Name: Vegetarian Soto Ayam
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Total time: 35 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil; 1 Tbsp. minced garlic; 1 tsp. grated fresh ginger; 1 Tbsp. minced shallot; 1 tsp. ground turmeric; 4½ cups (1.25 liters) low-sodium vegetable stock; 1 plump stalk lemongrass, trimmed and smashed; 2 makrut lime leaves (optional); 1½ tsp. fine sea salt; ½ tsp. granulated sugar; ¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper, or to taste; 1 large yellow potato, peeled and cut into 1-in (2.5-cm) cubes; 2 oz. (50 g) cellophane noodles; 2 large hard-boiled eggs, halved lengthwise; 1 cup (100 g) bean sprouts or shredded cabbage, blanched; 1 green onion (scallion), white and green parts, chopped; 2 Tbsp. fried shallots (store-bought or homemade); ¼ cup (5 g) chopped celery leaves or flat-leaf parsley; ½ cup (75 g) plain potato chips, crushed; 1 large lime cut into wedges; Chile paste, such as sambal oelek; Sweet Soy Sauce (see below); 2 Tbsp. soy sauce; 1 Tbsp. water; 2 Tbsp. coconut palm sugar or 1 to 1½ Tbsp. dark brown sugar

Peppery Turmeric Soup in a bowl being served with rice.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich

This turmeric-tinged soup is a meatless version of Indonesian soto ayam, a peppery chicken soup. My mom used to slice potatoes into thin ovals and fry them into kripik (Indonesian for crisps or chips) to put on top. But now she just buys bags of chips off the shelf. The brittle potato chips complement the tender potatoes, slippery cellophane noodles, firm bean sprouts, and soft egg in the bowl.

Recipe notes

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