Recipe: Oriental Collard-Chicken-Shrimp Soup

Oriental Collard-Chicken-Shrimp Soup
alt.cooking/Baron Blackfang/2001

I'm always looking for new ways in which to serve greens. So, as I happened upon a fine bunch of collard greens at the store this passed weekend, I decided to invent a new Oriental soup.

It's not hard to make, nor expensive or time-consuming, and has overtones of both Thai and Vietnamese. The lemon grass and lime juice do a great job of counter-balancing the somewhat strong flavour of greens. The roasted chicken increases the flavour of the broth.

Although my recipe calls for collards, you can use turnip or mustard greens if you prefer. You can find the lemon grass stalks in jars in most large grocery stores' Oriental section or fresh in Oriental markets. Fresh cilantro is now found in the produce section of most groceries.

1 bunch collard greens, rinsed, stripped and chopped into 1-inch pieces (use the bagged , chopped greens if you are short on time. You could also use frozen collards, but the flavour and texture won't be the same. But, this time of year, excellent fresh greens are available).
1-lb boneless chicken thighs
1-lb medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, and precooked (frozen, precooked shrimp are ok if you are short on time)
3-qts chicken stock (canned is fine)
4 carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/2 inch pieces
4 stalks celery, sliced into 1/2 inch pieces
2-tbs fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped
1 bunch scallions, coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 lemon grass stalks
3-tbs lime juice
1 tbs sugar
1 tsp freshly grated ginger (use powdered ginger if short on time)
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (use more if you like really spicy soup)
4-tbs soy sauce
Salt and pepper seasoning
2-tbs dark sesame oil
1-lb raman or soba noodles, cooked al dente

Garnishes (optional):
pickled ginger, watercress, cilantro leaves, fried noodles, dried bonito, toasted sesame seeds

Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper, brush with sesame oil, and roast at 350 deg F for one hour. When cool, cut into 1-inch pieces and refrigerate until ready to use at end of recipe.

Add the chicken stock and lemon grass stalks to large soup pot and bring to boil. Slowly add the collard greens, reduce heat to simmer, and cook for one hour or until greens are tender.

Add all of the remaining ingredients except the shrimp, scallions, and noodles. Stir and adjust seasoning. Simmer for 15 minutes.

Add the shrimp and scallions, simmer for 5 minutes.

To serve, place some noodles into soup bowls and ladle in soup. Add any of above garnishes if desired.