# Umami Soup



## Chief Longwind Of The North

I was visiting my eldest son in Denver last week.  DDIL picked us up at the airport.  The first words out of her mouth (almost) were, "Can you make us some   egg rolls?"  Both her and my son love my egg roll recipe.  After a few more minutes, we went to meet my son on his university campus.  He was done with school for the day and he suggested that we go to one of his favorite restaurants, called Sweet Tomato.  It was a large, very nicely appointed salad bar with a soup bar and a small desert bar.  The place was great.  

My son suggest I try one of the soups, a savory broth that he put raw mushrooms from the salad bar in.  I tasted it, and it was a very pleasant, warm flavored soup.  I was up there with the best I'd ever made.  I watched him enjoying his soup and decided to analyse it so that I could recreate it at his home and give him the recipe.  After rolling it around in my mouth for a bit without any additions, I tasted mushroom broth, sauce, a bit of soy sauce, and a touch of ginger.

I successfully made the soup (to go with the egg rolls of course).  I gave him the recipe.  In my _Soups, Stew, And Chowders_ cookbook, I would call this an _essence soup_.  But It's not in that cookbook as I've just learned how to make it.  Now I share it with you, and it's so simple and tasty.

Ingredients:
3 cups water
2 tbs. cooking oil
3 tbs. soy sauce
1/8 tsp. (1/2 of a 1/4 tsp) ground ginger 
8 0z fresh protabela mushrooms
1/4 tsp. salt

Heat oil in a sauce pan.  Add the sliced mushrooms and salt.  Saute over medium-high heat until half cooked.  Add the remaining ingredients.  Cook until the mushrooms are cooked through.  Remove the mushrooms and use in another meal.  They are still delicious and have great texture.  Serve the broth hot, as an appetizer.  Or you can use it as a soup base to which you can add strips of uncooked beef or pork, as at a pho restaurant.  Add green onion, or sliced mushroom, whatever you want.  The beauty of this broth is that it's like a mother sauce for soups.  Once made, you can make a hundred small soups, if I can use similar terminology to mother sauces.

Try this and see if you don't enjoy it as much as me and my son.

May your hot things be hot, your cold things be cold, and your cheddar be a room temperature.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## PrincessFiona60

Thanks, Chief!  Have tried to duplicate for awhile.


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## Zhizara

Thanks, Chief.  C&Ped.  

I just happen to have a brand new container of baby bellas that I can use!  Originally I'd planned just to cook them in garlic butter as usual, but this sounds so good and I have the ingredients.


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## larry_stewart

I just picked a bunch of fresh Shitake's off my mushroom log, and was wondering what to do with them. Looks like I'll be enjoying them in the soup tomorrow.


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## CraigC

Sweet Tomato, I went to the local one once.


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## vitauta

Chief Longwind Of The North said:


> I was visiting my eldest son in Denver last week.  DDIL picked us up at the airport.  The first words out of her mouth (almost) were, "Can you make us some   egg rolls?"  Both her and my son love my egg roll recipe.  After a few more minutes, we went to meet my son on his university campus.  He was done with school for the day and he suggested that we go to one of his favorite restaurants, called Sweet Tomato.  It was a large, very nicely appointed salad bar with a soup bar and a small desert bar.  The place was great.
> 
> My son suggest I try one of the soups, a savory broth that he put raw mushrooms from the salad bar in.  I tasted it, and it was a very pleasant, warm flavored soup.  I was up there with the best I'd ever made.  I watched him enjoying his soup and decided to analyse it so that I could recreate it at his home and give him the recipe.  After rolling it around in my mouth for a bit without any additions, I tasted mushroom broth, sauce, a bit of soy sauce, and a touch of ginger.
> 
> I successfully made the soup (to go with the egg rolls of course).  I gave him the recipe.  In my _Soups, Stew, And Chowders_ cookbook, I would call this an _essence soup_.  But It's not in that cookbook as I've just learned how to make it.  Now I share it with you, and it's so simple and tasty.
> 
> Ingredients:
> 3 cups water
> 2 tbs. cooking oil
> 3 tbs. soy sauce
> 1/8 tsp. (1/2 of a 1/4 tsp) ground ginger
> 8 0z fresh protabela mushrooms
> 1/4 tsp. salt
> 
> Heat oil in a sauce pan.  Add the sliced mushrooms and salt.  Saute over medium-high heat until half cooked.  Add the remaining ingredients.  Cook until the mushrooms are cooked through.  Remove the mushrooms and use in another meal.  They are still delicious and have great texture.  Serve the broth hot, as an appetizer.  Or you can use it as a soup base to which you can add strips of uncooked beef or pork, as at a pho restaurant.  Add green onion, or sliced mushroom, whatever you want.  The beauty of this broth is that it's like a mother sauce for soups.  Once made, you can make a hundred small soups, if I can use similar terminology to mother sauces.
> 
> Try this and see if you don't enjoy it as much as me and my son.
> 
> May your hot things be hot, your cold things be cold, and your cheddar be a room temperature.
> 
> Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North



your umami soup sounds simply wonderful, chief!  i received delivery of my food order today, including two humongous, saucer-sized portabello mushrooms. to go with, i have this small tray of blue grey oyster mushrooms which should be just lovely. i can't wait to get started.  i'm thinking a mushroom omelet for breakfast tomorrow, and then a savory mushroom broth and grilled sammy for lunch. and the soup goes on....


