There are a ton of worst parts about having a cold, but the best part is getting to drink all sorts of insanely hot beverages spiked with ginger and lemon and honey and whatever else makes you feel better.
Sometimes, though, you need actual food that doesn’t really feel like actual food. That’s where this soup comes in. It’s hot, fragrant and totally void of scratchy textures or sharp edges. It’s also simple enough to make when you don’t feel like moving and complicated enough to give you a sense of accomplishment anyway.
The recipe below makes one serving using a “here are some ingredients, follow your heart” methodology. It’s best with fresher broth — either homemade if you’re fancy or in cartons as opposed to cans if you’re not. To make more than one serving, double the ingredients and do everything the same, but poach the eggs separately.
Poached Egg Soup
Ingredients
2 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup water
1 shallot, thinly sliced
several handfuls of spinach or arugula
3 cloves garlic, sliced, plus 1 clove for garlic bread
1 slice thick bread
olive oil
drop of vinegar
1 egg
small handful of fresh basil
a few fresh mint leaves
fresh lemon juice
soy sauce
shrimp, cooked and peeled (optional)
sriracha
freshly ground black pepper
Directions
1. Start defrosting the shrimp. Heat the broth, water and shallot in a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat. When it boils, reduce the heat and add the garlic slices. Simmer for about 10 minutes.
2. While you wait for the broth to boil and simmer, make a piece of toast. When it’s done, rub it with a garlic clove, and drizzle it with some olive oil. Get the bowl you intend to eat out of, and put your greens on the bottom and the toast on top.
3. In a small saucepan or frying pan, poach the egg. Heat some water and add a drop of vinegar to help keep things together later. Aim to get the water just below the simmering point — definitely not boiling, and not quite simmering, with bubbles forming on the bottom of the pan but not breaking the surface. Break your egg into a small bowl. Stir the water in the pan so it swirls around, and slide the egg into the centre of the pan. Things will look really weird at first, but the whirlpool will help the egg stay together. It will be ready in a few minutes, and will jiggle but stay together if you nudge it in the pan. (Don’t cook it for longer or the yolk will harden.) Scoop it out with a slotted spoon and set it on top of the toast in the bowl.
4. Add the shrimp to the bowl. Gently ladle the broth over the toast. Sprinkle a few fresh basil and mint leaves on top. Season with soy sauce, sriracha and freshly ground black pepper. Serve.
dear god i have to make this immediately. when is your cookbook coming out?
“Put an Egg in It: The True Story of How I Made Lunch Today” tragically does not yet have a publisher. Also <3
That working title is TOP NOTCH. These recipe area always such a mix of gourmet and simple and it’s really nice so thanks.
*these recipes are always
**wow, just wow at my typing
You could always write for us! – putaeggonit.com
What kind of vinegar do you recommend to use?
I used white, but I think you could use any kind (though maybe not balsamic) — the goal is keeping the egg together rather than flavouring and you need literally a drop.
Lemon juice works too.
Or there’s also this method.
Hey, finally a recipe where I actually have most of the ingredients already!
Totally going to pick up some mint, basil, shallots and spinach at the grocery store tomorrow so I can do this!
Thanks, Carolyn! It was just as good as I imagined it would be. I like that it would be equally appropriate and delicious at any meal (not that inappropriate temporality has ever stopped me before). Next time I think I’ll go a little crazy and add a slice of avocado . . .
I just wanted to comment to say that the kind of shrimp fetured in this recipy (all varieties of large shrimp i e not the small ones) are really horrible products. Huge areas of mangrove forrest are being destroyed in order to make the dams where they cultivate the shrimp, and the ecosystems are subsequently poisoned by the antibiotics they feed the shrimp with.
If you google it there are large organizations working with human rights violatioins relating to this industry in all countries where they have it (mainly bangladesh). These organizations will deplore you not to buy any large shrimp, even supposedly eco-friendly ones.
Sorry for the long comment, and for any errors (english is not my first language)
Wait. You let the bread get all wet with the broth?
*furrows brow*
I will have to try this.
What would be the recommended lemon juice substitute here?
(I ask all the time since that seems to vary with different dishes. I have a citrus allergy, so I need to use something else.)
so excited to try this!