Long Soup Recipe

Name: Long Soup Recipe
Prep time: 6 min
Cook time: 9 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1 tbsp peanut oil; 1 tbsp ginger (minced); 1 tbsp garlic (minced); ½ lb shrimp (peeled, deveined); 1 tsp rice vinegar; ¼ lb shiitake mushroom (fresh); 4 wood ear mushroom; 1 tsp chili sesame oil (optional); ¼ tsp salt; ½ tsp ground black peppercorn; ½ tsp ground white pepper; 2 tbsp soy sauce (low sodium); 4 green onion (chopped); 4 cup vegetable stock or water; 1 bunch baby Bok choy; 1 pack noodle (yellow or egg); 2 tbsp cornstarch

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Long Soup Recipe is wholesome with shrimp and Bok choy. You will love its earthy flavor from shiitake and wood ear mushrooms. This delicious comforting soup can be put together in less than 15 minutes, making it so quick and easy to make even on weeknights!

One of my personal joys of food blogging is that I am constantly learning. While the recipes and ingredients are at the heart of this blog, what I also enjoy is the romance of the dish. What do I mean by romance? If you think about it, this Long Soup Recipe that you’re currently savoring has a history. It could be a grandmother’s recipe from a home country that has been adapted; it could be an ingredient, such as the tomato or chili, that has traversed the globe and been adopted by virtually every culture, or it could be a grain that has been rediscovered, such as “ancient grains”. Each has a history and a compelling story, and today’s Long Soup recipe is no different.

Origin of soups:

Let’s begin with what a soup is. Merriam Webster defines soup as “ a liquid food with a meat, fish, or vegetable stock as a base and often containing pieces of solid food.” The history of soup goes back to prehistory, when humans first learned to use mud or clay pots, which was somewhere around 20,000 BCE (Before Common Era). Interestingly, the first recorded soup traces back to ancient Mesopotamia and was hippopotamus!

We’ve obviously come a long way since then, but the basic process remains the same. That said, one of the reasons soups are perennially popular is because they are for the most part easier and faster to make, while at the same time carry a significant nutritional benefit.

The English noun “soup” comes from French “soupe”, which in turn is derived from the Latin “suppa”. While soups have always been around, the first documented commercial venture involving soups was in 16^th century France. It is, therefore, unsurprising that the first codification of soups also began in France.

It was none other than the famous French chef and restaurateur Georges Auguste Escoffier, who not only codified the 5 mother sauces, but also classified the original 7 types of soup, which were: clear soup, purées, coulis, bisques, velouté, cream soup, special soup, vegetable soup, and national soup/foreign soup. Of course, times change, and as more cuisines were explored, discovered, or rediscovered, the classification has also evolved considerably. The most accepted classification of soups comes from Campbells.

Who knew that a dish as accessible, commonplace, and humble as the soup had such a rich history? And that’s just the story of the generic soup. Each soup such as the Tom Yum or Soupe au Pistou carry their own extremely interesting lineage and story.

What is Long Soup Recipe?

So, its not surprising then that the Long Soup Recipe that I’m describing below also has its own story. First of all, where did that name come from. If there’s a Long Soup, is there a Short Soup? Well, yes there is and there’s even a combination soup. To be candid, the Short Soup refers to noodle-less Won Ton soup and the Long Soup, we would more commonly call Noodle Soup.

Interestingly, the most common application of this distinction is in Australia. When you visit many Asian and Southeast Asian countries, what you get is the won ton in a noodle soup or dry noodles served with a won ton soup. I had Long Soup in Sydney, and this may well surprise you, it is by far the best noodle soup dish I’ve had. What made it unique for me was that the owner used a mushroom and vegetable-based soup stock, while the shrimp was an add-on.

Most noodle soup dishes that I’ve had have been made with chicken broth, and they taste wonderful. But this Long Soup recipe relies on the earthy combination of wood ear and shiitake flavor, embellished with Bok choy (or you can use Chinese cabbage) to create the soup base. That’s what makes it extremely unique and gives the Long Soup recipe a more earthy rather than meaty flavor.

While that restaurant in Sydney introduced me to the Long Soup, I must admit that over the years, I have recreated a few vegetable combinations, and they all taste wonderful! But there’s something distinctive and exceptional in this combination, served with egg noodles.

Benefits of soups:

Body fluids: It is basically your daily dose of fluids. While 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 probably most importantly, preventing or reducing overheating.
Retains nutrition: Given that one can make soups from virtually anything, the remarkable thing about soups is that they preserve the nutritional value of whatever is cooked in them, making them an incredibly rich and tasty source of vitamins, minerals, and proteins.
Weight management: Since soups are so fluid-rich, they give one a sense of fullness, thus preventing a person from 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 the Long Soup recipe?

You could substitute shrimp with chicken, use Chinese cabbage if you do not have Bok choy, and add any type of mushrooms. Shrimp or chicken stock can be used in this recipe for the base of the Long Soup.

Can you overcook shrimp in the soup?

Overcooking shrimp makes them tough and rubbery. This why I have precooked the shrimp and added them at the end of the cooking process. Shrimp when cooked for 3-5 minutes will turn from gray to pinkish orange and become opaque.

If you’ve tried this recipe or have questions, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to share (below) your thoughts, comments, or any questions that you might have. And if you like my recipes, you could subscribe to my mailing list for the latest recipes that will be delivered straight to your inbox. From my pen to your table, Bon Appetit!

Ingredients:

Oil: Peanut oil and a drizzle of chili sesame oil
Aromatics: Ginger and garlic
Protein: Shrimp – chicken or any meat or tofu
Veggies: Bok choy – Chinese cabbage can be substituted
Mushrooms: Wood ear and shiitake
Thickener: Cornstarch slurry
Noodles: Egg noodles – feel free to use any soup noodles

How to make Long Soup using my recipe:

Prepare the ingredients. Peel and devein the shrimp, chop the Bok choy and mince the ginger and garlic. Mix the shrimp with rice vinegar, ground white peppercorn and salt.

prepare the ingredients

2. Heat the wok with the peanut oil. Add the ginger and garlic and shrimp. Sauté on high heat for 2 minutes. Toss in the sliced shiitake mushrooms and sauté for another minute. Remove the shrimp and keep aside.

shrimp and shiitake in a wok

3. Add the homemade vegetable stock or water to the wok and the wood ear and Bok choy. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Then, add soy sauce and the cornstarch slurry that is made with cornstarch mixed with 1-2 tablespoons of water. Cook for 2 minutes and turn off the heat. Add the precooked shrimp to the Long Soup.

shiitake in vegetable stock with bok choy

4. Garnish the Long Soup with green onion and ladle over cooked noodles. Drizzle some chili sesame oil on top and serve hot.

long soup recipe in a bowl with green onions

Tips:

Cornstarch in the cornstarch slurry will settle to the bottom if made beforehand. You could make the slurry and then add it right away or stir it before adding, if made beforehand.
If using dried shiitake mushrooms, then soak them in boiling water for 30 minutes before slicing and adding them to the Long Soup.