KITCHEN MAGIC

Chinese Chicken Soup with Mushrooms

By DAVID SPITZER
Special to the Saipan Tribune

Like chicken soups from every culture, this one soothes, satisfies, and no doubt can cure the common cold—especially when served with grandmotherly love on the side. As is typical in Chinese cooking, the soup is infused with both the fragrance and flavors of cilantro, ginger, garlic, and salty ham. Its primary ingredient, the chicken, plays a double role: It gives the soup its essential character, then it’s shredded to provide texture. And the abundant mushrooms act as double agents, too. Meaty and light, pungent and mild, they’re there to add both depth and chew. Ladled straight from the pot, the soup is as soup is as comforting as a lullaby; drizzle on a drop or two of the host zesty scallion oil, and it swings.

If you’d like to make this soup more substantial, you can add some noodles to it. Chinese cellophane noodles would be good (just soften them in warm water before cooking them for a few minutes in the soup), as would a handful of Chinese egg noodles.

Ingredients:
1 ounce dried wood ear mushrooms
1 1⁄4 inch thick piece peeled ginger
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
2 sprigs cilantro
5 black peppercorns
6 coriander seeds
1 bay leaf
one 3 to 4 pound chicken
1⁄4 pound shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and cleaned
1 package (3 1⁄2 ounces) enoki mushrooms, trimmed
1⁄4 pound Smithfield ham, cut into short, thin strips (optional)
1 small onion, peeled, trimmed, and cut into short, thin strips
1 stalk celery, peeled, trimmed, and cut into short, thin strips
1 small carrot, peeled and cut into short, thin strips
3 1⁄2 quarts water
salt

1. Put the wood ear mushrooms in a bowl with enough warm water to cover them generously. Let the mushrooms soak for 20 minutes, then drain and rinse them.

2. Wrap the ginger, garlic, cilantro, peppercorns, coriander seeds, and bay leaf in a square of cheesecloth and toss this sachet and all the other ingredients except the water and salt into a deep stockpot. Pour in the water: You want the water to cover the chicken – if it doesn’t, chop the chicken in half. Bring the liquid to boil over high heat, lower the heat so that the liquid simmers, and cook, skimming the foam that rises to the surface, for 1 1⁄2 hours. Be assiduous about the skimming – it will give you a beautifully clear broth.

3. Remove the chicken from the pot (you can keep the soup at a low simmer or pull the pot from the heat) and, as soon as it’s cool enough for you to handle, remove and discard the skin. Using your fingers, pull the meat off the bones in shreds; discard the carcass. Pull out and discard the cheesecloth sachet, and return the chicken meat to the pot. Season the soup with salt and, if necessary, reheat it over low heat; keep it warm over low heat while you make the scallion oil. (The soup can be made ahead to this point, cooled, and kept tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Bring to the boil before serving.)

The scallion oil:
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1 scallion, trimmed and chopped
one 1⁄4 inch thick piece peeled ginger, bruised
1 teaspoon salt
1⁄4 cup vegetable oil

Put the garlic, scallion, ginger, and salt in a small metal bowl. Pour the oil into a small saucepan and heat it to its smoking pot. Standing back, pour the hot oil over the aromatic ingredients in the bowl. Stir well, and then allow the oil to stand for 2 minutes. Discard the garlic & ginger before serving.

To serve: Ladle the soup into large hot bowls, making sure that each bowl gets a little of every ingredients. Drizzle a spoonful of scallion oil over each serving and serve immediately.

David Spitzer is the executive chef of the Fiesta Resort & Spa Saipan.