Ten days before Christmas eve, our manager announced that our boss decided to close the restaurant. He just moved his take out sushi business there.
We cleaned up a bit on our last day. My manager gave me a few things that the owner didn't want. The items included canned problano peppers.
I have used problano peppers a few times before but I used fresh ones. They are nice grilled then turned into a sauce.
I wanted to make use of the canned ones, but a sauce would have to go onto something so I decided on a soup. These peppers are not spicy to people that like spice. I know people that would find it spicy, but they are totally mild.
This soup is easy and fast, inspired by Mexican flavors. It's good if you have soup broth on hand to add or store bought. I always make a basic broth and keep jars in the fridge.
My basic vegetable broth is onion, carrot, celery, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns and parsley. I just sear them in an oiled pan then cover with water and add salt. Boil for 40 minutes to an hour. Pour into a sieve and throw the veggies or keep them if you want. I throw them. The flavour is in the broth.
If you don't put vegetable broth, this will still taste good if you add water and adjust the seasonings.
The canned problanos are slightly acidic so corn is a perfect pair to add a little sweetness and balance the flavours. I use frozen corn. We don't have fresh corn here right now.
Before using the leeks wash thoroughly in case of sand. I was surprised this didn't have any sand.
Problano pepper and corn soup
430 g problano peppers
50g shallots
100 g onion
240 g potato
25 g garlic
Fresh chili if desired (I used 2 jalapenos)
320 g leek
350 g corn
1/4 cup tablespoons cilantro stems and leaves minced (I didn't have any)
1 1/2 litre vegetable broth
250 g cooking cream or milk
Juice of a lime
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
Salt and pepper to taste
Saute the onions and leeks then add the garlic, potatoes and jalapenos.
Add seasonings, stir and cook for a while until everything is tender.
Add the canned problano peppers.
Add the soup broth.
I like to add the corn near the end to keep the flavors from leaking out through cooking. I don't think it makes that much difference though.
Blend the soup either with a hand blender or a blender. I used a blender to get a smooth soup. I wanted to bind all of the flavors together.
I wanted the soup to be a light lunch rather than a starter. For this I made a garnish which would add bulk and extra flavor. I made some mini tortillas and a fresh salsa.
I made the tortillas to hold the salsa on the soup so it didn't sink.
Tortillas were made with corn masa and water. I just use the same amount of water to flour with a pinch of salt. Roll tiny little balls and flatten whatever way you can. Once they're flat, put them hot a hot pan and flip them when they are browned.
If you don't want to do this you could use store bought tortillas and cut them into a small size. I just happened to have a big bag of tortilla flour and a tortilla press.
The salsa was a quick and simple blend of corn, chopped tomato, chopped jalapeno, red onion and lime juice. I didn't have cilantro and didn't feel like going to the store so I didn't use it. If I had it I would have added it to the soup and the salsa. I also would have added chopped avocado to the toppings but they are not very good lately. Lucky people with an avocado tree in the yard. I can't imagine how incredible that would be.
For an extra garnish I made a cashew cream from 1 cup soaked cashews. I blended them until smooth with the addition of 1 tablespoon cider vinegar, salt and 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast.
I made sure to have extra mini tortillas to accompany the soup. They were topped with the rest of the salsa. I love to squeeze lime on Mexican food and also Asian food, so that is what I did. It's a must in my opinion.
I don't know if you would actually find this on a Mexican table but it had the flavours in it that reminded me of Mexico. I wouldn't mind being on a beach somewhere on their shores right now. It's cold and ugly here. All I want to do is stay indoors and have a bowl of soup. I guess I'm doing it.
Thank you for stopping by and have a great day.