Soto Ayam

This is an Indonesian chicken noodle soup that I’ve had on several occasions while in Indonesia. This time around we had it in a restaurant, infused with a bit of coconut milk, and it was delicious! The version I’m posting is the way that we were originally introduced to it. The hostess sets the bowls on the table with just the broth in them, possible the noodles too. (If preferred, even the broth can be served separately.) The rest of the ingredients are set on the table in separate bowls and everyone just serves themselves and puts in what they like. It really is a fun way to serve soup. I got this recipe from my daughter, Julene.

Ingredients:
6 cups chicken broth
4 cloves garlic
3 bay leaves
4 stalks lemon grass
1 – 2 inch ginger root, peeled
1 Knorr chicken bouillon cube
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
handful celery leaves – just before serving

Make a chicken broth by either cooking 1 - 2 chicken breasts or using several chicken bouillon cubes or canned broth, adding in the spices. I was very pleased that, when I started cooking it, it actually smelled like the real thing! The lemon grass and ginger give a very nice flavor, although I did use less lemon grass.
Cut lemon grass into 2 inch pieces and when the stock is done, remove garlic, lemon grass, ginger pieces and bay leaves. Add celery leaves just before serving.

Serve with a variety of sides to add:
cooked rice
cooked fine egg of Chinese noodles
chopped cooked chicken
boiled eggs
boiled bean sprouts,
fried red onions
finely shredded steamed cabbage
sliced green onions
French’s dried onions
crispy shoestring potato chips
wedges of lemon
Sambal (hot sauce)