Chicken Sopas

Everyone in the household had been feeling under the weather, some worse than others.  I was the last to fall... today...  I woke up with a headache, aching bones, stuffy nose and sore throat!

When I'm feeling sick, I don't feel like eating anything except... soup.  My favorite?  Chicken Sopas! 

Chicken Sopas is basically chicken soup with macaroni pasta and milk.  There's actually a lot of versions of it but here is mine...

1 whole chicken breast, with bones
about 4 to 5 cups water
1 small onion
thin slices of ginger

about 2 cups uncooked pasta (usually macaroni but I like the twist pasta)

1 medium sweet onion (the white one), sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium tomatoes, diced
half a yellow bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
half a red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
1 small carrot, sliced into thin strips
about 12 stalks small asparagus, discard the tough ends
celery leaves
3/4 to 1 cup fresh milk
salt and pepper, to taste

Boil chicken breast in the water with the onion and ginger.  When done, strain the broth and shred the chicken.

Cook the pasta until halfway done (do not cook until done).  Rinse, drain and set aside.  (Note here - the amount of pasta depends on your preference.  More soupy - use less pasta.)

Saute onion and garlic.  Add tomatoes, bell peppers and shredded chicken.  Add the carrots and asparagus.  When halfway done, add in the broth and celery leaves.  Let boil, then add the half-cooked pasta.  Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like to add Italian seasoning).  When the mixture boils (and pasta is cooked), add the milk and stir constantly until soup re-boils.

Serve hot.

Spaghetti with Tri-Color Peppers and Mantis Shrimp

Look at what I found in the market earlier.

MANTIS SHRIMP!

The "meat" of the mantis shrimp is like a cross between shrimp and lobster; it's quite delicious with an interesting texture - sweetish, with a bit of a crunchy bite.  What I don't like about this shrimp is that the shell is pretty hard (although not as hard as a lobster or crab that you'd need a "hammer") such that it's difficult to open the shells with your hands.  Hubby used kitchen shears.  It's all worth it, all the same.

So, for lunch, we had this -

about 300 grams pasta, cooked al dente
500 grams mantis shrimp
4 slices of ginger
1/2 large sweet onion, sliced
6 cloves garlic, smashed
1/2 yellow bell pepper, sliced into rough squares
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced into rough squares
1/2 orange bell pepper, sliced into rough squares
2 medium tomatoes, sliced thinly
pinch of crushed chili
salt and pepper, to taste
4 - 8 tablespoons cooking cream
1/2 to 3/4 cup reserved pasta cooking water
fresh basil

Marinate the mantis shrimp in a mixture of oil, chili flakes and sea salt.  Set aside for a while.

Saute ginger in half oil, half butter mix.  Add onions and garlic.  When onions and garlic become soft and fragrant, add the peppers.  Stir fry briefly then add the mantis shrimp.  Cook about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the sliced tomatoes and crushed chili.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.  Throw in the pasta and mix well.  Add cooking cream and pasta cooking water and mix to coat the noodles thoroughly.  Add in the fresh basil last.  Serve immediately, garnished with a sprig of fresh basil.  Top with parmesan.

Regular shrimp may be used.