I first made up this soup for a friend who loves Korean food but lives on a low-carb diet. I thought it would be a one-time wonder, but it is such a forgiving recipe that I now make it when I need a meal with only a few ingredients. It can take different vegetables, noodles, and proteins and will still taste good. I have used tofu, brisket, rotisserie chicken, and tuna in this soup (separately!) with great success. This recipe calls for Tofu Shirataki noodles, which are low-carb Japanese noodles. But if you are not on a low-carb diet, you can use other Asian noodles; I like to use udon or sweet potato noodles.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 cup cabbage, chopped
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp chopped garlic
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 2 Tbsp chili pepper flakes (kochukaru)
- 4 cups water or soup stock
- 6 oz protein (sliced brisket, rotisserie chicken, canned tuna or raw tofu sliced into chunks)
- 1 Tbsp chili pepper paste (kochujang)
- 1 egg, beaten
- 8 oz Tofu Shirataki (1 package), udon, or sweet potato noodles
- ½ scallion, chopped (optional)
Preparation:
- Cook noodles according to package directions, cut into 4 inch lengths, and set aside.
- In a soup pot over medium heat, stir fry cabbage with soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil, and chili pepper flakes for a few minutes, or until the leaves begin to look transparent.
- Add water or broth and bring to a boil.
- Reduce to a simmer and stir in chili pepper paste.
- Add protein (except for tofu) to pot and wait for soup to simmer again.
- Slowly stream in beaten egg.
- After 15 minutes, add in noodles (and tofu if using) and cook for 4 more minutes.
- Salt to taste and garnish with scallions is using.
(Serves 4).
