Soups are a favorite with my family. Come rain or shine, we love to relish a good bowl of soup. I always prepare a large pot of soup as we all enjoy a second helping! My fridge is well stocked with plenty of vegetables & herbs so it is really very easy to prepare soups quickly. I also prepare vegetable & chicken stock which is handy. I freeze the stock in batches & voila … I can fix up a soup in minutes!
Lemon Coriander Soup is an all time favorite. This soup is hearty, nutritious, healthy & fragrant with two of my favorite herbs…lemon grass & coriander. Besides, my family loves tangy foods & lemon/lime lends the right amount of tanginess to this wonderful & refreshing soup.
This soup truly warms the heart & satisfies the soul in the cold winters. It is a great comfort food during the heavy monsoons too. If you love a vegetable soup then you may use vegetable stock & eliminate the chicken. You can substitute with stock cubes if you do not have fresh stock. You can add vegetables of your choice as well. If you are craving for some delicious soup then just go ahead & try this one… 😀
Ingredients for the Basic Stock :
- 8 cups Chicken Stock or Vegetable Stock
- 2 stalks of Lemon Grass (cut into small pieces)
- 6 bunches fresh Coriander Roots clipped with about 2 inch stems
- Jest of ½ Lime/Lemon (grated)
- 1 tbsp. Ginger Root skins
- 6 Peppercorns
- 1 Clove fresh Garlic (grated or minced finely)
- 1 tsp. Green Onion (finely grated)
- ¼ tsp. Salt
To prepare the Basic Stock :
In a sufficiently large pot , put in all the above ingredients & boil for about 5 mins.
Turn off the flame & let it stand for about 2 mins.
Pass the boiled mixture through a sieve & return the stock to the pot.
The stock will be of a very light green color.
Keep aside for later use.
Ingredients to be added to the stock to prepare the soup :
- 2 leaves Cabbage (finely shredded)
- 2 Spinach Leaves (blanched & finely shredded)
- ½ Carrot (peeled & finely grated)
- 3 French Beans (blanched & finely chopped)
- 2 fresh Green Chilli (deseeded & finely minced)
- 5 tsps. Lime/Lemon Juice
- 1 tsp. Sugar
- A pinch of Ajinomoto (optional)
- 1/3 tsp. White Pepper pwd.
- 4 tsps. Corn flour( mix with ¼ cup water)
- ½ cup cooked Chicken( chopped)
- ¾ cup Coriander Leaves (chopped)
- Salt to taste
Here’s how you prepare the Lemon Coriander Soup…
Boil the prepared sieved stock till it comes to a rolling boil & then add the vegetables & boil for about 2 mins.
Add ajinomoto (optional), white pepper pwd. & finely minced green chillies; cook for another 2-3 mins.
Add ½ cup coriander leaves & mix well.
Immediately add in the corn flour paste & stir quickly making sure that there are no lumps.
Simmer for another few mins.
Reduce heat & add lemon/lime juice, sugar, cooked chicken pieces & stir.
Let it simmer for about 5 mins.
Turn off the flame & add remaining 1/3 cup of coriander leaves.
Mix well & serve immediately.
