April 21, 2018
Red Radish and
Northern Bean Soup
Red Radish is usually sold with green tops. Sometimes the store will just bundle the red
radish bottoms after the tops have been trimmed. I discovered that red radish bottoms ( as shown in the image) can make a fine creamy
soup.
Step 1. Boil 10-15 washed
round red radishes with about three cups of water in a microwave for about 10 minutes
at the high setting. The radish might
lose some of its color to the water.
Retain the water for later use.
Step 2. Set up a saucepan
on the stove with about two tablespoons of canola or any other cooking
oil. Add two dried red chillies and half
a teaspoon of turmeric. Heat till the
red chillies start to turn brown. Then
add the boiled whole radishes (without the water) to pan and sautee them for 10 minutes at medium heat
ensuring that the the oil does not spurt
on you. At the end of 10 minutes of
sauteeing, add a tablespoon of dried basil leaves and two tablespoons of coriander powder to the
sauteed mixture and then turn off the stove, mixing the ingredients in the pan
well.
Step 3. When the saucepan has cooled, transfer the contents
to a blender, adding about half the water that you had reserved from the boil.
Use the blender in the “grind” or “Liquefy” setting until the radish turns into
a smooth paste. Continue to finish the
blending adding rest of the water from the boil, until a puree with pourable
consistency is reached.
Step 4. Pour the blended
contents into a deep saucepan that can be heated. Open a can of Great Northern Beans (Trader
Joes), drain the water and add the beans to the radish puree. Allow the soup to simmer for 10 minutes at a
low setting. Add salt Serve warm or cold.
to taste as required.
