Primordial Soup

Celebrating the humble bowl meal. Soups, stews, & slop piles.

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Honduran caldos cooling at Tamalex Restaurant in South Philly.

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Lagman

An earthy lamb broth and noodle soup from Shish-Kabob Palace in Far Northeast, Philadelphia, serving Bukharian and Uzbek cuisine. Celery, carrots, black cumin, star anise, and dill form a bold and woody stock. The hearty lagman reminds me of a hike through a Central Asian forest I have never taken. Most likely introduced to Uzbekistan during it's long history as a trading crossroads, lagman noodles are very similar to Chinese hand-pulled Lamian noodles.

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Jamaican Chicken Foot Soup

I had a cup of chicken foot soup to-go (along with excellent oxtail stew) from Veronica's Caribbean American in Frankford. Simmered chicken feet make up the base for a broth seasoned with fresh thyme and allspice. The addition of pumpkin gives the dish it's orange color and matches well with it's overall herb-y sweetness. Chunks of potato, carrot, and simple flour dumplings round out the chicken soup.

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Sinigang Na Bangus

I had my first experience with Filipino cuisine at Philippine Jeepney Grill in Rhawnhurst. I ordered Sinigang, a tamarind-based soup traditionally prepared with fish, shrimp, pork, or chicken. The version I ate had Milkfish, also known as bangus, a boney fish largely consumed in the Philippines and other Pacific Islands. The mild fish was a bit hard to manage in a soup, as there were countless pin-bones to pick through. The sour/savory broth with string beans, bok choi?, and tomato chunks was the highlight of the dish. The sour soup paired well with sweet tocino pork and garlicky fried rice with egg.

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Flaczki or Flaki

Another offering from Krakus Market in Port Richmond, Flaczki is an earthy tripe and carrot soup. Thin strips of tripe are mellowed with fresh parsley, marjoram, and pepper. Eat a bowl with buttered rye and a few crisp Polish pilsners.

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Salaw Machu Kre'ung

A spicy Cambodian beef soup from Khmer Kitchen, made sour with tamarind paste, lemongrass, and kaffir lime leaf. Pahok (a staple Khmer fish paste) gives the soup a briny funk. Bell pepper, yellow onion, and celery help to sweeten the chili-hot broth. Salaw Machu Kre'ung is served with white rice to cool down spiciness.

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Harira

A simple tomato-based soup purchased from International Food Market on W. Passyunk, a small Moroccan/Tunisian grocer. The owner promised it would be good since it was "homemade by an old Moroccan lady". The peppery tomato broth only had a few ingredients: a handful of lentils, rice, vermicelli pieces, cumin, and lemon juice. The Harira would've been perfect with some pita or lavash for dipping.

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Homemade: Schav

Last year I grew sorrel in a 5-gal bucket and made Schav from the leaves. Sometimes described as "green borscht", this Eastern European sour soup is served hot or cold with a dollop of sour cream. The soup is very easy to make:

Sauté julienned sorrel leaves, parsley, and white onion in butter until soft.

Add chicken stock and a few squeezes of lemon juice.

Season with salt, white and black pepper

Simmer for about 20-30 min.

Temper two beaten eggs with a ladle-full of hot soup. Remove the pot from the burner and stir in the egg.

Add a spoonful of good Russian sour cream and serve with a hunk of buttered pumpernickel or rye.

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Bún bò Huế

Cafe Diem only offers a few dishes, with Bún bò Huế being their specialty. The lemongrass-scented beef broth is reminiscent of Phở, but packs quite an after-burn from red pepper flakes and chili oil. Cylindrical rice noodles similar in consistency, but thicker than those in Phở soak up the spicy soup. Slices of beef brisket and ham hock are garnished with scallion, onion, and cilantro. Ask for extra napkins, your gringo nose will most likely be snotting from the chilies.

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Solyanka

One of many house-made soups-to-go offered at Bell's Market, a Russian/Eastern/Southern European supermarket in Rhawnhurst, Philadelphia. The spicy broth is extremely smokey and a bit oily from chunks of smoked sausage. Parsley, dill, and onion brighten up the heavy mixture of mushrooms, olive, beef, and....dill pickles? A common ingredient is diced dill pickle, which can be a bit strange, as the soup is served hot. The sourness of the pickles help cut the overall meatiness of Solyanka.

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Manduguk

Before a Korean BBQ feast at Seorabol in Olney, I ordered this simple soup for the first time. The delicate broth seasoned with scallions reminded me of a better version of the familiar American-style wonton soup. Slices of fatty brisket floated alongside the large, thick-skinned mandu dumplings, which brought kreplach to mind rather than an Asian dumpling. The mandu were filled with coarsely minced pork and cabbage. The Manduguk soup was quickly upstaged by several rounds of sizzling marinated meat piles.

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Menudo

I first had menudo in Española, NM, at a roadside Mexican food stand called El Parasol. The chunky mixture of tripe pieces, hominy, onion, and cilantro was spiced with crushed chili's, oregano, lime and cilantro. Menudo can have the strong barnyard funk of offal, as there is not much to overpower the tripe flavor. Pancita de res is a Northern Mexican tripe soup I've found a little easier to handle, where the intense heat of red chili puree blankets the gamy flavor. Since my trip to New Mexico I've been trying to find a bowl of menudo in Philly, but it seems to be a (Southwest) regional thing?

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Red Borscht

A classic Polish borscht from the luncheonette part of Krakus Market in Port Richmond. Chunks of beets, onion, and cabbage garnished with thick, European sour cream and plenty of dill. Served with a basket of fresh Polish rye and butter. The borscht pairs perfectly with one of their several crisp Polish pilsner offerings.

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Bánh canh cua

One of the many soups in my rotation from Nam Phoung on Washington Ave. Bánh canh cua's salty broth is thickened with tapioca or rice flour, giving it a pleasant sliminess. Thick, udon-like rice noodles float in briny orange/red soup with a protein of your choice. I usually go for the shredded crab version pictured above.