Cellophane Noodle Soup and Other Fun Presents

I posted this soup a long time ago but I didn't post the ingredients or method for preparing the soup. I also made the soup carb-friendly by not using any potatoes.

Growing up this was one of my favorite soups. I’m not quite sure of the origin. It is similar to Thai Kang Chut Wun Sen but it is not exactly the same. I’m not sure if this version is an evolved soup that my mom put together depending on the resources available. I don’t believe the Thai version includes lily buds or potatoes.

I think potatoes are an American addition and the lily buds are a Chinese addition. The lily buds provide a nice delicate and earthy flavor to the soup. I think the only time I ever use lily buds is when I make this soup. I soak the buds in hot water and when they are malleable, I tie them into little knots. I never really understood why we tied them in little knots. Recently I learned that the reason why they are tied into knots is to keep them for unfurling in the soup.

The other strange ingredient in the soup is wood ear mushroom or as the package reads, “black fungus.” I buy the whole and the sliced versions. I don’t think it adds much flavor to the soup. It is more for the texture. I don’t know how to describe it. It is a little gelatinous and yet crunchy at the same time. It is very similar to cloud ear mushrooms but of a different species. Cloud ear mushrooms are smaller and brown in color while the wood ear is larger in size and black in color. The wood ear mushroom is “tougher” than cloud ears. They can be used interchangeably. Another favorite fungi is the Chinese snow fungus or silver ear.

My mom usually made this with little pork meatballs or ground pork. I only had a boneless chicken breast.

• 1 boneless skinless chicken breast or ½ pound of minced pork or pork meatballs
• 1 dried galangal root (I actually prefer the dried to the fresh. My parents grew fresh galangal root but I grew up eating dishes cooked with dried rather than fresh galangal.)
• Water
• 2 cups diced potatoes
• ¼ cup diced tomatoes (fresh or canned)
• ½ onion, large dice
• Handful lily buds, soaked and tied into knots
• 3 to 4 dried wood ear or 5 to 6 cloud ear mushrooms, soaked and cut into thin strips
• ½ pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Fish sauce
• Salt
• Pepper
• MSG
• 2 packages cellophane noodles, soaked
• Cilantro, for garnish

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Don’t worry about the amount. You can always add more in. When water boils, add the chicken breast or pork and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for about ten minutes and then add the diced potatoes. Simmer another 15 minutes or until potatoes are almost cooked. Add the rest of the ingredients except for cellophane noodles and cilantro.

When ready to serve, place a bundle of cellophane noodles in each bowl and ladle soup over the noodles. The hot liquid will cook the noodles. Garnish with cilantro. The reason why I like to add the cellophane noodles is because the noodles will absorb all the liquid if left to sit for too long. I don’t like the texture of the noodles once it sits in liquid for a long period of time.


This is not food related but I just had to post about my newest addition to my makeup collection. I'm a huge MAC and Urban Decay addict but I read great things on makeup blogs such as Nessasary Makeup about NYX (pronounced niks) products. Last week while perusing through the slickdeals forum, I ran across a link to the NYX lot sale. A lot of 30 pairs of eyelashes for $24? No it can't be! I had to purchase the eyelashes. I also purchased the 11 lipgloss tubes & 8 eyeshadow trios for $27 and the 10 liquid eyeliners & 20 double-tipped eyeliners/shadows for $22. I saved a butt-load of money! Hey it can't be as bad as the Smashbox holiday shadow set I purchased over the holidays! The shadows are still sitting in my train case.

Urban Decay's 30% off Friends & Family sale just ended on the 17th. I only purchase UD and MAC items during their F&F sales. I didn't buy anything from this last sale since I purchased a hefty amount during the last sale. I was eyeing some of their new 24/7 eyeliner colors but I decided to hold off. Even at 30% off the eyeliners are still over $11 each.

The presents:

Using makeup blogger lingo, "the haul."

The lashes on the top are teal, the middle are magenta and the bottom have rhinestones on the lash line!
The pencils didn't fit into my train case. So I stored them Sephora style instead. I cannot take credit for these brush and eye pencil holders. I saw them on youtube.

Some of my frequently used eye makeup brushes. My favorite are the Shu Uemuras that my friend bought for me years and years ago. I also like the Ecotools brushes made of bamboo and taklon fibers.