Growing up in China, soup was one of the key components of dinner and my mom served it almost every day. For busy weeknights, she’d usually make easy soups that take very little time to put together. For example, egg drop soup, tomato egg drop soup, corn soup, and winter melon meatball soup were some of her go-to recipes. One of my favorite soups of hers is napa cabbage tofu soup. It takes no time to put together and it tastes super hearty. In the recipe below I’ve included a few different ways for you to tweak this soup using the ingredients you have on hand.
Napa cabbage tofu ingredients
Broth base
Napa cabbage tofu soup uses a chicken broth base and aromatics to create a hearty taste. Since the ingredients in this recipe are extremely simple, it is important to use a high quality chicken broth or bouillon. My personal favorite broth is Kirkland Signature Organic Chicken Broth, which you can find at Costco. My other favorite is Better Than Bouillon Roast Chicken Base. You simply need to add a big spoonful of the paste into water to create a very flavorful broth.
Other delicious way to spice up your broth
Dried shrimp – It’s one of my mom’s favorite ways to add flavor to a soup. To use dried shrimp, soak a few of them in warm water for 10 minutes, then add them to the soup at the beginning. It will infuse a savory seafood flavor to the soup. Miso Paste – If you have miso paste, you can also add a spoonful of it to the chicken base and skip the salt. It adds a rich umami to the soup, and not to mention, it has a ton of nutritional benefits. Chicken bouillon powder – If the chicken broth you use is not flavorful enough for your liking, I would add a small amount of chicken bouillon to further enhance the taste.
Vegetable and alternatives
My favorite vegetables are napa cabbage and mushrooms. Both create a great texture in the soup. However, there are many other vegetables that work in this recipe as well. Here are some of my favorite:
Choy sum Baby bok choy Bamboo shoots Regular cabbage Kale Celtuce Spinach (add it at the end)
Options for tofu
The recipe below uses soft tofu, which is very quick to cook and has a nice silky texture. You can replace it with firm or medium tofu if you like. Instead of regular tofu, I also love to use other types of tofu products such as:
Fried tofu puffs Yuba sheet (cut to strips, add at the end) Yuba knots (add at the beginning of cooking) Yuba Sticks (add at the beginning of cooking)
These tofu products have a fun texture and they absorb flavor better than regular tofu. If you happen to have them on hand, you can use them instead of regular tofu.
Mise en place
When you’re ready to cook, you should have:
Sliced green onion Chicken broth Mushrooms, prepped Sliced napa cabbage, white and green parts separated Sliced ginger Smashed garlic Tofu, sliced Soy sauce, white pepper, chicken bouillon (or salt) Sesame oil
How to cook napa cabbage tofu soup
It is super easy to cook napa cabbage tofu soup: That’s it! The napa cabbage is tender and soaked in the hearty chicken broth. The broth is infused with a fragrant gingery taste and mildly spicy taste from the white pepper. It is a great, easy side dish to serve for dinner during the cold winter months.
Other dishes to serve with napa cabbage tofu soup
Rice Cake Stir Fry (炒年糕, Chao Nian Gao) Jing Jiang Rou Si (Peking Shredded Pork, 京酱肉丝) Chicken Chow Mein (鸡肉炒面) Tomato And Egg Stir Fry (西红柿炒鸡蛋) Yang Zhou Fried Rice (扬州炒饭) Air Fryer Chinese Chicken Wings
