For years the Chinese have believed that soup is good for us when we are sick. It is particularly useful if our bodies are going or have been through a period of physical or emotional stress. Soups and stews have been shown to restore our Yin energy which helps the body and mind to settle and rest.
OMG, this soup, it’s been a game-changer for me. It’s packed with green veg and has plenty of protein as well. Watch for the little extras, they make all the difference.
The prep time is 15 minutes and the cooking time is also 15 minutes – plus a little time to prepare after cooking.
You’ll need 2 saucepans, one bigger than the other.
Ingredients
- A good glug of olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic – crushed or squashed and finely chopped
- 3 small white onions roughly chopped
- 1 medium leek – chopped quite finely
- 400g frozen peas or mixed peas and beans
- 1 small head of broccoli – use the stalk as well – chopped roughly
- 1 medium courgette – cut lengthways and then cut in slices about 0.5cm thick
- 1 long red chilli – use whole, keep the head on and cut lengthways
- 2 heaped teaspoons of dried mint or a handful of fresh mint chopped with no stalks
- 2 stock cubes or 1 litre of homemade stock
- Juice of half a lemon
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Warm the oil in a large saucepan with the garlic, chilli, onions, leek and dried mint.
- Add a pinch of salt to stop it from burning.
- Soften the vegetables.
- Once soft add the frozen peas/beans and stir until broken up.
- Now add the chopped broccoli stir and add the stock with some more salt and a generous grind of black pepper.
- Bring to the boil and leave to simmer for 15 minutes.
- Now take the chopped courgette and a frying pan. Add a little oil and fry the courgette over a fairly high heat, keep it moving and keep going until it is beginning to brown. Then put it aside.
- Once the soup has been cooking for 15 minutes remove the chilli, take off the stalk and chop it finely.
- Put it back in the soup. Now put half the soup in the food processor or blender and pulse a little until broken up but is not smooth.
- Put this in your second saucepan.
- Now take the other half and pulse it just once, then add the courgettes and pulse it again just a little.
- Add this to the first half and stir together.
- Time to taste it.
- If it’s a little flat then add the juice of half a lemon, it really brings the flavours to life.
- You may also need a little more salt and pepper. Up to you.
This is an evening meal for us and I’ve certainly never felt the need for anything else. Enjoy.
