This Enoki Mushroom Soup is very tasty and easy to make. The inspiration comes from one of my favorite hotpot restaurants. The broth is tomato-based and contains ground beef, green onions, and other aromatics.
This recipe is inspired by the tomato broth at Hi Di Lao hotpot restaurant. Whenever I get hotpot there, I always request the tomato broth because it's so delicious. It's not made with any meat or bones, but it's still very rich and umami. However, for my homemade version, I like adding chicken stock, as it tastes much better.
Important Ingredients
Enoki Mushrooms
You can probably guess we will need enoki mushrooms. Look for packages that do not have much condensation on the inside. This means they are fresher. I found mine at my local Asian supermarket on sale for 2 for $1.99.
Ground Beef
For this recipe, you want to use lean or extra-lean ground beef because too much fat in the soup is not good. If you only have regular ground beef, I would suggest cooking the beef beforehand and draining the fat. You can also skim the fat after adding the beef to the soup, but keep in mind that once the fat is in, it will absorb some of the soup's flavor.
Tomato paste
For as long as I can remember, I have been using tomato paste as a cheat code for making tomato soups. A tin of tomato paste can contain anywhere from 8-16 tomatoes, depending on the variety.
The key step is to cook the tomato paste in the oil first (I add it after searing the ground beef but before adding the chicken stock). This will caramelize the tomato paste and add a deeper flavor.
Chicken Stock
For this recipe, I'm combining chicken bouillon powder with water. My favorite brand of chicken bouillon powder is Totole (pictured below). The flavor is like instant noodle powder but less salty. You can buy it at most Asian grocery stores.
I added 1 teaspoon of powder per cup of water. In total, I used 6 teaspoons. My wife likes her soup less salty, so sometimes I only use 4 teaspoons for 6 cups of water. I would suggest starting with a small amount and adding more to your preference.
Tomato Enoki Mushroom Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 2 slices ginger
- 3 cloves garlic (smashed)
- ½ pound lean ground beef
- 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste (see notes)
- 6 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 2 scallions (separated into whites and greens; whites cut into 2-inch pieces; greens thinly sliced)
- 3 packs enoki mushrooms
Instructions
- In a medium pot, heat the oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add the ginger and garlic, and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add the ground beef and increase the heat to medium-high. Cook until no longer pink, and you start to hear the beef sizzling, about 5 minutes.
- Add the tomato paste and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Add the chicken stock, sugar, salt, white pepper, vinegar, enoki mushrooms, and scallion whites, and simmer for at least 15 minutes until the enoki mushrooms are soft and have absorbed some of the soup's flavor.
- Garnish with the scallion greens and enjoy!
Nicole
Is there any way to substitute out the tomatoes? I have a nightshade allergy. Could I use a tamarind paste? I love mushroom soups, and this looks amazing.
Grumpy
Hi Nicole, to be completely honest, I'm not sure how this would turn out using tamarind paste. The flavor profile with tomatoes is quite different. Tamarind is just very sour. Maybe in addition to the tamarind, you could add something savory like miso paste.
Sarah Jajou
I have a question do we have to add ginger and the scallions to the dish I’m not a fan of them
Grumpy
You dont have to add them. I think as long as you have at least garlic, it should be ok.