Green Posole Soup


One of my favorite go-to meals on a cold night is Green Posole Soup, a recipe by Sarah Moulton that I tweak to suit my mood. It's mind numbingly easy, and it requires little in the way of preparation and even less in the way of shopping. Hopefully, you generally have the basics in your pantry.

Green Posole Soup

2 tbsp olive oil
Large pinch red pepper flakes (if you like heat)
1 medium white or yellow onion
1c green (tomatillo) salsa
6c chicken broth + 2c reserved in case you prefer a more liquid soup
1 cooked rotisserie chicken, meat removed and shredded, bones discarded or saved to use for stock
1 28oz can hominy (found in the 'Mexican' section of almost any supermarket), drained and rinsed

Garnishes:

Diced radishes
Minced cilantro
Sliced avocado
Sliced green onion
Halved cherry tomatoes
Shredded cheese
Whatever your imagination comes up with, as long as it's in season and not shipped to your local store from Tierra del Fuego

Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large (5q) soup pot/dutch oven. When hot, add onion and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Add tomatillo salsa and pepper flakes and cook, stirring for another 5 minutes. Add chicken broth and simmer for 10 minutes. Add shredded chicken and hominy and simmer another 10-15 minutes to heat through and to allow the flavors to meld. Add more stock if the soup is too thick for your liking. Serve up in big bowls and garnish to your heart's desire. (Though I must add it's still delicious without any garnishes at all). Serve with a warm tortilla. Slurp away!

Serves 4




Note: I usually roast or grill a whole chicken the night before for dinner. The Mr. and I each have a portion for dinner and then after it cools, I remove and shred the remaining meat to use in the soup. In other words, use what you have. If you have leftover cooked chicken breasts or thighs or whatever, use them in here. You don't have to have a whole chicken, but adjust or bulk out the soup accordingly.

Cookbook note

A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen: Easy Seasonal Dishes for Family and Friends
A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen: Easy Seasonal Dishes for Family and Friends by Jack Bishop

My review

Rating: 4 of 5 stars

At least one dinner this week will come from this book. Probably a red curry spring vegetable stir fry. The cookbook is arranged seasonally, which I'm always a big fan of. The spring section is perhaps the least inspiring to me (though I couldn't pinpoint why), but there are a few really good recipes in there (roasted asparagus with egg on feta toast - yum!). Overall this is a really good cook book (though not as good as Vegetables Every Day). Recipes are fairly easy, use fresh, seasonal ingredients and can serve as inspiration for your own modifications.


View all of my reviews...

Curry in a hurry

I sometimes forget how easy it is to put together a curry dish. All you really need is a can of coconut milk and some curry paste. Add some meat and/or veggies and voila, you've got dinner.

I had some cooked butternut squash and a random assortment of veggies piled up in the fridge, so that's what I will list in my recipe, but keep in mind, you could use nearly anything in here, just adjust cooking times accordingly. You want the vegetables to retain some texture and character, but you don't want them raw. I waited until nearly the last moment to add the green onions to ensure their flavor was very fresh and they were still crunchy.

I served this over quick barley, though you could use any grain. Whole wheat cous cous or brown rice would be particularly good here.

Springtime curry

1 tablespoon olive, peanut or canola oil (not extra virgin, please)
1 medium/large yellow onion, cut in a large dice
3 medium carrots
1.5 cups cubed and peeled butternut squash
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger (optional)
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
3 green onions, sliced on the diagonal, dark green tops composted/discarded
1 can regular or light coconut milk
1/2 cup stock or broth (chicken or veggie)
2 tablespoons prepared green curry paste
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Juice of 1 lime
12 large shrimp (optional)

Heat a very large skillet and the oil over medium high heat until hot. Reduce heat to medium and add onion, carrot and butternut squash and sautee until vegetables are softened somewhat, 8-10 minutes. Add garlic, ginger (if you wish) and curry paste and sautee while stirring for 90 seconds until blended. Add coconut milk and broth and stir. Reduce heat slightly and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes. Bring heat back up to medium, add green onions and shrimp and cook until shrimp are opaque throughout, about 4 minutes. Squeeze in lime juice, sprinkle chopped cilantro over the top and serve over rice or another grain. Serves 4 (ish).

As I mentioned, use whatever you've got on hand. Diced potatoes would do well here, as would most root veggies. Halved cherry tomatoes added at the same as the green onion would brighten things up. You could switch it entirely in the summer using summer squashes, fresh spinich, green beans and the like. If you want more heat, add a diced fresh chile or some dried chili flakes. The possibilities are endless. The results will be yummy!

Glazed radishes

Last night I was too lazy to make anything very complicated, so to accompany our mostly from-the-freezer dinner, I made some glazed radishes. It isn't always easy or intuitive to eat seasonally, what with strawberries and asparagus basically available all year long in your local store. However, radishes are no-brainer spring crop. Cooking them isn't something most people think of though.

If you think radishes are too spicy, or even if you don't like them at all, definitely give them a shot cooked. Here's a very easy recipe for glazed radishes.

Glazed Radishes
Adapted from Vegetables Everyday by Jack Bishop
Serves 2

1 bunch radishes (any color is fine)
1/4 red onion, diced
1/3 cup stock or broth
generous splash of white wine
1 tbsp butter
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup fresh parsley

Trim greens from the radishes and compost (or discard if you must). Clean the radishes and slice in half or in quarters for large (golf ball sized) radishes. Heat butter over medium heat until melted. Add red onion and saute 3-5 minutes until quite soft and it loses some of its color. Add the radishes and stir to coat with the butter (add more butter if need be).

Add stock and white wine, reduce heat slightly and put a tight fitting lid on your pot. Simmer for 10-12 minutes. Remove lid and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring heat back up to medium and reduce remaining liquid for 1-2 minutes. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley and serve as a side to any wonderful springtime dinner.

Recipe can be easily doubled.

All I can hope for at this point is that the radishes I planted in the raised bed before all this freaky spring snow came out of nowhere decide to sprout in the next few days of warmth, or I'm back to the spring gardening drawing board (and to more supermarket shopping - ugh).

Bon appetit!

Aha! I'm back!

So I finally rediscovered my blog (and my password). Welcome back, me.

I was due to make some homemade roasted butternut squash ravioli tonight but somehow the day has escaped me. I went over to Urban Pantry this afternoon in a bit of a sad huff, as she had sent out a note stating that she's closing and selling off her inventory at a discount of 25%. Many dollars later, I'm home with farro, chocolate, popadums, some nice, stinky cheeses and some goat cheese ravioli that require no assembly. Think I'll braise a little fennel and serve the goat cheese ravioli with fennel slathered in butter. That'll do. Bon appetit, peeps. I shall see you more often now. Happy eating!