Well, we are all still sicker than sick around here, but I’ve had this post rattling around in my drafts for a couple of weeks, so I thought I may as well post it… and incidentally introduce you to a couple of fabulous Gluten-Free bloggers… Seamaiden, at The Book Of Yum, and Karen, at Only Sometimes Clever.
Seamaiden, at The Book Of Yum, runs a wonderful Gluten-Free blog that I am just getting to know and is hosting an “Adopt A Gluten-Free Blogger” web event this week to get everybody cooking and swapping those favorite recipes. I’m really looking forward to taking a closer look at her recipe archives once we’re feeling better around here!
And… in honor of our week of horrific hacking and coughing, I’m going to share with you our family’s favorite new twist on chicken soup. It comes from one of my absolute favorite Gluten-Free bloggers who I am officially adopting for this event, Karen, at Only Sometimes Clever. Karen is a wealth of gluten-free know-how and is either the author or inspiration of many of our family’s favorite recipes. I love her creativity with her recipes and she is wonderful about answering questions if you’re just getting started. Whenever I find myself in a gluten-free menu rut, I head over to Karen’s to see what she’s been up to and I’m never disappointed. I’ll always have a soft spot for Karen… her sugar cookie recipe was my very first success story in my adventures in gluten-free baking. (I nearly cried in relief after those cookies came out of the oven… a gluten-free recipe that actually worked!) So here you have it… yet another gem from Karen:
Korean Chicken Noodle Soup (From Karen at Only Sometimes Clever)
This soup has been a wonderful addition to our family’s meal rotation! It is easy to prepare, cost-effective, wonderful tasting, and a hit with our very picky five-year-old. The accolades in our house just don’t get any better than that! For Karen’s original recipe, please click on the recipe title above the photo or on this link here.
The ‘noodles’ are a Korean pasta known by a number of names: rice cakes, ddeok guk ddeok, rice ovalettes, dduckgook, duk-guk, and many more. They are something I would have likely never been brave enough to try on my own, but boy would we have missed out! They are made from sweet rice flour and the oval pads cook to a soft and pleasingly chewy texture. Jacqui, The Queen of Dinner-time Doddling, snarfs them down as if she fears any moment I will yank them from her plate… which left me stunned and exceptionally pleased! I found them at our local Asian market in a large two-pound bag for $2.39 and we had a lunch and two dinners for three out of the recipe. I picked up the baby bok choy at the Asian market too… a large 1.5 lb pack for $0.79 verses $5.98 for the same amount at our local specialty grocer’s.
Now, I’ll tell you how I modified the recipe to suit our family’s tastes…
I did everything exactly as Karen suggests in her recipe with a few exceptions: 1) I skipped the Nori 2) I used Pacific Foods Chicken Broth for the base. 3) Our family loves garlic, so I went on the heavy side with the addition of garlic to the soup, and 4) I added some sea salt to taste.
I skipped the Nori (because my family members are not seafood fans) but I’m sure it’s a fabulous add if seafood is your thing! I used the Pacific Foods brand chicken broth for the stock because I haven’t been able to locate any bullion base in my area that is both gluten-free and casein-free. I did find a version of the “Chicken Better Than Bullion” that Karen mentioned in her post, but the only one I found, while gluten-free, had whey in it. So looks like I’m stuck with either the giant cartons of broth or making my own stock for now.
The soup as prepared for our family has a wonderful garlicky chicken taste that blends nicely with the unique texture of the noodles. An added plus: Jacqui has declared that she loves bok choy… score one for vegetables! Thank you Karen, for helping us transform our chicken noodle soup from ho-hum to heavenly! And thank you, Seamaiden, for this wonderful event to meet other gluten-free bloggers and discover some great new recipes.
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I found your site on Technorati and read a few of your other posts. Keep up the good work. I just added your RSS feed to my Google News Reader. Looking forward to reading more from you.
Tom
March 8th, 2008 at 7:20 am
Looks yummy. I will have to run this by my husband the cook!
March 8th, 2008 at 4:46 pm
Still no better? I will hold off on the virtual chicken soup forthwith and start vibing this one, sounds divine. Big hugs, you xxxxxx
March 8th, 2008 at 10:21 pm
My kids are big noodle eaters. I’m going to try those. Still praying for you and family.
Way to go Jacqui on the bok choy! I’ve never tried it myself. Olivia will try it if Jacqui approves.
Maybe Jaccqui would like to visit one of Liv’s little friends at http://thejellybeanpalace.blogspot.com/
She’s a sweet little girl and there are links to great online games there. Tell her we said hello!
March 9th, 2008 at 12:56 am
Uhhh…yummy! Adding this to our repertoire!
BTW…check out Penzeys.com and search for soup bases. I checked out the labeling and unless I’m missing something…GFCF! I love them and a little goes a long way. I brought back Beef & Veggie from Boston and I have to pace myself so I don’t use it all right away! And the rest of their spices are delish, too!
March 9th, 2008 at 3:18 pm
I really hope you are feeling better!
March 10th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
[…] Childlife wrote a fantastic post today on “Gluten-Free Gems - Korean Chicken Noodle Soup (From Karen at Only …”Here’s ONLY a quick extractI’ll always have a soft spot for Karen… her sugar cookie recipe was my very first success story in my adventures in gluten-free baking. (I nearly cried in relief after those cookies came out of the oven… a gluten-free recipe that … […]
March 11th, 2008 at 11:43 pm
[…] Childlife from In The Life Of A Child adopted Karen from Only Sometimes Clever and blogged about her amazing Korean Chicken Noodle Soup recipe. Love those mochi […]
March 13th, 2008 at 6:35 am
Ohh I have a book that I need to share with you…It’s a cookbook that contains all kinds of gluten free recipes, including pizza dough!!! I was excited, but I don’t remember the name of it now…I think it’s the Red Mill company or something…
March 13th, 2008 at 6:57 am
Hi! So glad I found your blog and this post - I am going to send my MIL the link for that blog as she’s celiac - thanks!
March 13th, 2008 at 2:59 pm