This is a simple soup full of flavour and not spicy - just some heat from the white pepper - I love white pepper, it’s got a warmth that black pepper doesn’t.
If you don’t have ground white pepper, well, please go and buy some!
It’s the most commonly used pepper I believe in Thai cooking (prik Thai, or Thai pepper, refers to white pepper) and just adds a peppery warmth to the dish.
This dish has cooked rice added at the end, so do do make that first - it’s so annoying when you don’t realise a recipe uses something that you need to cook first.
Although if you’re making this soup as part of a meal with more dishes, I’d leave the rice out as you’ll be having rice separately I imagine and don’t need more here too.
Quantities are quite vague, you can’t really go wrong, so use what looks like it’s going to be enough for you.
I made enough for two small-ish bowls but it was so good I ate it all myself.
You’ll need:
cooking oil
a few spring onions, sliced
1-2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
water - as much as you think makes the amount of soup you want, perhaps 1/2 litre
1 chicken Knorr stock cube
a handful, perhaps 125g or so, pork mince
1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
a slosh of light soy sauce
extra firm tofu - just a few slices cut into cubes
some cabbage, sliced
fish sauce
cooked rice
a handful of spinach leaves (optional, I just added these because I had a bag in the fridge that needed using)
fresh coriander leaves to serve (if liked)
Get all the ingredients ready so everything’s to hand as the soup doesn’t take long to cook.
Chop and slice everything and scrunch the pork mince with the white pepper and the soy sauce.
Put a big pan over a medium heat with a couple of teaspoons of cooking oil - I use about 20 sprays of a coconut oil spray - and cook the spring onions and garlic for a few seconds until sizzling and smelling amazing.
Add a little water to stop it sticking and stir, then add the remainder of the water, crumble in the stock cube and bring to a simmer.
Then just take little pieces of the pork and drop in - you can just drop in as they are or make into little balls if you prefer. Once all the pork is in the water, put a lid on the pan and simmer for 4-5 minutes.
Next in goes the tofu pieces and simmer again, covered, for another 5 minutes.
Add the cabbage leaves and simmer, uncovered, for another couple of minutes, then add a slosh of fish sauce and a big spoonful of cooked rice.
Stir and add the spinach if using and remove from heat - stirring to wilt in the spinach.
Serve with fresh coriander leaves, if liked.
This is so simple and so much tastier than it looks or sounds
I’ve eaten it for dinner now two days in a row and might have it again today - as I’ve still pork mince and tofu in the fridge, although I’ve just had an idea for a stir fry kind of version that I might play with later instead.
And I did …. and it didn’t really work! I love playing with recipes and food and nope, not everything works. This soup needs the lovely broth to bring it all together.
I hope you love it too.
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