This soup from America’s Test Kitchen’s latest cookbook, Dinner Tonight, is fresh-tasting, spicy and absolutely delicious. Soak vermicelli until tender and distribute among soup bowls. Combine lemon grass, scallions, lime, chile and galangal, add broth and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the solids from the pan. Add mushrooms, fish sauce and chile to soup and simmer for a few minutes. Add shrimp, cover and let sit off the heat until the shrimp are cooked through. Stir in tomatoes and lime juice and serve topped with fresh herbs. Cook’s note: I used a tablespoon of lime zest instead of the lime leaves, gingerroot instead of galangal and shiitake mushrooms instead of oyster mushrooms.
Avoiding Additives and Preservatives
I used Better Than Bouillon chicken paste for the stock and Cock brand fish sauce. Look for frozen shrimp preserved only with salt. Use freshly squeezed lime juice.
Thai hot and sour soup with shrimp and noodles
Ingredients:
4 ounces (113 g) rice vermicelli
2 lemon grass stalks, trimmed to bottom 6 inches (15 cm)
4 scallions, trimmed, white parts left whole, green parts cut into 1-inch (2.54-cm) lengths
6 makrut lime leaves, torn if large
2 Thai chiles, stemmed (1 left whole, 1 sliced thin), divided, plus 2 Thai chiles, stemmed and sliced thin, for serving (optional)
1 (2-inch/5-cm) piece fresh galangal, peeled and sliced into ¼-inch- (0.64-cm-) thick rounds
8 cups (2 L) chicken broth
1 tablespoon (15 ml) sugar, plus extra for seasoning
8 ounces (227 g) oyster mushrooms, trimmed and torn into 1-inch (2.54-cm) pieces
3 tablespoons (45 ml) fish sauce, plus extra for seasoning
1 pound (454 g) extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound), peeled, deveined, and tails removed
12 ounces (340 g) cherry tomatoes, halved
2 tablespoons (30 ml) lime juice, plus extra for seasoning, plus lime wedges for serving
½ cup fresh (125 ml) cilantro leaves
¼ cup (60 ml) fresh Thai basil leaves, torn if large (optional)
Preparation:
Bring 4 quarts (4 L) water to boil in large pot. Remove from heat, add vermicelli and let sit, stirring occasionally, until vermicelli are fully tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water, drain again and distribute evenly among large soup bowls.
Place lemon grass, scallion whites, lime leaves, whole Thai chile and galangal on cutting board and lightly smash with meat pounder or bottom of small skillet until mixture is moist and very fragrant. Transfer lemon grass mixture to Dutch oven. Add broth and sugar and bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Using slotted spoon, remove solids from pot and discard.
Add mushrooms, fish sauce, scallion greens and sliced Thai chile and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in shrimp. Cover and let sit off heat until shrimp are opaque and cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and lime juice. Season with extra sugar, extra fish sauce and extra lime juice to taste.
Ladle soup into bowls of noodles; sprinkle with cilantro and Thai basil, if using. Serve, passing lime wedges and extra sliced Thai chiles, if using, separately. Serves 4-6.
From Dinner Tonight
America’s Test Kitchen just put out its latest cookbook, Dinner Tonight, and it is filled with creative recipes that can be on the table in 45 minutes or less. In this recipe, pork tenderloin, croutons and vegetables are roasted on a sheet pan for 20 minutes. While they are roasting, make a dressing of oil, vinegar, mustard, capers and their brine and garlic and toss with cucumber, cherry tomatoes and basil. Remove the pan from the oven and let the pork rest for 10 minutes. Add the croutons and cooked veggies to the other vegetables and toss to combine. Top the salad with sliced pork and serve. Cook’s note: I used zucchini instead of summer squash and omitted the basil.
Avoiding Additives and Preservatives
I used Acetaia La Bonissma balsamic vinegar, which has no added sulfites, President’s Choice Old-Fashion Dijon mustard and an Ace Bakery baguette. Unico capers are additive-free.
Pork tenderloin and panzanella salad
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons (45 ml) balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons (30 ml) whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon (15 ml) packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon (5 ml) cornstarch
2 (1-pound/454 g) pork tenderloins, trimmed
Salt and pepper
1 (12-inch/30-cm) baguette, cut into 1-inch (2.54-cm) pieces
1 red onion, cut into 1-inch (2.54-cm) pieces
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and cut into ½-inch- (1.25-cm) wide strips
1 yellow summer squash, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1-inch (2.54-cm) pieces
½ cup (125 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon (15 ml) capers, rinsed, plus 1 tablespoon brine
1 garlic clove, minced
½ seedless English cucumber, quartered lengthwise and cut into ½-inch (1.25-cm) pieces
6 ounces (170 g) cherry tomatoes, halved
½ cup (125 ml) coarsely chopped fresh basil
Preparation:
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees F (232 degrees C). Whisk 1 tablespoon (15 ml) vinegar, 1 tablespoon (15 ml) mustard, sugar, and cornstarch in bowl until no lumps of cornstarch remain.
Pat tenderloins dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Place tenderloins in centre of rimmed baking sheet (it’s OK if they are touching) and brush tops and sides with the vinegar mixture.
Toss baguette, onion, bell pepper, squash, ¼ cup (60 ml) oil, ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) salt, and ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) pepper in large bowl until baguette and vegetables are well coated with oil. Distribute vegetable mixture around tenderloins on sheet. Roast until pork registers 140 degrees F (60 degrees C), about 20 minutes, stirring vegetable mixture halfway through roasting.
Meanwhile, whisk capers and brine, garlic, ⅛ teaspoon (0.6 ml) salt, ⅛ teaspoon (0.6 ml) pepper, remaining 2 tablespoons (30 ml) vinegar, remaining 1 tablespoon (15 ml) mustard, and remaining ¼ cup (60 ml) oil together in now-empty bowl.
Transfer tenderloins to carving board, tent with foil and let rest for 10 minutes. While tenderloins rest, add cucumber, tomatoes, 6 tablespoons basil and vegetable mixture to bowl with caper dressing and toss to combine.
Transfer salad to serving platter. Slice tenderloins ½ inch (1.25-cm) thick and arrange over salad. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons (30 ml) basil. Serves 4-6.
From Dinner Tonight
