Celery and sweetcorn chowder

Celery and Sweetcorn Chowder
www.cookingforhealth.biz

This simple, sweet, soup recipe was given to me by my cookery teacher Montse Bradford.  It can be served warm or cold.

Soup helps to relax us and prepare the digestive system for the rest of the meal. 

The basic ingredients of any soup are: a sea vegetable; two or more land vegetables; and usually one fermented seasoning, such as miso or soya sauce.  

Sea vegetables have numerous health benefits and are added to increase the mineral content of a dish and to enhance flavour.

You can use regular sea salt to season if you wish but this does not contain the other beneficial nutrients found in fermented foods like miso.

This soup contains celery, which has traditionally been used for a variety of medicinal purposes and contains vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients with numerous positive effects on our health.  

Ingredients

1 strip kombu sea vegetable, simmered in 4 cups water for 15-30 min

2 medium onions, chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 pinch sea salt

1 bunch celery, washed and chopped into small pieces

285 g/10 oz sweetcorn kernels

1 dessert spoon white (shiro) miso, dissolved in 2 tbsp water

Method

1. Place the dried kombu sea vegetable in a pan with 4 cups of water and simmer gently whilst you are chopping the vegetables
2. Chop the onions and celery and saute in olive oil with a small pinch of sea salt until the vegetables are soft and translucent.  The salt helps to draw water out of the vegetables and prevents burning.
3. Remove the kombu from the water and add the water to the chopped sauteed vegetables until it just covers them.  If you need to add more water at this stage you can.  Simmer the vegetables for 15-20 min or until soft.
4. Blend until smooth using a hand blender or food processor.
5. Add the diluted miso a little at a time until and taste until you achieve the level of seasoning you require.  If you do not have miso, you can use sea salt to taste.
6. Simmer the soup for 2 minutes and serve garnished with fresh herbs.  You can also serve it cold.

Sauteing the vegetables in a little olive oil

Nutritional information

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