recipe: red vegetarian broth

cooling broth for storage

I made a batch of my red broth this morning to get ready for the soup-a-thon that I have ahead of me the next few days. I have a soup swap to go to and although I haven’t decided what I’ll be making, I know that at the very least one of the soups I take will use this broth.

The second this smell hits the house, I crave tortilla soup or posole and maybe someday I’ll make batches that are big enough to yield leftovers for freezing. Maybe.

Red Vegetarian Broth
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
2 large carrots
1/2 onion
2 stalks of celery
6-8 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
1 tablespoon peppercorns
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
2 tablespoons tomato paste
10-12 cups water
a few sprigs of oregano and cilantro
a few lettuce leaves

1. Scrub and roughly chop all your vegetables. (I give the garlic cloves a good smash, but leave the peels on.)
2. Heat oil in a large stock pot. Saute veggies with oregano, peppercorns and coriander seeds until onion starts to soften.
3. Add tomato paste and cook for a few more minutes.
4. Add water, fresh oregano, cilantro and lettuce leaves and simmer for about 30 minutes.

You can use the broth in place of water in my Ancho Lentil Stew or to cook your fideos. My daughter also loves this broth with tiny pasta shapes, tofu and carrots floating in it.

I shall report back with my soup swap booty over the weekend.

Tags: comida mexicana, kitchen staples, recipe, vegetarian