Long Soup is a wholesome broth brimming with tender shrimp that complements the vegetables. Vegetable stock is infused with chili-garlic paste and ginger, lending an aromatic and slightly spicy flavor profile. Fresh shiitake and wood ear mushrooms, along with lush green bok choy, add depth and warmth to this dish. Serve on cooked buckwheat soba noodles for extra heartiness, and enjoy this elegant soup that is comforting in every bowl!
One of the joys of food blogging is that I am constantly learning. While the recipes and ingredients are at the heart of this blog, I also enjoy the romance of the dish. What do I mean by romance? If you think about it, this recipe has a history. It could be a grandmother’s recipe from a home country that has been adapted or an ingredient, such as tomato or chili, that has traversed the globe and been adopted by virtually every culture. Sometimes, it could even be a grain that has been rediscovered, such as “ancient grains.” Each has a history and a compelling story, and this Long Soup recipe is no different.
Origin:
Merriam-Webster defines soup as “ a liquid food with meat, fish, or vegetable stock as a base and often containing pieces of solid food.” Humans first learned to use mud or clay pots in prehistory, around 20,000 BCE (Before the Common Era). Interestingly, the first recorded soup dates back to ancient Mesopotamia!
We’ve come a long way, but the basic process remains similar. That said, one of the reasons they are perennially popular is that they are generally easier and faster to make while providing a significant nutritional benefit.
The English noun “soup” comes from the French “soupe,” which in turn is derived from the Latin “suppa.” While they have always been around, the first documented commercial venture involving soups was in 16th-century France. It is, therefore, unsurprising that its first codification also began in France.
The famous French chef and restaurateur Georges Auguste Escoffier codified the five mother sauces and classified the original seven types of soup: clear, purées, coulis, bisques, velouté, cream, special, vegetable, and national /foreign soup. Times change, and as more cuisines are explored, discovered, or rediscovered, the classification has also evolved considerably. The most accepted classification comes from Campbell.
Who knew that a dish as accessible, commonplace, and humble as soup had such a rich history? Each soup, such as the Tom Yum or Provencal Vegetable Soup, has its own lineage and story.
What is Long Soup?
So, it’s not surprising that the Long Soup or Chinese noodle soup I’m describing below also has its own story. The Long Soup refers to a long-simmering broth with veggies, meat, and seasoning, while the Short Soup refers to noodle-less Won Ton soup.
Interestingly, the most common application of this distinction is in Australia. When you visit many Asian and Southeast Asian countries, you will find the wonton in a noodle soup or dry noodles served with a wonton soup. Long Soup consists of broth simmered with vegetables, meat or seafood, and seasonings for 1-2 hours. I have used a quicker method to make this dish.
My husband wanted to include this Long Soup on our regular menu, but I had not tasted it before. He savored it while living as a graduate student in Brisbane, Australia, and he introduced me to this comforting soup while on vacation in Sydney. This may surprise you, but it is by far the best noodle dish I’ve had. What made it unique for me was that the owner used a mushroom and vegetable-based stock, while the shrimp was an add-on.
Most noodle soup dishes I’ve tasted were made with chicken broth, and they were wonderful. But my recipe relies on the earthy combination of wood ear and shiitake flavor, embellished with Bok choy to create the base with a more earthy rather than meaty flavor. While that restaurant in Sydney introduced me to this dish, I must admit that over the years, I have recreated a few vegetable combinations, and they are all very tasty!
Health benefits:
- Body fluids: It is your daily dose of fluids. Calculating your body’s specific amount of daily fluids depends on a variety of factors, which vary from where you live (hot & dry to cold & wet), to your diet, to your lifestyle, to the type and intensity of exercise, and your body type. The general rule of thumb (according to the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine) is that men require about a liquid gallon (~3.7 liters) and women require 0.7 (~2.7 liters) liquid gallons daily. Given that our bodies are essentially 55% to 60% liquid, we need to hydrate to compensate for water loss through metabolism, breathing, and sweating. Water is also an important component of keeping your joints and tissues lubricated, digesting foods, keeping your skin healthy, and, most importantly, preventing or reducing overheating.
- Retains nutrition: Soups can be made from virtually anything, but they are remarkable in that they preserve the nutritional value of whatever is cooked in them. Thus, they are an incredibly rich and tasty source of vitamins, minerals, and proteins.
- Weight management: Because soups are so fluid-rich, they give one a sense of fullness, preventing overeating.
- Source of warmth or cold: Soups can be hot or cold, so they can be a wonderful source of warmth on a cold winter’s day or an equally fantastic source of cooling off on a hot summer’s day. There are very few foods that can do both.
Frequently Asked Questions:
- What are some substitutions for this recipe?
You could substitute shrimp for chicken, use Chinese cabbage instead of Bok choy, and add any type of mushroom. This recipe can also be made with shrimp or chicken stock.
2. How long do I have to simmer the Long Soup?
I used vegetable stock and cooked the shrimp in it, so I did not simmer or slow-cook the soup. If you wish to simmer the soup, remove the shrimp and add them at the end. You can use a slow cooker or simmer it in a pot. Either way, add the shrimp towards the end of the cooking process to prevent them from getting overcooked.
