It’s official - my blood has turned into soup. There’s nothing more satisfying than a spicy bowl of noodle soup, and this one happens to be #vegan! Not the type of spicy that burns your tongue, but the one that make your nose run and lips burn a little - you know the kind? Most of the heat in this recipe comes from the Baklouti Chili infused olive oil from Evoolution, not from the dried red chilies, so if you’re not a huge fan of heat, replace the chili infused oil with basil infused oil instead (also found at Evoolution).
Makes 3-4 servings
Ingredients
8-10 dried red chilies
1/2 cup Baklouti Chili infused olive oil
15 cloves garlic
1 small red onion
1/3 cup cilantro stems
1 thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled
1 bunch of green onion, whites only
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp turmeric
2 carrots, sliced
2 cups broccoli, thinly sliced
1/4 cup peanuts
1 can (398 ml) coconut milk
3 cups vegetable broth or water
2 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs rice vinegar
1 tsp coconut or cane sugar
1 tbs vegan fish sauce (or regular fish sauce)
1 lime leaf
227 grams rice noodles, cooked according to package directions and rinsed in cold water
1 lime cut into quarters for serving
Directions
1. Submerge the dried chilies in boiling water and cover with a lid. Allow chilies to steep for 10 minutes, then strain the liquid and remove the seeds from the chilies. Set aside.
2. Put the oil into a small saucepan and add the garlic, onion, ginger, cilantro stems, and green onion whites. Bring up to a simmer over low heat and let it poach for 20 minutes. Strain the oil and set aside.
3. Add the oil poached ingredients to a food processor or blender along with the chilies, coriander, turmeric, and 3-4 tsps of the poaching oil. Blend until you have a chunky paste. If the paste is not blending well, add some more oil, 1 tsp at a time.
4. Heat a medium sized saucepan up over medium and add 1 tbs of the poaching oil. Once the oil is hot and shimmering, add the carrots, broccoli and peanuts. Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring consistently to prevent the peanuts from burning. Remove the vegetables and peanuts from the pan. The vegetables should still be quite crunchy.
5. In the same pan, add the paste and stir consistently for 1 minute. You do not need to add oil to the pan because the paste will release its own oil. Once the oil starts separating, add the coconut milk, vegetable broth or water, soy sauce, rice vinegar, vegan fish sauce, and the lime leaf. Once the soup begins to boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
6. To serve, divide the cooked rice noodles between 3 or 4 bowls. Top each bowl with soup, then with the sautéed vegetables. Serve immediately with fresh limes.
