Tuesday 1 March 2011

Noodle Soup Addict

Hello, my name is Katja, and I'm a noodle soup addict...

I absolutely love soups. And most of all, noodle soup. I've been addicted to noodle soup ever since I can remember and have been cooking noodle soup on a regular basis for the last 25+ years or so. I also always have a supply of packs of instant noodle soups (nowadays you get great ones which don't even require cooking!) both at home and at work for emergencies.

When I was in my late teens/early twenties, I was famous for my noodle soup. I love my noodle soup to have lots, and I really mean LOTS, of noodles in it. I used to be exceptionally bad at getting the balance of noodles and soup right. I usually ended up with just some kind of wet noodles and next to now soup. 20 years ago, after a concert, when it was still too early to just go home and to bed but too late to really go somewhere else, someone would often come up with the suggestion: let's go to home to Katja's and have some soup! I remember one night, when someone had brought a friend along who hadn't had a taste of my soup before. When he looked at his bowl full of wet noodles, he remarked: "Either there's too much noodles or too little soup", at which all my friends cried "that's how it has to be, that's what's so special about Katja's noodle soup!!!".

These days, my soups have a bit more soup to them, but still more than plenty of noodles :).

~ a first-rate soup is more creative than a second-rate painting (abraham maslow) ~

About 20, 15 years ago, I used to cook noodle soup almost daily. When we visited relatives in Germany, my cousin suggested cooking noodle soup one night - she was as addicted to it as me. And then my uncle told me that my Dad, when he was about our age, used to cook noodle soup all the time. I never knew that, but it amused me no end - a hereditary noodle soup addiction, running through several generations and branches of the family :-).

My basic and established recipee for noodle soup can't really be called a recipe, it's more of a quick fix:

0.5 dl water
1 cube of chicken stock
a very generous helping of any kind of (soup) noodles
1 cube of frozen spinach
some pepper, soy sauce and one or two drops of sesame oil

This is quick and easy to do and just perfect for when you come home after a long commute on a full and cold train and in desperate need of something hot but in no mood for some elaborate cooking.

There are of course hundreds of variations of noodle soups and plenty of recipees around. When I have more time I like to make a big pot and add all kinds of fresh veggies and mushrooms (although I'm too lazy to do a real proper soup, I always rely on my good old chicken stock cubes).

I also like to collect recipes when I come across one which sounds delicious. As long as their simple and easy, like for example Nigella Lawon's Noodle Soup for Needy People or Thai Chicken Noodle Soup or Noodle Soup with Udon Noodles (oh, I love them!). Well, there are lots and lots more yummy recipes (indlucing many not from Nigella Lawson ;-) ), and I'm sure you also have your own special and favourite way of cooking noodle soup.

Hmmmmmmm, what should I do for dinner tonight? I think it'll have to be a nice bowl of hot and steamy noodle soop after this post!

1 comment:

  1. HAHA!! You know the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. Congratulations. I have never known anybody write so much about noodle soup. Actually, now that I think about it, I have never known anybody write anything about noodle soup. Thanks for the laughs.

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