Shrimp and Bok Choy Noodle Bowl

Stumbled upon The Savory Notebook and was looking through the recipes when this caught my eye. It looks simple enough to cook, and is healthy as well.

It was actually the first time I tried using ginger in noodle soup, and it tasted great. The taste of the ginger was not overwhelming but there was a hint of it in the soup, a mixture of its fragrance and slight tang of the spice.

I bought the Chinese wheat noodles, a packet which is divided into 3 separate bunches. So, seeing that it was stated that it serves 3, I cooked 2 bunches, and in the end, it was the error of my poor judgement again. The husband and I could not finish the noodles. Most probably 2 bunches would be just right for 3 persons.

Another thing to note is the amount of salt to add. I think most sold off-the-shelf chicken stock is already salty enough so there is no need for any more additional salt. I didn't add any extra salt in mine and the soup still turned out just right.

Spicy Shrimp and Bok Choy Noodle Bowl

4 servings

Ingredients :

- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 inches ginger root, peeled and cut into very thin matchsticks or grated
- 1/2 pound shiitake mushroom caps (a couple of cups), sliced
- 1 medium bok choy, trimmed and cut into 3-inch pieces, then cut into sticks lengthwise
- Salt and pepper
- 1 quart chicken broth (I used 1 quart, i.e. 1 L, for 2 persons)
- 1 cup seafood stock, available on soup aisle or 1 cup clam juice (I omitted this)
- 1 1/2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1/2 pound vermicelli (thin spaghetti)
- 4 scallions, cut into 3-inch pieces, then shredded lengthwise into thin sticks

Directions :

1. Heat a medium soup pot over medium-high heat. Add vegetable oil, three turns of the pan, crushed red pepper flakes, garlic, ginger, mushrooms and bok choy, then season with salt and pepper.

2. Add chicken broth and seafood stock or clam juice. Put a lid on the pot and bring soup to a boil.

3. Add shrimp and noodles and cook for three minutes. Add in scallions and cook two minutes, then turn off soup and let it sit 2-3 minutes more. Adjust salt to taste and serve.