Hi, Five Weeknight Dishers. It’s Krysten, former editor of this very newsletter, stepping in for Emily this week.
If we are what we eat, then I’m about 20 percent coffee and 80 percent soup — especially in winter. But the problem with soup is that you have to play the long game: It takes time to develop flavor, and broths require patience to become their best selves, and for their ingredients to soften and break down.
So when you do find that rare bird — a quick soup with loads of flavor — you’ll keep it around forever. See: Melissa Clark’s red lentil soup, Sarah Copeland’s take on Italian wedding soup and Sue Li’s brilliant lemony shrimp and white bean stew. I’ve featured a couple of quick soups below, as well as some easy winter dinners that hit on those cozy spoon food notes. Because sometimes it’s good to leave your comfort zone.
1. Chicken and Rice Soup
It doesn’t take long for rice to simmer into something almost like porridge, and Ali Slagle puts that knowledge to great use in this soup, which turns rib-sticking thick in about 40 minutes. The end result is equal parts familiar (from the chicken and rice combo) and bright (from the celery and tangy lemon).
2. Mapo Potato
It’s not a soup, but this mapo potato from Hetty Lui McKinnon is just as sustaining and scoopable, as the spuds — stepping in for the usual tofu and pork — absorb the surrounding sauce. Feel free to add some tofu if you want a bit more heft, but it’s delicious without it, especially when scattered with scallions for a bit of freshness at the end.
View this recipe.
3. Black Pepper and Onion Spaghetti
This elegant pasta — which Ali Slagle adapted from Michele Baldacci, the chef and co-owner of Locanda Vini e Olii in Brooklyn — is as simple as they come, but that doesn’t mean that it’s boring. Two kinds of onions add their distinct flavors to the noodles, while a heap of ground pepper at the end lends just the right amount of heat.
View this recipe.
4. Vegetable Tortilla Soup
A brothy soup done quickly can potentially be watery, but not in Ham El-Waylly’s hands. He sears cabbage to infuse the broth with a bit of smoky oomph, and then adds body using finely ground tortilla chips. The resulting soup is something that left commenters raving: “super delicious,” “excellent,” “absolutely amazing.” Make it soon.
