Cleaning Out Day: Glass Noodle Soup

This soup isn’t from any particular Asian cuisine — just a melange of stuff that I found while looking for something to make a quick lunch for the kids. Served with a sandwich or roasted vegetables, it’s great for a light meal that can be prepared in under an hour.

To prepare the broth:

1 large chicken thigh and drumstick, + giblets if you have them, simmered for 30 minutes with
6 cups water
1/2 teaspoon white peppercorns
1 1-inch piece ginger, peeled and crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fish sauce, or to taste
4 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled

1 large shallot, sliced thin and pan- or deep-fried until golden, then drained and set aside

4 ounces cellophane or glass noodles (2 2-oz packages)
chopped celery leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lime, cut into wedge

Cook chicken to make the broth until tender. Remove from the broth and shred. Remove the aromatics from the broth if desired. I leave them in and have the children fish them out later as they’re eating if they don’t want them. While you are shredding the chicken, add the noodles to the broth and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add the chicken shreds as soon as they’re done to reheat.

Continue to cook for 5 more minutes, or until noodles are fully cooked, adjusting seasoning with fish sauce, salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. The last minute of cooking add the chopped celery leaves.

Ladle into bowls and top each serving with a lime wedge and fried shallots.