Hearty Asian-style Soup

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 1/4 cup chopped gingerroot
• 1/4 cup chopped garlic
• 48 ounces fat-free chicken broth
• 1/2 cup cornstarch
• 10 1/2 ounces extra firm tofu, cut in 1/4-inch squares
• 1 (8 ounce) can straw mushrooms
• 1 (8 ounce) can bamboo shoots
• 1/2 cup light soy sauce
• 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 (16 ounce) bags frozen oriental-style vegetables
• 1 lb shrimp (cooked, uncooked, canned or fresh)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 (10 ounce) package fresh spinach, trimmed and coursley chopped

Recipe

• 1 in large pot, heat oil over medium heat.
• 2 add ginger and garlic and cook until tender (3-4 minutes).
• 3 combine 1 cup of broth with corstarch until smooth.
• 4 add to the pot the cornstarch mixture, remaining broth, tofu, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and crushed red pepper flakes.
• 5 bring to a boil and cook until thickened.
• 6 add frozen vegetables, shrimp and cilantro.
• 7 simmer until vegetables and shrimp are thawed (if using fresh shrimp simmer until opaque)- about 15 minutes.
• 8 stir in chopped spinach and simmer until just wilted.