"Dry Soup"

by Corinne Trang

Sunday was always soup day in my house. No matter how humid or hot the weather, my father insisted on it. Kway'teo, a rice noodle soup complete with ground pork and dried shrimp, was the kind of comfort food that reminded him of his childhood in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

When we moved back to France, and eventually came to the United Stated in 1978, my father continued to cherish this recipe, and my mother cooked it every Sunday. And while my mother didn't mind preparing the soup during the cooler months of the year, she admits to it being rather challenging during the hot summer months. Recalling the years we lived in Phnom Penh, my mother started serving the soup in a "dry" version, which meant that the broth would be served separately in a small rice bowl on the side for sipping. My father enjoyed his noodles wet or dry and would switch between the two versions depending on his mood.

Some of the ingredients may have changed a bit over the years. For example, the Thai basil is often replaced with the more readily available cilantro, and the dried shrimp is sometimes replaced with fresh shrimp. Still my family's kway'teo is as fragrant as ever, perhaps for all the wonderful childhood memories my father has shared with us at the table.

Kway’teo

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Ingredients

Stock:
1 slab baby back pork ribs (3 to 4 pounds)
3 tablespoons fish sauce
4 ounces fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
8 green onions, finely chopped
1 pound daikon, peeled and cut into 1-inch rounds
5 quarts water
1 teaspoon white or black peppercorns
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Soup:
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
8 large garlic cloves, minced
2 limes, quartered
2 red Thai chiles, stems and seeds removed and thinly sliced into rounds
1 pound fresh mung beans sprouts, thin roots removed
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1 bunch cilantro, coarsely chopped
1 pound ground pork
1 pound dried rice sticks or rice noodles
24 shrimp, peeled and deveined Seasoning fish sauce

Instructions

1. To prepare stock, place pork ribs, fish sauce, ginger, green onions, daikon and 5 quarts water in a large stockpot. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover with a lid, and simmer 4 to 5 hours. Add salt and peppercorns; simmer an additional 30 minutes, skimming foam and fat from top. Strain stock, discarding solids.
2. To prepare soup, heat oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add garlic and fry until golden. Remove from heat and transfer to a heatproof bowl. Set aside.
3. Place lime wedges, chiles, bean sprouts, green onions and cilantro in separate dishes.
4. Bring stock to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer. Place a small portion of pork in a ladle and lower it into the pan just enough to allow some of the stock inside the ladle. Stir with a fork to separate the pork and release the contents into the stock. Repeat with remaining pork.
5. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Cook noodles until tender yet firm. Drain well, reserving cooking liquid. Cook shrimp in the cooking liquid until opaque, about 1 minute. Drain well.
6. Transfer noodles to 8 soup bowls. Place shrimp on top of noodles. To serve as a regular soup, ladle broth with ground pork over each serving of noodles and shrimp. To serve as a dry soup, use a slotted spoon to transfer ground pork over noodles and shrimp. Ladle broth into 8 individual small rice bowls and serve on the side for sipping throughout the meal.
7. Garnish with fried garlic and oil, chiles, bean sprouts, green onions and cilantro. Squeeze a lime wedge over each serving. Add seasoning fish sauce. Serves 8.
Recipe by Corinne Trang, "Dry Soup," Jan. 2010

Tips from the Test Kitchen

Wine Picks:
Chuck Smothermon says: Did you check out the stock in this recipe? That’s the real deal, patiently simmered, and packing an uncanny level of complexity and sophistication. And it doesn’t stop there either, as the soup ingredients build this dish to show-stopping status. Yet a few of those ingredients, including chiles, limes, shrimp and more, offer some challenges for wine, as well. So once again this month I’m going to shy away from risk, clinging to a proven choice that’ll provide plenty of pleasant companionship with zero chance of a palate-bustin’ train wreck.

Spicy, off-dry Gewürz is renowned for making fast friends with Asian dishes, and this one will be no exception. Full textured, with plenty of flashy acidity to finish crisply with the shrimp, Columbia Winery’s Gewürztraminer ($12) is the wine I’m relying on here.

Wini Monanville says: I heartily second your nomination of Gewürztraminer—and one from Washington State works for me. Kingpin Washington wineries Hogue and Chateau Ste. Michelle also offer good versions of Gewürz from the vast Columbia Valley at admirable prices (around $10).

Nutritional Information

Per serving: 550 calories, 25g fat, 75mg chol., 20g prot., 52g carbs, 3g fiber, 370mg sodium.

Story and recipe by Corinne Trang, author of six cookbooks including the Essentials of Asian Cuisine (2003), The Asian Grill (2006), and most recently Noodles Every Day (2009). For more information, go to corinnetrang.com.