Slurp it hot

There8217;s more to the first course than chicken soup, especially in winter. So when you eat out this season, pick these exotic broths

It8217;s that time of the year. The days turn colder and nights nippier. And in regions across the world, chefs think up ways to ensure that the humble first course warms your soul and fights the chill. Sichuan restaurants spice up their soups with pickled cabbage and fiery peppers. Latino soups feature avocado and cilantro and Greeks add avgolemono, a sauce made with egg yolk and lemon, to bowls of steaming soup. We bring you the recipes that the best soup kitchens of the country are serving this winter. So don8217;t guzzle port wine to keep yourself warm, slurp on this comfort food instead.

Mediterranean flavours
The poor Italian8217;s broth, minestrone soup is as popular across Italy as much as homemade pastas. For this winter, chef Guiliano Tassinari at Olive Beach in Delhi gives it a twist with homemade cheese. Made with fresh seasonal veggies or meat, it8217;s filling and nutritious. A bowl with croutons arrives first followed by a small jar from which you pour out a warm clear stock with chopped vegetables. A side helping of butter with roasted tomato arrives next with that mandatory bread basket. Tassinari can also fix a zesty vine-ripe tomato soup for you, which comes with Parmesan-stuffed profiterole. This is not over-boiled, watery red sauce. The mild fragrance of every creamy mouthful tells you the tomatoes are farm-fresh.nbsp;

Oriental stews
A spoonful of Miso soup transports any Japanese to his childhood. Served in a lacquered bowl, this traditional elixir is made with miso soyabean essentials and dashi, delicate flavours of Japanese soup stock. For this season, chef Nariyoshi Nakamura at Sakura in Metropolitan, Delhi, plans to add cubed radish, turnip, peas, onions and wakame to this concoction. For the uninitiated, wakame is chewy seaweed grown in warm seawater and enriches the soup with vital vitamins and minerals. For an average diner, this soup takes a bit longer to get accustomed to, but it is high on nutrition values.
One of the oldest Iranian eateries in Colaba, Leopold Cafeacute;, has on its menu teriyaki soup, which is worth every spoonful. Another Japanese contribution, teriyaki soup is largely made with lustrous teriyaki sauce, which lends a shiny texture. This winter, the soup here will made with 30ml of red wine. Its sweet-sour flavour is a favourite with the cafeacute;8217;s clientele of swish globetrotters.nbsp;

Mother8217;s recipe
Mumbai doesn8217;t have much of a winter but restaurants do manage to spruce up their menu with year-end specials. Moshe will come out with its new menu and one of the oldest soul-warming soups will get a homely makeover from celebrity chef Moshe Shek. While every region has given its own unique twist to the chicken soup8212; Chinese have their wontons and the Thai add coconut milk, galangal and kaffir leaves8212;Shek borrows from his mother8217;s recipe book. Called My Mum8217;s Chicken Soup, this will be made without the slightest hint of oil. Local ingredients like tomatoes, garlic, saffron, rice, potatoes and chicken stock will be added to this mild red broth. It8217;s a recipe for nostalgia, says Shek, and a popular course in Jewish homes. You can surely call this one chicken soup for the soul. To convert this bowl into a hearty meal, just munch on some crusty bread alongside. Another hot seller at Moshe would be roasted pumpkin and orange soup with fresh thyme.

Humble broths
To make doubly sure that the essentials are not lost while boiling the stock, My Humble House at ITC Maurya in Delhi double steams some of its soups. Ask for Elixir Of Life double-boiled soup or Behold The Flight Of Fantasy chicken broth with bamboo pith mushroom. Both are cooked for five to six hours in a ceramic bowl with water, which is placed over a pan of boiling water. With no direct flame steaming the stock, the moisture and the nutrients of delicate Chinese herbs are preserved. Another discovery could be the Insatiable Seduction hot-and-sour soup. Not really the one we sip so often, this is made with carrot puree, white pepper and vinegar.