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## buckytom

my mommy never made a soup like this, 

looks really good, chief. copied and saved.

this sounds very asian, leaning towards japanese. 

going in that direction, i might suggest that you start by making a dashi to use in place of the water, or at least a portion if it to add another level of umami.


also, i would like to suggest that you add just a touch of garlic, and maybe use some shitakes mushrooms for another level. 

and finishing it with a splash of sesame oil.

just some thoughts.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North

buckytom said:


> my mommy never made a soup like this,
> 
> looks really good, chief. copied and saved.
> 
> this sounds very asian, leaning towards japanese.
> 
> going in that direction, i might suggest that you start by making a dashi to use in place of the water, or at least a portion if it to add another level of umami.
> 
> 
> also, i would like to suggest that you add just a touch of garlic, and maybe use some shitakes mushrooms for another level.
> 
> and finishing it with a splash of sesame oil.
> 
> just some thoughts.



Sounds wonderful.  It would definitely be a great soup, but no quite the same as at Sweet Tomato's.  My son wanted that particular flavor.  I'll be playing with flavors and so will be trying your suggestion.  Thanks.

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef

My mommy's what!?!


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## vitauta

oh my chief, this mushroom broth is a delightful, lip-smacking taste sensation--pungent and complex, with a woodsy hint of sweetness.  and bee-utiful too--silky red-brown mahogony liquid!  i'm serving this up in a clear glass goblet....


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## Chief Longwind Of The North

vitauta said:


> oh my chief, this mushroom broth is a delightful, lip-smacking taste sensation--pungent and complex, with a woodsy hint of sweetness.  and bee-utiful too--silky red-brown mahogony liquid!  i'm serving this up in a clear glass goblet....



That your broth came out so very good makes me a happy man.  Thanks for letting us share your experience.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## larry_stewart

My Shitake log just produced a hand full of mushrooms.  Didnt know what to do with them, as I had to use them quickly cause I was going on a business trip, so i made a very similar recipe to this one ( added some tofu).  It was delightful.  As  a vegetarian, I have always loved mushroom broth.  Always gives a nice intense flavor, nice colored broth and usually much more flavorful than a plain vegetable broth.


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## larry_stewart

As an added not to my above message.  When I grew up, my parents had this large oak tree in the backyard.  Anytime we ate outside ( BBQ, Picnic, just to sit in the shade), we always gathered our chairs underneath this tree.  We knew it, the kids ( grandkids knew it)...  Unfortunately, Hurricane Sandy uprooted this tree, which provided so many memories over the past few decades for my family.  As my parents were having it chopped up and removed, I asked if I can keep a few 4 foot ( 8 inch in diameter) logs.  I took them home, bought some Shitake spore plugs, and innoculated these logs.  almost 2 years later, they finally produced their first mushrooms.  So these mushrooms, and now this soup, had a special, nostalgic feel to it.  And I must say, fresh shitakes , right off the log were incredible.  Never tasted a mushroom so good.  Hope they produce more.

Thanks for the Recipe.


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## PrincessFiona60

larry_stewart said:


> As an added not to my above message.  When I grew up, my parents had this large oak tree in the backyard.  Anytime we ate outside ( BBQ, Picnic, just to sit in the shade), we always gathered our chairs underneath this tree.  We knew it, the kids ( grandkids knew it)...  Unfortunately, Hurricane Sandy uprooted this tree, which provided so many memories over the past few decades for my family.  As my parents were having it chopped up and removed, I asked if I can keep a few 4 foot ( 8 inch in diameter) logs.  I took them home, bought some Shitake spore plugs, and innoculated these logs.  almost 2 years later, they finally produced their first mushrooms.  So these mushrooms, and now this soup, had a special, nostalgic feel to it.  And I must say, fresh shitakes , right off the log were incredible.  Never tasted a mushroom so good.  Hope they produce more.
> 
> Thanks for the Recipe.



I love that story, thanks for sharing it.


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## larry_stewart

Its actually a little therapeutic to share that story.  That tree brings back a lot of memories ( at one point, 4 generations sitting under it at the same time).  It was sad  to see it go, but in some bizarre, culinary way, Ive kept a way to still enjoy it


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## vitauta

larry_stewart said:


> Its actually a little therapeutic to share that story.  That tree brings back a lot of memories ( at one point, 4 generations sitting under it at the same time).  It was sad  to see it go, but in some bizarre, culinary way, Ive kept a way to still enjoy it



yours is a most touching and tender story, larry.  and what a lovely, organic and symbolically meaningful purpose you found for the logs of your 'family' tree.
   just curious, when and how did you come up with the idea of making a home  for some of the logs with you?  had you decided beforehand to start a mushroom farm with them?


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## larry_stewart

vitauta said:


> just curious, when and how did you come up with the idea of making a home  for some of the logs with you?  had you decided beforehand to start a mushroom farm with them?



Im the type of person who likes to try and do everything.  Ive made wine, cheese, tofu... all from scratch ( and not all successful  ).  Ive always wanted to do the mushroom thing.  Problem is that they are kinda specific to what kind of wood they grown on.  I didnt want to run around and cut down a tree just for the sake of growing mushrooms.  But to find some dead wood around, although an option, they say it may be contaminated with other kinds of fungi, therefore, either making my attempts unsuccessful or the possibility of me eating the wrong shroom  .  When this had happened, I knew it was a healthy tree, so I jumped at the opportunity.  I ordered the spores from some mushroom magazine I get ( knowing that  I was going to attempt it at some point).  And took advantage of the opportunity.  Last year a bunch of oyster mushroom clusters formed.  Honestly, didnt think the shitakes were going to take since its been so long.  But , I do go out every few days to check, especially after it has been raining.  The good thing is that the mushrooms grow right out of the spore plug holes.  So Im 99.99 % sure that its what I think it is, and im not going to blow out my kidneys with the wrong shroom.

If it worked, you'll see pics of my logs, the spore plugs i put in, and the oyster mushrooms ( shitake pics must still be in the camera)

In February starting a Beekeeping class


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## buckytom

that is so cool. and a really great story, too.


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