Sunday Soup #108: Black-Eyed Pea Soup with Collard Greens and Sausage

Locally, we have a bakery and catering company called Kneaded (https://www.kneaded.com/), and it is rather special... From its "About" page:

Kneaded is more than your typical bakery and catering company. We're a training ground. Our bakery and catering company employs disadvantaged youth from Rebekah Children's Services Culinary Academy. Kneaded offers our apprentices real world experience, with real products, and learning real skills that they can take with them to their next job. We teach them how to create, package, and sell our products. Each of our products are made from scratch while using quality and local ingredients from a 300 mile radius or less and is prepared by our apprentices in our [inspected] commercial kitchen... With every purchase of our baked goods, you are helping us reach our mission of "bettering lives, one pastry or catering at a time."

As part of its services, Kneaded's kitchens prepare one gourmet meal each week for pickup, in individual- or family-sized portions, which is incredibly convenient during Quarantine (as I write this, the selection is Teriyaki Salmon with Coconut Rice and Ginger Broccoli). (*I highly encourage you to visit their site and get yourself an excellent meal while helping them with their important work!)

Recently, Kneaded offered an amazing Seafood Boil (which included lobster, prawns, corn, sausage, potatoes, and the usual goodies), and a friend asked me to make a soup to go with it. I felt that something "Southern" or "Cajun" might fit the bill, so when I stumbled across this recipe, the collard greens spoke to me and I thought it might work. Let's see how it was...

This recipe came from: https://theblondcook.com/black-eyed-pea-soup-with-collard-greens-and-sausage/

*Pic 1 - https://theblondcook.com/black-eyed-pea-soup-with-collard-greens-and-sausage/

Variations from Recipe as Written: I made 1.5x the recipe (which was a lot). I sautéed the mirepoix in habanero infused olive oil to give it a little zip. I used 25% more sausage than it called for because smoked sausage is yummy! And, for the diced tomatoes, I used 1/3 diced toms with green chiles and 2/3 diced fire-roasted toms in hopes of getting some more complex flavors. Finally, to that same purpose, I also sprinkled 4 or 5 pinches of smoked paprika into the pot as it finished simmering.

General Thoughts: The prep was super easy, particularly since I used the pre-chopped mirepoix mix (carrot, celery, and onion) and bagged collard greens that were available at my local supermarket, so that saved me a bunch of time. Using the mirepoix was a stroke of genius and worked perfectly; however, there were pieces of the pre-chopped (bagged) collard greens that still had a little of the tough spine/stem attached. If I make this one again, I'll try to get the full collard greens leaves and trim the spine off myself to ensure I don't get any of the tough, fibrous stems. Since the veggies were ready to rock, all I had to do was open a couple of cans and slice the sausage, and I was golden!

*Pics 2 & 3 - Pictures from when I made it

If you like a ton of veg, this soup is for you! As you can see from the pics, it was super chunky, with a very nice variety of textures owing to the numerous different vegetables and the sausage. The black-eyed peas were a real star, providing a texture that was simultaneously firm and soft (if you've ever eaten perfectly cooked black-eyed peas, you know what I mean). The only bummer (as I mentioned above) was the toughness of the odd remaining collard green stems, which never did get soft or lose their fibrous texture, even though the leaves wilted quite nicely.

As I had hoped, the flavor was deep and complex. The broth was smokey and rich (despite not having any cream in it), both a little sweet and delightfully savory (no doubt owing to the salt from the sausage and canned black-eyed peas and tomatoes). The collard greens added the perfect touch of bitterness, as a counterpoint, and (surprisingly) the earthiness of the thyme was not overpowered.

Potential Improvements? As I already mentioned, I would trim the collard greens by hand, which will be a bit more work but would make it (texturally) more pleasant to eat. I might also use a bit of Cajun seasoning (like Tony Chachere's) and a few dashes of crushed red pepper to liven it up a bit if I think my guests can handle it.

Polling the Fam: I did not record the various reactions to this one, but it was a hit overall. But, here's the deal... The folks that like vegetables thought it was terrific, while those that don't care for vegetables found the soup tolerable but probably not something they would seek out. For me, personally, I really enjoyed it and would be very likely to make it again for the right occasion or crowd.