3. Can you overcook shrimp in the soup?
Overcooking shrimp makes them tough and rubbery. When cooked for 3-5 minutes, shrimp will turn from gray to pinkish orange and become opaque.
4. What other veggies can I add to this soup?
You can add carrots, peppers, celery, and spinach. If you use spinach, add it at the end of the cooking process.
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Ingredients:
- Oil: peanut oil
- Aromatics: ginger, shallot and chili-garlic paste
- Protein: shrimp (or use chicken or any meat or tofu)
- Veggies: bok choy (or use Chinese cabbage, carrots, peppers or spinach)
- Fungi: wood ear and shiitake mushrooms
- Thickener: cornstarch slurry
- Noodles: buckwheat soba noodles (or use any soup noodles or egg noodles)
- Sauce mixture: soy sauce and rice vinegar
- Stock: vegetable stock (or use seafood broth or chicken stock with a dash of fish sauce)
Here are the step-by-step instructions for making this dish. For the measurements, please refer to the recipe card below.
How to make the Long Soup:
- Heat the wok with the peanut oil. Add the ginger and the chili-garlic paste. Sauté on high heat for 1 minute. Add the shrimp and saute on high heat for 1-2 minutes. Season with salt and freshly milled white and black pepper.
2. Toss in the sliced shiitake mushrooms, wood ear, and bok choy. Sauté for a minute.
3. Add the vegetable stock and the sauce mixture (mix the rice vinegar with the soy sauce).
4. When the stock boils, add the cornstarch slurry (1 tbsp of cornstarch stirred with 1-2 tablespoons of cold water). Cook for 1 minute, then turn off the heat.
5. Garnish the soup with scallions and ladle over the cooked (per manufacturer’s instructions) buckwheat soba noodles.
Tips:
- Cornstarch in the slurry will settle to the bottom, so stir before adding it. If using the long slow-cook method, add the cornstarch slurry towards the end of the cooking process with the bok choy and the shrimp.
- If you use dried shiitake mushrooms, soak them in boiling water for 30 minutes before slicing them and adding them to the soup.
- Fresh shrimp will yield a delicate texture and flavor. If using frozen shrimp, please ensure that it is thawed properly.
- Rice vinegar helps balance the richness of the broth with its acidity, so add it towards the end, mixed with soy sauce.
- I have used homemade vegetable stock, which enhances the flavor of the Long Soup. If you use store-bought stock, pick a high-quality one.
Serving suggestion:
This wholesome Long Soup can be served with steamed rice, Green Onion Pancake, or Five-Spice Chicken Wings.
Storage:
Long Soup is not meant to be frozen but consumed fresh on the day it is cooked. But if you wish to make it ahead of time, prepare the veggies with the stock. Add the shrimp, cornstarch slurry, and bok choy before reheating and serving the Long Soup.
Other soups that you might like:
Long Soup
Equipment
- 1 Dutch oven or wok
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp peanut oil
- 1 tbsp ginger minced
- 2 tsp chili-garlic sauce
- 1 shallot chopped
- ½ lb shrimp peeled, deveined
- ¾ cup fresh shiitake mushroom julienne-cut
- 6 wood ear mushroom chopped
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground black peppercorn
- 1 tsp ground white pepper
- 3 cup vegetable stock
- 1 bunch Bok choy
- 1 tsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 pack buckwheat soba noodles
- 4 scallion chopped
Instructions
- Prepare the ingredients. Peel and devein the shrimp.
- Heat the Dutch oven or wok with the peanut oil. Add the ginger and the chili-garlic paste. Sauté on high heat for 1 minute. Add the shrimp and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Season with salt, and freshly-milled white and black pepper.
- Toss in the sliced shiitake mushrooms, wood ear, and bok choy. Sauté for a minute.
- Add the vegetable stock and the sauce mixture (made by mixing the rice vinegar with the soy sauce).
- Add the cornstarch slurry (1 tbsp of cornstarch stirred with 1-2 tablespoons of cold water) when the stock boils. Cook for 1 minute and turn off the heat.
- Garnish the soup with scallions and ladle over the cooked (per manufacturer's instructions) buckhweat soba noodles.
Notes
- If using cooked shrimp, add them after stirring in the cornstarch slurry.
- Do not overcook the shrimp while sautéing it. Partially cook the shrimp for 1-2 minutes, for it will get cooked once the stock boils. Overcooking the shrimp will make it tough and rubbery. Alternatively, sauté the shrimp, remove them, and add them at the end.
- If using dried shiitake mushrooms, soak them in boiling water for 30 minutes before slicing them and adding them to the soup.
- Fresh shrimp will yield a delicate texture and flavor. If using frozen shrimp, please ensure that it is thawed properly.
- Rice vinegar helps balance the richness of the broth with its acidity, so add it towards the end, mixed with soy sauce.
- I have used homemade vegetable stock, which enhances the flavor of the Long Soup. If using store-bought stock, pick a high-quality one.
Nutrition
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