Fish and kale laksa soup
Courtesy of Nicola Galloway
“Soup for dinner is not unusual in our house. I think it is the one-pot-meal aspect I love so much, plus the layering of flavours and textures. Although this laksa can be eaten all year round, it is particularly good as the weather cools down. The aim with this dish is a balance of flavours – salty, sour, sweet and spicy. Check the flavour before serving, and adjust as needed to find the perfect balance.”
Ingredients
6 cups fish or vegetable stock
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp fish sauce or extra soy sauce
3cm knob of fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 red chilli, chopped (optional)
1 tsp finely grated palm sugar or honey
approx. 300g pumpkin, cut into 2cm cubes
500g white fish fillets, cut into 2cm cubes OR firm tofu, cut into 2cm cubes
4-5 kale leaves or small head of broccoli, roughly chopped
400ml coconut milk
150g rice noodles
juice of 1 lime + extra lime wedges to serve
chopped coriander leaves
Method
- In a large saucepan, combine the stock, soy sauce, fish sauce, ginger, turmeric, chilli and palm sugar. Bring to the boil, add the pumpkin and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add the fish or tofu, kale, coconut milk and noodles. Bring back to a gentle simmer and continue to cook for a further 8-10 minutes until the fish and kale are tender. Squeeze in the lime juice and check the flavour, adding extra fish sauce, lime juice and/or palm sugar if needed to get the perfect balance of salty, sour and sweet.
- Serve soup hot with wedges of lime and chopped coriander.
Nicola Galloway is an award-winning food writer, culinary tutor and author of Homegrown Kitchen cookbook. Find more recipes at www.homegrown-kitchen.co.nz
