Spicy Pork and Mustard Green Soup

With the recent arctic blast and below-zero temperatures here in Chicago, I wanted a comforting, nutritious soup. Bon Appétit’s most recent cover recipe fit the bill: Rice Noodle Soup with Spicy Pork and Mustard Greens.

When I’m trying out a new recipe I tend to follow it almost exactly, so that I can properly decide what, if anything, needs to change. The first time around, I did reduce the amount of crushed red pepper flakes from 3/4 teaspoon to 1/2 teaspoon, as I had a friend over who doesn’t care for spicy foods.

Spice up the New Year with this healthy dish!

I loved the flavor of the broth! The crushed peppercorns and red pepper flakes provided some heat, but not enough to detract from the other ingredients in the dish; rather, they gave an inherent sharpness to the broth. The garlic, ginger, soy sauce, and fish sauce rounded out the broth, providing depth. I also liked the mustard greens; most of the time, I use mustard greens as a side dish, preferring spinach or kale for main courses. However, the mustard greens were a welcome change, and paired well with this spicy soup.

While the spicy pork and mustard green soup was superbly delicious, the ratio of broth to noodles was inadequate in the original recipe—the broth didn’t even cover the noodles in the bowl! Also, the rice noodles lacked in substance, making the soup feel less hearty and satisfying.

But I knew this soup had potential. It was good, but I wanted to take it to the next level. So I experimented with the following changes: I doubled the amount of pork and broth. I used a mixture of dark and regular soy sauce (instead of just regular) to enhance the richness of the soup. Finally, I replaced the rice noodles with knife-cut noodles (Korean wheat noodles) that I had on hand. These changes made the soup more robust and satisfying. If you can’t find knife-cut noodles, I would try wide lo mein noodles instead.

These modifications made for a stellar soup—perfect for a winter night, where all you want to do is hide away from the elements! This dish will be one of my go-to comfort foods this winter, and is a great way to eat more greens. If you want a healthy dish for the New Year, try out this spicy pork and mustard green soup.

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Spicy Pork and Mustard Green Soup

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Serves	4
From magazine	Adapted from Bon Appétit

Spicy pork and mustard green soup is a perfect for a winter night and is a great way to eat more greens !Spice up the New Year with this healthy dish!

Ingredients

• 1 Pound ground pork
• 4 garlic cloves (finely chopped)
• 4 Teaspoons ginger (peeled and finely chopped)
• 2 Teaspoons Sichuan peppercorns (crushed)
• 1-1 1/2 Teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes (depending on how spicy you want the dish to be)
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (coarsely chopped)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 8 Cups chicken broth
• 1 Bunch (about 4 cups) mustard greens (remove and discard ribs, the tear greens)
• 8 scallions (thinly sliced)
• 4 Tablespoons soy sauce (I used 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce and 3 tablespoons regular)
• 2 Teaspoons fish sauce
• 8 Ounces knife-cut noodles (fettuccine or wide rice noodles also work)

Directions

Step 1

Mix pork, garlic, ginger, Sichuan peppercorns, red pepper flakes, and cumin in a medium bowl. Heat oil over a large pot over medium heat. Add pork mixture; season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring and breaking up with a spoon, until browned and cooked through, 8-10 minutes.

Step 2

Add broth and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until flavors meld, 8-10 minutes. Add mustard greens, scallions, soy sauce, and fish sauce and cook, stirring occasionally, until greens are tender, 5-8 minutes; season with salt and black pepper.

Step 3

Meanwhile, cook noodles according to package directions; drain.

Step 4

Divide noodles among bowls and ladle soup over.