Hot Pot Soup

Hot Pot Soup.

Food Blogging Marathon from 2/9/2013 to 30/9/2013. Each day a new alphabet. 4 categories. 

Regional Food, 

Baked Dishes, 

International Flavors / Fusion flavors, 

Street Food / Condiments / Misc / Recipe less Posts on Food

Today's alphabet for the Food Blogging Marathon # 32 is H and  I made this Hot Pot Soup. This is a soup I made after watching some cookery show on TV. Of course it was one of those foreign shows that had lots of meat and many ingredients that were not available to me in my small town. But I thought if I make something like this with whatever I have on hand, will it taste good. So my experiments started with making soups with different vegetables and basics. Finally I came to an understanding that with very few basics one can make delicious soup.
Few years back we were having only soups and steamed vegetables for dinner, the entire month of 'SHRAVAN'. Not for any religious reasons but just like that. 
So I made different soups everyday and steamed any available vegetables and made a nice dip/sauce for the veggies. I personally don't like tomato sauce so I did a lot of experimental sauces too. 
This soup is hot and the pot too is hot. Not only fire hot but sometimes even chilly hot.
It is a very forgiving soup. Add whatever you have on hand, leave anything that is not available, substitute some vegetable, herb for the other and yet it tastes good. When I made this soup I had these vegetables.

Ingredients: 

1 large onion
2 carrots
4 to 5 inch piece of doodhi/lauki/ash gourd
2 tblsp moog/moong dal washed
5-6 garlic, no need to peel
10-12 black pepper corns
3-4 cloves
3-4 small pieces of cinamon
2 sprigs of thyme (optional)
1 tblsp oil/butter

In a deep vessel  add all the ingredients and 8 cups of water and let it come to boil. Cover and simmer for 15 -20 minutes or till all the vegetables are soft. Cool. Strain, do not discard the water and puree the vegetables in a blender and strain. Add the reserved water in which the vegetables were boiled to the                                                               pureed vegetables.

Ingredients for the crunch in the soup:

1/2 cup corn kernels

1/2 cup sprouts with the pulses, I have used green moog/moong

1 tblsp julienne strips of ginger

grated cheese (optional)

Salt to taste

Now in another vessel heat oil/butter till lukewarm.  Add corn, sprouts and ginger and stir fry till corns start bursting.

 Add the pureed vegetables and let it come to a boil. Add salt to taste and simmer for 2 minutes. 

Pour in big mugs and sprinkle grated cheese if you like. Garnish with coriander leaf or parsley leaf or any other fresh herb. Serve hot. 
If you like your soup smooth you can omit the corn and sprouts and add ginger while boiling the vegetables. 
You can top the soup with a spoon of cream if you wish.

This is my recipe in Miscellaneous.