String Bean Soup

I love string beans especially the long variety. Those things can be as long as my arm, even longer. I used half a bundle earlier this week in my vegetable tempura. I love them in soups. There's this stew in the Philippines called sinigang. It's a sour stew. Whenever I see that being served, I dive in and pick out the string beans as well as little of the pork and other veggies. Maybe that's why I always hold up the buffet lines in many Filipino gathering.

I'm the type who like the "meaty" ingredients in the soup rather than the liquid. But I'll take the liquid part, too. I ain't discriminating soups. I'm an equal opportunity soup lover. Yet, I piled on the string beans to my delight. I went vegetarian on this dish, but you can use chicken stock for this as well.

Soup warms the heart.

Makes 2-3 servings.



String Bean Soup

1 12oz can vegetable or chicken stock
3 c long string beans (tips removed, cut into 3-4 inch sticks)
1 large garlic clove - minced
3 green onions - chopped
1 large tomato - chopped
1-2 c fresh spinach
1 Tbsp fresh or dry basil
1 Tbsp olive oil
salt to season
pepper to season

Heat the olive oil in a pot on medium heat. Saute the green onions and garlic for roughly 30 seconds, then add in the string beans. Saute for 1-2 min.

Add chicken or veggie stock and tomatoes. Bring to a boil soup to a boil. Season with salt and pepper. Taste and add more salt and ppeper, if needed. Bring the heat to low and let it simmer for 15 min or until the string beans are tender.