New Year’s Soup
Friday, January 28th, 2005Written by Andromeda
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What better way to start off the New Year than having New Year’s Soup.
NEW YEAR’S SOUP
The elaborate New Year’s Day Celebration brunch starts with a tiny glass of spiced warm sake, -toso. Then, this New Year’s soup, O-zoni, and other festive dishes are served.
Serves Four
Ingredients
4 dried shitake mushrooms
300g/11oz salmon fillet, skin on, scaled
30mg/2 tbsp sake
50g/2oz satoimo or Jerusalem artichokes
50g/2oz daikon, peeled
50g/2oz carrots, peeled
4 spring onions (scallions), white part only, trimmed
4 mitsuba sprigs, root part removed
1 yuzu or lime
4 large raw tiger prawns (shrimp), peeled, but with tails left on
30ml/2tbsp shoyu
8 canned gingko nuts (optional)
8 mochi slices
salt
1. First, make the soup stock. Soak the dried shitake overnight in 1 litre/1 3/4 pints/4 cups cold water. Remove the softened shiitake and pour the water into a pan. Bring to the boil, add the chicken bones, then reduce the heat to medium. Skim frequently to remove scum. After 20 minutes, reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 30 minutes or until the liquid has reduced by a third. Strain the stock into another pan.
2. Chop the chicken and salmon into small bitesize cubes. Par-boil them both in boiling water with 15ml/1 tbsp sake for 1 minute. Drain and wash off the scum under cold water.
3. Scrub the satoimo or artichokes with a hard brush, and thickly peel. Put in a pan and add enough water to cover. Add a pinch of salt and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to medium, cook for 15 minutes and drain. Rinse the satoimo (to remove the sticky juice) or artichokes under running water. Wipe gently with kitchen paper. Cut the satoimo or artichokes, daikon and carrots into 1cm/ 1/2 in cubes.
4. Remove and discard the stalks from the soaked shitake, and slice the caps thinly. chop the white part of the spring onions into 2.5cm/1 in lengths.
5. Put the mitsuba sprigs into a sieve and pour hot water over them. Divide the leaf and stalk parts. Take a stalk and fold it into two, then tie it in the middle to make a bow. Make four bows.
6. Cut the yuzu or lime into four 3mm/ 1/8in thick round slices. Hollow out the inside to make rings of peel.
7. Add the remaining sake to the soup stock and bring to the boil. Add the daikon, carrot and shitake, then reduce the heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes.
8. Put the prawns, satoimo or artichokes, spring onions, chicken and salmon into the pan. Wait for 5 minutes, then add the shoyu. Reduce the heat to low and add the gingko nuts, if using.
9. Cut the mochi in half crossways. Toast under a moderate preheated grill (broiler). Turn every minute until both sides are golden and the pieces have started to swell like a balloon; this will take about 5 minutes.
10. Quickly place the toasted mochi in individual soup bowls and pour the hot soup over the top. Arrange a mitsuba leaf in the centre of eqach bowl, put a yuzu or lime ring on top, and lay a mitsuba bow across. Serve immediately.
