An earthy soup typically made during autumn and winter, which is very simple to make. We made it for lunch as a comfort food on a cool rainy day.
Time
15 minutes of preparation, 45 minutes of simmering
Ingredients
This recipe was prepared for 2 persons.
extra virgin olive oil
half a big red onion, chopped
2 spiced sausages
260g of lentils
salt to taste
In a pot, add a generous amount of olive oil.
On a medium-low flame, cook chopped onions and sausages, until the onions turn translucent. This takes about 7-8 minutes.
Add lentils and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring gently every now and then.
Add room-temperature water about 3-4 finger-high above the lentils. Increase the flame to high and allow the water to boil.
Once the water comes to a boil, lower the flame to the lowest, cover the pot, and allow the soup to simmer for 45 minutes.
Add salt to taste before serving the soup warm. Similar to beans, add salt only at the end, or you will harden the skins of the lentils and the insides will not cook.
Pantry Notes
Where we bought our ingredients in Singapore:
Lentils (French lentils) – Scoop at Great World City
A typical ingredient of the South of Italy, “cime di rape (read: ra-peh)” is a cousin of the chinese vegetable “chye sim”, with similar flavours, perhaps more bitter than the latter. I was very glad to find it at the local markets, as it is one of my favourites. It can be eaten on its own as a side to the main courses or with bread, or to season pasta. For this recipe, we are preparing it as a side.
Chye Sim
Rapa (singular) Rape (plural)
Watch the video to see how we prepared the dish, and for all the important tips on this cooking technique.
Time
5 minutes of preparation, 5 minutes of cooking, 20-40 minutes of simmering.
Simmering time greatly varies depending on the toughness of the chye sim you have.
Ingredients
This recipe was prepared for a dinner of 4 persons.
extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves of garlic
1kg (6 packets) of chye sim
800g sausage (At room temperature. Leave out of the fridge for about 1 hour before cooking.) We used chorizo sausage which is similar to Southern Italian sausages which are spiced.
coarse salt to taste Be careful with the amount of salt if your sausages are already salted.
I. Clean the vegetable
With your fingers, pluck the tender leafy parts of the chye sim and rinse them. Discard the tough stalks.
II. Cook the sausage
In a large pan or wok and on a low flame, add a generous amount of olive oil and garlic. Wait for the oil to heat up for about 2-3 minutes.
While waiting for the oil to become hot, use a fork to make holes on the sausages. The holes will help the sausages to cook more thoroughly and exude more flavours into the oil.
When the oil is hot, raise the flame to medium and add the sausages one by one to cover the base of your pan. When the sausages are lightly browned on the bottom, turn them to cook the other side. If your sausages are cold,raise to a higher flame to maintain the oil temperature.
III. Cook the leaves
When the sausages are lightly browned on both sides, add the leaves, sprinkle coarse salt and olive oil, and cover the pan. Lower the flame to a medium-low and leave to simmer. The leaves will cook in their own steam.
After 5 minutes, stir the leaves gently. Do not disturb the sausages at the bottom.
When the leaves have started to lose colour and wilted in 10-15 minutes, stir the leaves and sausages. Time may vary depending on the toughness of your chye sim.If they are quite tough, increase the flame slightly.
When the leaves have lost colour and wilted, the dish is ready. Make a final adjustment to the preferred saltiness and serve warm.
We served ours with homemade pizza bianca romana (for me) and plain brown rice (for my wife).
Pantry Notes
Where we bought our ingredients in Singapore:
Chye sim – Tiong Bahru Market This is a common local vegetable which can be found in all wet markets and major supermarkets.
Chorizo sausage – Ryan’s Grocery next to Cold Storage at Great World City
Alternatives
Instead of sausages, you may use anchovies instead. Perhaps if you have leftover anchovies after making the Pasta, Butter and Anchovies dish.
Tiong Bahru Kitchen 