Springtime Chicken Soup

If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm a bit of a foodie, both in the high-end gourmet restaurant foodie sort and the experiment with a wide variety of cooking at home foodie sort. This certainly contributes of my extra pounds I've mentioned previously. I don't have the energy or willpower to keep up an exercise routine, so my love of food is a definite problem. One of these days I will work on that... the exercise regime, not the love of good food.

So this evenings meal is a simple, lovely, light chicken soup. Perfect for spring weather. It has a bit of an Asian flare to it. It's also filling enough to be dinner.

Springtime Chicken Soup


1 red bell pepper, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 cup julienned carrots
1/2 medium-sized yellow onion, also cut into bite-sized pieces 
1 tablespoon canola oil
4 cups chicken stock
Large slices of fresh ginger to taste (I used two 1 inch in diameter slices, but didn't think it was gingery enough. Next time I will double that.)
Lemongrass to taste (Again, I will double what I used today next time. I used about 1 tablespoon of pre-ground lemongrass, not fresh. Fresh would be better, I'm sure. The store just didn't have any.)
2 cups water
1 small bundle Udon noodles
2 cups cooked diced or shredded chicken
1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
1/2 cup diced green onions
1 peeled, seeded, and diced tomato


Lightly saute the bell pepper, carrots, and onion in the oil for about three minutes. Add the four cups of chicken stock, ginger, and lemongrass. Simmer for ten minutes. Add water as needed. If the soup doesn't have the desired amount of liquid, add more. Add Udon noodles, cook until done. Add chicken, cilantro, green onions and tomato. Cook another couple of minutes until heated through. And VOILA! Delicious springtime soup. Serve with a little bread or some egg rolls. Good stuff.