Broccoli soup

Last year I promised my boyfirend that I will make more soup. Like it tends to be with promises, I made more soups than usual, but the usual was about 3 soups per year and I managed to increase the amount to maybe 8 soups per year.

So this year, I really want to make soup often. This one is really delicious, and the meat is optional but really good. And what about the colour? Isn't green soup pretty? Yes, it is! It was very difficult and expensive to get that hoisin sauce, but it was a good investment. I think you would get similar results if you would dip your meat in a mix of molasses and soy sauce, but yes, molasses is not easier to find. Then maybe honey and soy sauce? Who knows, maybe I'll try it sometime and let you know how it went.

It is really important to peel the broccoli stems really good, otherwise you will have stringy bits in your soup and it's not so nice.

Servings: 4
Difficulty: easy
Preparation time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 500 g broccoli
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 onion
• 1 potato
• 1 l vegetable stock
• 2 chicken breasts (about 400 g)
• 100 ml hoisin sauce
• 1 lemon
• 4 tbsp sesame seeds
• 100 g crème fraîche
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil for frying
• cilantro for garnish
• salt and pepper

Method:

• Peel and slice garlic clove. Peel and roughly chop potato. Peel and chop onion.
• Remove florets from broccoli and set aside. Remove leaves from stem, peel it and cut into bite-sized pieces.
• Add oil to a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add potatoes, garlic and onions, followed by broccoli stems. Season with salt and pepper and sear for approx. 5 – 7 min. Add vegetable stock and bring to a simmer for approx. 15 min. 
• Preheat oven to 180°C.
• In the meantime, cut chicken breasts into fine strips and drizzle with hoisin sauce. Season with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Add chicken breast to wooden skewers. In a large frying pan, heat up oil and sear chicken breast on both sides until golden brown. Season with salt. Bake for approx. 5 min at 180°C.
• Add broccoli florets to the saucepan and continue to simmer for approx. 5 – 7 min., until soft. Remove pot from heat. Use a hand blender to purée until smooth. Afterwards add crème fraîche. Add lemon zest and lemon juice to taste. Season with salt and pepper and blend again to combine.
• Transfer soup to serving bowls and garnish with chicken breast skewers, cilantro, and black and white sesame seeds. Enjoy!