Consuming the Bog

Swamp Soup goes to Thailand

Can you believe January is finally over? I don’t know about you, but soup carried me through the month - literally, physically, and emotionally. You can’t doomscroll or drown in despair when you’re cooking am I right??

I partook in an inaugural rendition of Wet January - a brave opposition to Dry January. Except the wet came from SOUP rather than LIQUOR (though tbh if there ever was a month to turn to liquor, this January was it). I digress. I always have a lot of soup, but this month I had it around 60 times. I hope you had your fair share of soup, too.

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Today’s soup is loosely related to Meredith Hayden’s viral swamp soup - though colour and presence of rice is basically where the similarities end - mine leans more Thai and herby. Let’s call mine bog soup (or lagoon soup, which sounds nicer). The magic really lies in the green concotion that we make by blending together a boat load of super fragrant herbs and aromatics. This wonder-potion works well as a sauce on other things, by the way. More on that later.

As always: the more powerful your blender, the smoother the outcome. Since I’m still not sponsored by my trusted blender brand of 10 years (to be fair I haven’t reached out either) I’m not going to shout them out for free, but here’s a hint: it starts with a V and ends with an X.

Ingredients

• 1.5 litres (6 cups) chicken or veggie stock

• 2 large handfuls baby spinach

• 2 cups cooked white rice

• 1 large bundle coriander (cilantro)

• 1 generous knob ginger

• 1/2 a lemongrass stalk, finely diced

• 4 kaffir lime leaves, sliced

• 2 garlic cloves

• 1 jalapeño, end cut off (or less, if you aren’t a huge spice lover)

• A splash of fish sauce

Instructions

1. Bring the chicken/veggie stock to a gentle boil in a medium pot, then reduce to a simmer

2. Drop in the baby spinach and simmer til wilted - a minute or so should be enough. Fish out the wilted leaves with tongs and transfer them to your blender and set aside to cool a bit.

3. Now add the cooked rice to the stock and let simmer for 10–15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. To the blender with the spinach, add the cilantro, ginger, garlic, lemongrass, jalapeno, cilantro, a generous knob of ginger, garlic cloves, lemongrass, kaffir leaves, and 1 jalapeño (use less if you prefer mild). Add a splash of cold water, fish sauce, and a pinch of salt, then blend until smooth. The lemongrass and kaffir leaves will prove challenging to most blenders, add more water as needed to help expedite the process.

5. Once the rice has softened and the broth has thickened, stir in a few spoonfuls of the green purée, taste, and add as much as you like. Let the soup simmer away for another 2–3 minutes to let the flavours meld and marry. Season to taste with more fish sauce (or salt) and a squeeze of fresh lime! If you dare, I recommend drizzling a spoonful of chili crisp on top.

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Ending today’s dispatch with this beautiful illustration by Jessica Seaman!!! Minneapolis is my birthplace and my mother’s home so I hold the Twin Cities (and Minnesota as a whole), near and dear.

via Jessica Seaman

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might I suggest… Swamp & Bog?