Mark Bittman's Garlic Fideo Soup: Noodly Comfort Food for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

I wanted a very broth pasta soup this week and I always like a good dose of garlic so I went with Mark Bittman's Garlic Fideo Soup. Fideos mean noodles, usually vermicelli and I can buy packages of it in the hispanic/Latin American food section in my local supermarket. If you can't find it, Italian angel hair or vermicelli pasta will work--you can break it up to get small pieces.

The only challenge is that I just bought one 7-oz bag of fideos, so I made the executive decision of filling in with 7-oz of Israeli couscous for the rest of my pasta. Also, because I liked Aaron Sanchez's Sopa Seca (Dry Soup) I made back in March so much, I added a cup of salsa to the mix. It's OK, Mark Bittman's recipes are always great jumping off places for me. 

Mark Bittman says, "You can’t go wrong with a soup made of lots of fried garlic and noodles topped with fried bread crumbs. Chicken stock would work well if you have some handy."

Garlic Fideo Soup

Slightly Adapted from Mark Bittman via The Bittman Project & How to Cook Everything

(Makes 4 Servings)

1 lb fideos, or capellini or other very thin pasta (I used 7-oz fideos + 7 oz Israeli couscous)
1/4 cup olive oil 
1/4 cup chopped garlic 
salt and pepper
2 tsp sweet paprika (preferably pimentón) 

6 1/2 cups vegetable stock or water (I used 6 cups non-chicken stock)

(I added 1 cup of prepared garlic salsa)

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, cilantro, or epazote, plus 2 Tbspfor garnish
1/2 cup fried bread crumbs (see below) for garnish (I used seasoned panko crumbs)

Put the noodles in a sturdy bag and whack them with a rolling pin or the back of a knife, breaking them into 1- to 2-inch pieces. (My pasta was already broken up.)

Put the oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. When it’s hot, add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and beginning to color, 5 to 8 minutes.

Raise the heat to medium-high. Add the noodles, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring almost constantly, until they darken, a minute or 2. They will probably not cook perfectly evenly — some will become darker than others — but avoid letting more than a few pieces blacken.

Add the paprika and most of the parsley and stir for a minute to coat the noodles. Add the stock, taking care to loosen any noodles or garlic that might have stuck to the bottom of the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the noodles are just tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve right away, garnished with the remaining 2 tablespoons or so of parsley and the bread crumbs.

To Make Breadcrumbs: Tear a few slices of good-quality bread (preferably a day or two old) into pieces and put them in a food processor. Pulse a few times, then let the machine run for a few seconds until coarsely chopped. For every 1/2 cup of bread crumbs, heat about 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet. When it’s hot, add the crumbs and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Season with salt or and drain on towels; use immediately. 

Notes/Results: Really good, similar to the Sopa Seca and just as delicious--garlicky and satisfying. I know I made a lot of changes to the recipe but I am happy with all of them, even the couscous. The breadcrumbs are a great textural addition to the soup--their crispness a good contrast with the soft pasta. I would happily make this again. 

Linking up to I Heart Cooking Clubs where this week's theme is Cinco de Mayo.

Let's see who is here in the Souper Sundays kitchen this week: 

Tina of Squirrel Head Manor is here with a salad to share. She says, "This salad of baby spinach, beefsteak tomatoes, avocado and toasted walnuts was a fabulous accompaniment to the leftover chicken dinner. Easy to toss together. Pull the stems off the baby spinach leaves. Chop any type tomatoes you like and slice avocado. Toast the walnut halves at 350 F for about 10 minutes. I rubbed a little olive oil on the walnuts. Toss all ingredients and add favorite dressing. We used red wine vinegar and olive oil."

Radha of The Magical Ingredients for a Wholesome Life from the Heart of My Home is here with two dishes to share. First up her Cilantro Pachadi Raita which can be served as a cold soup. She says, "Cilantro pachadi aka raita is made with cilantro, coconut, and yogurt, spiced with cumin and Thai green chili. ... Also, this can be chilled and served as summer soup too. When you are serving as soup, the following quantity may serve one whereas as a condiment for an Indian food platter, would serve four."

Her second dish is Kochumber Salad and she says, "This is quick refreshing salad made with crisp cucumbers, firm tomatoes, crunchy onions and with a squirt of lime juice. The flavors in the salad marry well and gives a flavor burst in your mouth. This can be served along a meal and every bite of it gives the refreshing satisfaction of a great meal. This has no oil, high in fiber, and is a very healthy salad. This can be prepared in 10 minutes."

Thank you to Tina and Radha for joining me this week!

 

(If you aren't familiar with Souper Sundays, you can read about of the origins of it here.
 

If you would like to join in Souper (Soup, Salad, and Sammie) Sundays, I would love to have you! Here's how...

To join in this week's Souper Sunday's linkup with your soup, salad or sandwich:

• Link up your soup (stew, chili, soupy curries, etc. are fine), salad, or sandwich dish, (preferably one from the current week or month--but we'll take older posts too) on the picture link below and leave a comment on this post so I am sure not to miss you. Also please see below for what to do on your blog post that you link up to Souper Sundays in order to be included in the weekly round-up.
• Although we are pretty wide on what defines a soup, sandwich or salad, entries that are clearly not in the same family (ie: desserts, meats, random main or side dishes that aren't salads, etc.) are meant for another round up and will be deleted. 

and 

On your entry post (on your blog):

• Mention Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays at Kahakai Kitchen and add a link back to this post. (Not to be a pain but it's polite and only fair to link back to events you link up at--so if you link a post up here without linking back to this post or my blog on your post, it will be removed.)
• You are welcome to add the Souper Sundays logo to your post and/or blog (completely optional).

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Have a happy, healthy week!