sweet chilli sauce and lemon juice together. Crush up as many unsalted peanuts as you like and put them in the sauce. I tend to use quite a lot because I love the peanuty crunch - but each to their own.

3) Set everything out on the table, including a large heatproof bowl with warm water to soak the rice paper sheets. Some people soak four or five rice paper sheets at once but I just put one in at a time and leave it to soak while I'm making each one - it takes no extra time and ensures no sticking.

4) Construct the riceroni roll! Put a bit of the vermicelli near one edge of the rice paper sheet. Sprinkle some fried shallots on the vermicelli (this means they'll be covered and stops them from piercing the sheet later). Then put one or two of each of the veggies lengthways. Pour a spoon full of the sauce over the stuffing so far. Top with coriander, vietnamese mint and mint.

It should look something like this;


5) Roll the sheet tightly over the mix from the edge nearest you, then fold the ends over and roll tightly to the end. Make sure you're not too violent with this as the veggies and herb stems can pierce the sheet.

It should look something like this;


6) You can eat them straight away but I like to refrigerate them for about an hour so the sauce can soak through.

ENJOY!