EASIEST SOUP FOR THE GODS

                           

Photo by Carol Guilford

 As instant as it gets. Low-cal, Lo-carbo, too. Surprisingly filling from seemingly nothing.  I try to keep the ingredients on hand.

The recipe is adapted from How To Cook And Eat in Chinese by Buwei Yang Chao (1889-1981), first published in 1945 when there was no fresh ginger in the market and Americans thought Chinese food began and ended with chop suey.

My favorite quote about cooking is from Dr. Andrew Boorde, in 1542. “A good cook is half a physician.”  

Mrs. Chou was a medical doctor who added the words “stir-fry” to the English language.

An historical note is that the preface to the book was written by Pearl Buck, Nobel Prize winner in literature. 

Feel free to tweak the measures to your own taste.

2 cups boiling water

½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1 -1-1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

½ -1 teaspoon kosher salt

1-2 tablespoons dry sherry

1 scallion (green onion) peeled and cut into 1/8 lengths (the white bulb and the  tender part of the green stalk.

1. Boil the water. Put all the ingredients into a large cup. Pour the hot water into the cup.

For a hot/sour twist, add 5-10 drops of Tabasco sauce and ¼-1 teaspoon vinegar

Carol’s notes:

Purified water makes all food taste better. I have a Brita attached to my kitchen sink’s faucet.

San-J organic, low sodium tamari is my preferred soy sauce.