Pasta soup with chickpeas/Miso ramen & tuna

Pasta soup with chickpeas

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This is said to be the oldest recorded recipe for a pasta dish; it was prepared by Roman Legionnaires over their camp fires, mixing boiled chickpeas with a primitive form of pappardelle, olive oil and generous slug of garum, a fermented fish sauce.

9 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped to a puree
9 tbsp. olive oil
400g (14 oz.) tinned chickpeas
2 x 5-cm (2-in.) sprigs fresh rosemary
300g (10 oz.) small soup pasta
6 salted anchovy fillets, boned, rinsed and chopped very finely
2 tbsp. tomato puree
Extra-virgin olive oil, to serve
Freshly ground black pepper, to serve

In a large, deep saucepan, fry half the garlic with about one third of the oil for about 5 minutes. Add the chickpeas to the saucepan and stir together with the garlic and oil until heated through. Then add enough cold water to cover, and add the rosemary. Stir, season with salt and pepper, and cover. Leave to simmer for about 20 minutes or until the chickpeas are becoming slightly mushy. As soon as the chickpeas are mushy add the pasta to the soup, adding a little hot water if necessary. Simmer until the pasta is just tender.

While the soup is simmering, put the remaining garlic and oil in a separate small pan with the anchovy fillets and the tomato puree. Fry together very gently, stirring frequently until the garlic is soft and the mixture comes together (about 3–4 minutes). Remove from the heat and keep warm. When the pasta in the soup is cooked, stir in the anchovy and garlic mixture. Serve immediately with a little olive oil and a touch more black pepper.

Serves 6–8

Variations:

Simple pasta soup with chickpeas & parmesan
Omit the anchovy and garlic sauce and serve the soup simply drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Pasta soup with chickpeas & pancetta
Saute the softened chickpeas and garlic in the olive oil with 3 tablespoons cubed pancetta or chopped streaky bacon to add a lovely meaty flavour to this soup. In this instance, omit the anchovy sauce.

Pasta soup with chickpeas & chilli oil
To add extra fire, finish off the soup with a generous drizzle of chilli oil instead of the oil and black pepper.

Miso with ramen & seared tuna

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This light Japanese broth is poured over tender ramen noodles (fine, quick-cooking wheat noodles) and topped with seared tuna to make a healthy and delicious meal.

1L (2 ¼ pints) water
4 tbsp. miso paste
250g (9 oz.) ramen noodles
4 tuna steaks (each about 115g (4 oz.))
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Groundnut or sunflower oil, for greasing
4 spring onions, sliced

Heat the water and miso paste gently in a large saucepan, stirring until the miso has dissolved. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer gently while preparing the remaining ingredients.

Cook the noodles according to the package instructions, drain, and divide among four bowls.

Season the tuna steaks with salt and ground black pepper. Brush a non-stick frying pan with oil and heat until hot. Sear the tuna for about 2 minutes on each side until cooked, but still pink in the middle. Place a tuna steak in each bowl and scatter with spring onions.

Ladle the broth into the bowls and serve immediately.

Serves 4

Variations

Miso with ramen & tofu
Prepare the basic recipe, omitting the tuna. Add 250g (9 oz.) cubed silken tofu to the broth and warm through for 1 minute, then ladle into bowls and sprinkle with the spring onions.

Miso with ramen & seared salmon
Prepare the basic recipe, using skinned salmon fillets in place of the tuna steaks. Sear on each side for about 4 minutes, until cooked, then finish as in the main recipe.

Miso with ramen & king prawns
Prepare the basic recipe, omitting the tuna steaks. Add 350g (12 oz.) shelled, deveined raw king prawns to the broth 2 minutes before serving. Cook until pink and cooked through, then ladle over the noodles.

Miso with ramen & chargrilled chicken
Slice 3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts into strips. Combine 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon sunflower oil and salt and pepper. Toss with the chicken and marinate for 1 hour. Prepare the basic recipe, omitting the tuna. Heat a ridged griddle pan, then cook the chicken for about 2 minutes on each side. Scatter over the cooked noodles and ladle the broth on top.

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