Chicken udon broth

Rinse the chicken under cold running water and remove any excess fat. Place the chicken in a large stock pot with the rest of the ingredients and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a very gentle simmer, removing any impurities

which rise to the top. After 2 hours, remove the stock from the heat and strain the liquid through a muslin cloth. Makes 3 litres.

Heat the strained chicken stock in a pot with the dashi, soya sauce, ginger, garlic, chilli, Shiitake mushrooms and Oriental Rub. Allow the broth to gently simmer for 15 minutes for the flavours to infuse.

In the meantime, remove all the skin from the chicken and shred the meat with 2 forks. Following the instructions on the packet, cook the udon noodles in a large pot of salted boiling water until al dente. Keep checking them so that you do not overcook them! (If you are not ready to use them immediately, rinse the noodles under cold water and toss with a splash of vegetable or peanut oil).

To serve, divide the tatsoi, warm noodles, shredded chicken, enoki mushrooms and spring onions amongst 6 warmed Oriental bowls. Ladle over the hot broth and garnish with chives. Serve immediately with chopsticks and an Oriental spoon. Alternatively, strain the broth into a beautiful teapot and allow guests to pour their own broth over their filled bowls. However, don’t forget to add the strained shiitake mushrooms, chilli etc to the bowls before serving.

Serves 6.

Notes:

• Left-over stock can be refrigerated for 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

• Enoki mushrooms are beautiful slender stemmed mushrooms that have small rounded caps that vary in size. In the wild they grow on the stumps of the Enoki tree from

which they get their name.

• Dashi powder is dehydrated Japanese stock made from kombu (kelp) and katsuobushi (dried bonito or tuna flakes) and is available at delis or Asian food outlets.