Thai Noodle Soup (vegan)

As I have mentioned before, my husband and I love Thailand. We have traveled to “the land of smiles” twice and are planning several more trips. The fresh food of Thailand is just the icing on the cake of beautiful beaches, friendly locals and stunning jungles. One of our favorite things to get for lunch in Thailand is the noodle soup. It is usually sold at the street carts and full of fresh local ingredients. More often than not Thai’s use oyster sauce or fish oil to flavor their soups. After several tries I think I have a recipe for our beloved noodle soup that is animal free. This soup was light, aromatic and very tasty. Our house smelled of Thailand and the flavors were reminiscent as well. Although I loved this particular recipe, I will continue to perfect it and let you know if I come up with new ingredients. 

Broth ingredients:

8 cups vegetable broth

3 shallots peeled and halved

2 leeks cleaned and chopped

8-10 cloves of garlic peeled and left whole

2 inches of ginger peeled and cut into about 6 chunks

4 cups dried Shitake mushrooms

1 cup carrots chopped

3 bay leaves

1 handful of basil, stems included

1 handful of cilantro, stems included

6 tbs soy sauce

1 tbs rice wine vinegar

1 tsp Hoison sauce

1 tbs sweet chili sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tbs maple syrup

Topping ingredients:

1 cup basil chopped

1/2 cup cilantro chopped

1 cup beans sprouts

1/4 cup green onion chopped

2 cups cabbage chopped and steamed

3-4 cup of cooked brown rice noodles

In a large pot combine all broth ingredients. Bring to boil and reduce to simmer. Cover the broth and let it simmer for at least 2 hours.

When broth is done cooking strain all vegetables and return the broth to the pot. In another pot cook the noodles. In a third pot steam cabbage for about 5 minutes and set aside.

Once everything is cooked it is time to assemble. Start by putting noodles in your bowl with desired amount of basil, cilantro, bean sprouts, green onion and cabbage. Ladle over your Thai broth and then it is ready to serve.

Yield 4-6 servings