Lemon Coriander soup

It has been my kind of winter this time.... not too cold and just a dusting of snow 3 times so far and we even experienced spring like temperatures a few days in January. Even when the groundhog predicted 6 more weeks of winter I didn't feel sad for a moment because this kind of winter I can definitely handle for 6 more weeks :) That said, temperatures are still on the cold side on some days and on one such cold, wet evening my mind wandered to this delicious spicy, tangy soup we had at 'Ming', an Indo-chinese restaurant in NJ. It was a coriander soup and was broth based but not too watery and it had crispy strips of cabbage, carrots and sprouts suspended lending a nice texture.

This is my take on recreating the soup... I wouldn't say it's a perfect match to what I tasted at the restaurant but it definitely satisfied my cravings and warmed me up. It's also a good option when someone has the sniffles... since the flavours of lemon, coriander and ginger dominate this soup.

LEMON CORIANDER SOUP

Ingredients:

For the Soup Base:
Green chillies - 5 to 6 chopped
Ginger - 2 inch piece grated
Celery - 1-2 stalks chopped
Vegetable broth - 1 can or half vegetable bouillon cube
Water - 4 to 5 cups
Coriander stalks with some leaves - about 10 to 12

For the soup

Soup Base (above)
Thinly slivered carrot, cabbage, beans (any combination) - 1/2 cup
Chopped coriander leaves - 2 tbsp
Lemon juice - 1 to 2 tbsp (or to taste)
Salt, white pepper - to taste
Cornflour - 2 tbsp mixed with half cup water to a slurry

Method:

1) For the soup base... In a deep pot, bring to a boil the water, celery stalks, green chillies, ginger, coriander leaves and the vegetable stock. Then allow to simmer for 20-25 minutes before switching off the stove. When ready to make the soup, strain this to remove the bits of veggies and ginger and keep the flavoured broth.

2) For the soup, combine the lemony-ginger broth (from step 1 above) with the veggies and allow to boil gently until the veggies are crisp tender.

3) Add the cornflour slurry at this stage and season with salt to taste - let this boil until the soup thickens slightly.

4) Switch off the stove and add in the coriander leaves and the lemon juice. Add pepper to taste & serve hot.