Pozole (or posole)

I was wishing for the food and the weather of Mexico during this horrible snowstorm and thought of this soup. This is an experimental version with tempeh, not pork.

4 dried chile guanjillo
4 cloves garlic
1 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. cumin
1 C. hot water

1 package tempeh cut in 1/2 cubes
1/4 C. soy sauce
1 T chili garlic sauce
2 limes

1 medium onion
1 qt. vegetable broth
2 whole cloves


1 can hominy
1 can black beans

olive oil
salt and pepper

Optional:
3 cups shredded cabbage
cilantro
avocado, white onion, scallions, cheese, fried tortilla strips (I didn't do any of these)

Marinate the tempeh in the soy sauce, chili sauce and juice of 1 lime.


Remove the stems from the dried chilies and cover with hot water and soak. When the chilies are soft, blend with garlic clove and oregano. I added the cumin, but recommend against it.

In the soup pot, fry the marinating tempeh in a little olive oil until browned a little and heated through. Set the tempeh aside.

Cut the onion in half and take the outer onion of one of the halves before chopping. Chop the rest of the onion. Put the whole cloves through the onion rib.

Soften the chopped onion in a little more olive oil. Add the chili puree and the vegetable broth. Drain the hominy and black beans and add to the soup. Add the cloved onion. Bring to a low boil and simmer for 20 or 30 minutes, occasionally skimming the foam off. Salt and pepper to taste (probably a fair amount of pepper). Add the tempeh and simmer for another 20 minutes. Stir in the juice of a lime before serving.


For the first bowl I put the raw cabbage in the bowl and ladled the soup over it. Later for leftovers, I just added the cabbage in the pot. Either way is good. Garnish with the cilantro. At Pancho's, they serve with many of the garnishes on the side.

Verdict: Yummy, B+.

Credits: Vegan Represent Forums

Leftovers? Yes and the flavor develops overnight.

Notes: Next time, I will not use the cumin, and will probably find hotter chilies. Or just use two or three and add some fresh serrano or jalepeno.

Spicy Sweet Potato-Coconut Soup

When I added sweet potatoes to my online cart at Fresh Direct, the site recommended the Spicy Sweet Potato and Coconut Soup recipe. When I prepared it, I hated the color of the broth and was considering dumping it out until I though of blending it. Now I love it!!



Verdict: A
Credits: Real Simple magazine [via Fresh Direct]
Leftovers? Yes, though you might need to thin with a little water.

Notes: Instead of the one inch dice, I just slice the sweet potato into pretty thick pieces and then after five or ten minutes to heat them (because I baked them a day or two before usually) use the hand blender to blend the whole thing. There's sesame oil in the picture but I usually don't bother.

Spicy Chicken Soup

The only fresh vegetables in this recipe are the peppers and the green onions. All the canned food makes it fast to prepare.

1 chicken breast, diced
olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 poblano peppers, quartered and sliced
1 bunch green onions, sliced white and green parts
1 t. cumin

1 can corn
1 can black beans
1 can chicken stock
1 can diced tomatoes
1 7oz can chiptole peppers in adobo sauce

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan, add the chicken and brown. Add the garlic, peppers, white parts of the green onions and cumin and saute until the peppers are soft.

Drain and rinse the corn and black beans. Take 2 chipotle peppers from the can and dice. Add the corn, beans, chipotle peppers, chicken stock and tomatoes to the pot. Simmer for 15 minutes.

Serve with tortilla chips and sour cream. Or in a bread bowl. Top with a little cheese and the green part of the green onions.

Verdict: B, a reliable and spicy dish
Credits: Cooking Light Spicy Chicken Soup (subscription required)
Leftovers? Yes.

Notes: Fast and spicy with ingredients I am likely to have on hand. Except the chipotle in adobo sauce -- I need to find a use for the leftovers.

This is a thick soup, the original recipe uses 2 cans of stock. Also, I used more peppers. A diced fresh avocado would be good, too.