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Out of nowhere, I've been struck by a craving for something along the lines of a chicken and corn soup. This craving confuses me, as I don't recall ever having that dish in my life - but nevertheless, I've been wanting to do my own take on this (originally Chinese) recipe.
The jackfruit in this dish, texture wise, ends up being somewhere between shredded chicken and rice noodles, but it's really there for nutrition. Subbing jackfruit into this soup makes the recipe not only vegan, but means it does a better job of nursing you back to health. As young green jackfruit is full of vitamin C - it provides way more benefits than the traditional version of this dish. Mix that in with ginger, garlic, turmeric, chilli and vegetables and you'll be basically healed of what ails you by the time you finish your first bowl.
JACKFRUIT AND CORN SOUP
INGREDIENTS
3 cans of young, green jackfruit (should have a drained weight of around 280g each - can be found at asian supermarkets)
3 stalks of celery (diced finely, keep the leaves for garnish)
2 stalks spring onion (diced finely)
1 onion (diced finely)
1 can of creamed corn
1 can of corn kernels
Juice of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons minced ginger
2 tablespoons minced garlic
6 chicken style stock cubes (in Australia, Massel's and Australia's Own Organics are vegan and everywhere)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1.5 teaspoons chilli powder
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
METHOD
Pour the jackfruit pieces into a sieve and rinse thoroughly. Chop the core off the jackfruit pieces before squeezing the brine out of the flesh (this process also removes the seeds). Rinse again and squeeze as much liquid out of the jackfruit flesh as possible before setting aside.
In a large pot, place a tablespoon of oil on heat and add in the onion, celery and corn kernels, fry for 3-5 minutes before adding in prepared jackfruit. Cook for 3-5 more minutes before adding in garlic and ginger, cooking and stirring through until fragrant.
Add in approximately 5 cups (1.25L) of boiling water, the stock cubes, chilli, turmeric and lemon juice - bring to a boil for 10 minutes before adding in soy sauce. At this point, taste and adjust before simmering for 10 more minutes. Serve immediately with chopped spring onions and celery leaves on top.
TIPS
Ensure you get as much brine out of the jackfruit before using it. Use only YOUNG, GREEN jackfruit in BRINE. Ripe jackfruit is sweet and for desserts.
For less salt, replace the soy sauce with tamari and use only 4 stock cubes (add ginger/garlic to compensate flavour)