Verdict: Liked it. (4 stars)

Sunday Soup #107: Chicken Khao Soi (Thai Coconut Curry Noodle Soup)

Not long ago, my friends Bill, Sheila, and Christina turned me onto a Netflix show called "Somebody Feed Phil," starring the creator and writer of "Everybody Loves Raymond," Phil Rosenthal. The show centers on Phil traveling around the world and trying remarkable cultural cuisine, all while telling local human interest stories. As I watched the first few episodes, two things quickly became apparent: 1) Phil is absolutely delightful; and 2) Never has a food/travel show made me so genuinely hungry! Phil, who eats soup AT LEAST once an episode, travels to so many places to which I've also been (I'm up to 42 countries and counting!) and eats all of the wonderful dishes I loved when I was there, which reminded me how much I miss traveling (especially in the midst of my current pandemic-related isolation). During his Thailand episode, Phil shared a bowl of Khao Soi (a traditional coconut milk and egg noodle soup served in Northern Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos) with a friend and enjoyed the heck out of it. I knew immediately what I'd be making for my next Sunday soup. :-)

This recipe came from: https://damndelicious.net/2019/03/28/chicken-khao-soi-thai-coconut-curry-noodle-soup/

*Pic 1 - https://damndelicious.net/2019/03/28/chicken-khao-soi-thai-coconut-curry-noodle-soup/

Variations from Recipe as Written: I doubled the recipe. I used lo mein instead of chow mein noodles (from eatthis.com: "Chow mein, in English, means fried noodles, whereas lo mein translates to stirred or tossed noodles") because it's what my supermarket had in stock. I used vegetable oil rather than canola oil because it is what I had on hand. And, I used regular (rather than low sodium) soy sauce.

General Thoughts: The prep wasn't that tough, as it just involved a bit of chopping (i.e., onions, shallots, and cilantro) and blending the coconut milk and roasted red peppers together. What was much more time and attention intensive was the actual cooking process, as it involved cooking the noodles and actively sautéeing, stirring, etc. during most of the cooking time. Despite that, all in all, it did not feel super labor-intensive (particularly since Becky chopped my shallots and onions for me).

*Pics 2, 3, & 4 - Pictures from when I made it

The soup had a really good mouth-feel and was wonderfully creamy. It was a brothy soup, which I liked, but it also felt very hearty due to the rich coconut curry mixture. The noodles also gave it a "weight" and the chicken thighs provided an excellent protein compliment. Truth be told, I felt that other proteins, such as chicken breasts, seafood (such as shrimp or a delicate white fish), beef, or (if you are a veg-head) even tofu would have been equally yummy, so feel free to use your preference!

The taste was, likewise, outstanding. The broth was the star and was packed with flavor, though I would have preferred it to be much spicier. The noodles served as an excellent mechanism to deliver the broth to my mouth, which resulted in plenty of contented slurping. The chicken thighs, cooked in the rich broth, were savory and delicious, as well, perfectly tender. Finally, the garnishes were a key part of this dish and should not be skipped. They imparted terrific flavor variation (especially the lime, cilantro, and red onions) and provided a little "crunch" that contrasted with the soft noodles and chicken.

Potential Improvements? As I already mentioned, this soup definitely needed to be spicier for me. The next time I make it, I will definitely add some crushed red pepper and (if I can find them) some chopped Thai chilis to the pot. I also think using actual chow mein (lightly fried in a pan) or ramen noodles would have been better than the lo mein I had to use. Finally, a major change that I would use with whatever noodle I choose to use... The recipe's first step is to prepare the noodles and set them aside; however, that resulted in my noodles being a little "gummy" when it finally came time to use them. As such, I'll definitely try cooking the noodles as my last prep step, particularly since they only need to cook for a few minutes to be ready to go.

Polling the Fam: I really liked this one and will definitely make it again, using the improvements above. Becky, who is hit-or-miss on Asian soups, liked it and said it was "good." Hunter really liked it and ate two big bowls, although he agreed it needed more heat. Fox said it was "good," and I even caught him going back for the leftovers today, so he must have really liked it.

Verdict: Liked it. (4 stars)