Not Egg Drop Soup with Mustard Greens, Carrot, Scallions, and Tofu Curd
Not Egg Drop Soup
Now here’s a strange phenomenon. A soup that’s mostly broth with an egg stirred around in it. Classic Chinese cooking, but when you think about it, not that much food.
Well, i’m never one to ignore an opportunity to put more vegetables in something.
I looked around to see if anybody had already done the work of creating a vegan egg drop soup. At first, I found nothing. But then i discovered Vegan Mofo who had the answer for the egg: tofu curds. They are really easy, though maybe at first a little daunting if you’ve never seen tofu being made. Fear not! There are pictures.
Not Egg Drop Soup
Makes 4 small servings
Preparation about 1 hour
Can be made ahead, but don’t add the tofu curds until ready to serve
Tofu curds – make first (see recipe below)
6 c. vegetable broth or water
1 – 3 T. tamari
2 – 6 pkg. Savory Choice or other low fat low sodium bouillon
¼ t. sesame oil (optional)
¼ or more t. white pepper
1 bunch greens, your choice, chopped
2 carrots, grated
8 scallions, sliced thinly
Heat the broth, tamari, optional sesame oil, bouillon, and white pepper while you chop and slice the vegetables. Remember to take out the stem of greens like kale and discard, or take out the stem and chop it up into small pieces for chard.
Add the greens and the carrot and cook about 10 minutes until tender and savory. Add the scallions and stir in. Add the tofu curds but don’t stir until you’re ready to eat and the curds have been admired.
Tofu Curds
2 c. soymilk, preferably unsweetened
1 or more t. Epsom salts or other coagulant such as nigari
Measure the soymilk in a medium pan and heat to 180°, stirring frequently. Meanwhile, get a little water ready to boil. When the soymilk is hot enough, you will add the coagulant to about ¼ c. boiling water and stir to dissolve. When the soymilk is almost hot enough, boil the water, and add the coagulant. Add this to the soymilk. Getting the soymilk hot enough took a lot longer than i thought it would. The soymilk would boil around the edges, and i would tip the pan and put the thermometer in, and it would be 160. Again and again, still 160. Finally i let it get to a full boil, although everyone says not to do this, ever, with soymilk.
Add the coagulant and stir once. That’s right, just once. Now, put the pan on a heating pad, or if you have an electric stove just turn off the burner and let the heat keep it warm. Let the coagulant work about 10 minutes, then one more stir. Did the milk separate into curds and clear yellow whey? You might have to put on more boiling water, and add a little more coagulant. Stir it in once, and wait 5 minutes. There! Now it should be curds and whey. Pour this through a sieve. You can use the whey in something else or toss it. You should get about 2/3 c. curds. Set aside and make the soup.
Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:
Per Serving – 105 calories/7.1 g protein (27%)/2.5 g fat (21%)
