Quick noodle soup for a long day
Noodles are fun and soup is soothing, which makes this somen noodle soup with bok choy and mushrooms from Sue Li delightful and comforting. Sue creates a gently seasoned broth out of soy sauce, dehydrated shiitakes and sesame oil, but feel free to gussy it up however you like. In the recipe notes, readers share that they’ve used vegetable and chicken broth, have added a couple of teaspoons of miso and have swirled in chile crisp. And if you don’t have somen noodles on hand, any thin wheat or rice noodle will do. So to amend a previous statement: This dinner is delightful and comforting — and versatile.
Featured Recipe
Somen Noodles With Poached Egg, Bok Choy and Mushrooms
Delightful isn’t usually the first word that comes to mind when you think of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, but Lidey Heuck’s recipe for aggressively seasoned baked chicken breasts might change that. By “aggressively seasoned,” we mean the brined breasts are generously sprinkled with dried oregano (or Italian seasoning), garlic powder and sweet paprika before a quick roast in the oven. Dice and toss with greens, chop into a chicken salad, shred for soup: All are delightful options for your perfectly cooked white meat.
Speaking of comforting delights: breakfast for dinner. Specifically green shakshuka with avocado and lime, a one-pan meal that turns soon-to-wilt greens into a luscious bed for gently cooked eggs. As Sarah Copeland notes in her recipe, don’t hold back on hot sauce at the end. It helps the oozy eggs, soft Cotija and creamy avocado really sing.
While Kay Chun’s creamy zucchini and bacon pasta isn’t exactly breakfast for dinner, we’d happily eat it any time of day. Chopped zucchini becomes golden in rendered bacon fat and is tossed with said bacon, garlic, Parmesan and a bit of butter. A squeeze of lemon brightens up the whole thing. (Though, come to think of it, reaching for hot sauce again wouldn’t be the worst idea.)
And here’s chickpeas escabeche with plantain strips, a new recipe from Alicia Kennedy adapted by Ligaya Mishan. Drained canned chickpeas are stirred with sofrito and a generous glug of vinegar to “bring a shiver of sour to the table,” as Ligaya writes. She includes instructions for how to fry your own plantain strips, but consider this recipe an excellent excuse to tear into a bag you snagged on your last grocery run.
One very last thing! An early Happy Thanksgiving to our Canadian readers. We’ve got plenty of ideas for your Canadian Thanksgiving table, including Samin Nosrat’s five-star buttermilk-brined turkey, Kenji López-Alt’s photogenic Hasselback potato gratin and a maple tart with oatmeal cookie crust from Samantha Seneviratne. (Fun fact: You don’t have to be Canadian, nor do you have to celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving, to enjoy these recipes.)
