From the moment I saw the cover of last month’s Bon Appetit Magazine, I knew I was going to have to Paleoify it.
My Spicy Pork Soup with Kale and Japanese Sweet Potato Noodles isn’t that different from the Spicy Pork and Mustard Greens Soup on the cover; it’s not a close copy to that recipe, rather much more like a distant second cousin.
My version uses sweet potato noodles in place of rice noodles, kale in place of mustard greens, coconut aminos in place of soy sauce, coconut oil in place of vegetable oil and has different ratios for the both the broth and various spices.
This is a hardy, winter soup that is filling enough for a meal and can be eaten with chopsticks. It is a tad bit spicy (hence the name), so not exactly good for kids but if you are craving a warm, satisfying bowl of Asian soup without any crap ingredients, make this ASAP!
Inspired and Adapted From: Spicy Pork and Mustard Greens Soup from Bon Appetit Magazine
NOTES:
- You don’t have to have a Spiralizer to make the noodles. You can also use a mandolin as I do here in this post – How to Make Zucchini “Noodles”. With that being said, if you have room for it in your kitchen, get a Spiralizer – it is one of my favorite kitchen tools and I use it all the time!
- I used the Hana Sweet Potato aka Japanese Sweet Potato because of it’s light, noodle-like color and for the fact it tastes less sweet than a Yam or traditional Sweet Potato.
- I used my Homemade Chinese Chili Oil in place of the Szechuan Peppercorns and crushed red pepper flakes since it contains both but if you don’t have this on hand – substitute 1 teaspoon Szechuan Peppercorns (crushed with a mortar and pestle) plus 3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes.
- Szechuan Peppercorns used to be hard to find but now they are relatively easy.
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating below!
Spicy Pork Soup with Kale and Japanese Sweet Potato Noodles. Paleo Pork Soup.
- 1 pound ground pork
- 2 medium cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1 inch piece fresh ginger root peeled and grated
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Homemade Chinese Chile Oil see NOTES for substitution
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds crushed (or 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin)
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 6 cups broth or stock
- 1 bunch Kale stems removed and cut into bite sized pieces (approximately 4 cups)
- 4 scallions thinly sliced
- 2 1/2 tablespoons coconut aminos or fermented soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 1/2 pound Japanese sweet potato peeled and made into noodles (see NOTES)
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Finely chop garlic, peel and grate ginger and thinly slice scallions.
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In a medium bowl, combine ground pork, chopped garlic, grated ginger, chili oil, cumin, salt and black pepper. Mix until well combined and set aside.
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Remove stems from kale and cut into bite sized pieces. Here is a great video showing how to quickly remove the stems.
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Fill a large measuring cup or bowl with ice cold water. Peel potato and place on spiralizer (see NOTES for substitution and video). Immediately place potato spirals in cold water until ready to use.
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Heat a large pot over medium heat. Once hot, add coconut oil and then pork mixture. Cook, 8 to 10 minutes, breaking up with a spoon or spatula, until browned and cooked through.
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Add broth and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer 8 to 10 minutes.
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Drain sweet potato noodles and add to broth along with kale, scallions, coconut aminos and fish sauce. Continue cooking 4 to 6 minutes, until noodles are soft and kale is wilted.
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Remove from heat, adjust salt and pepper if necessary, serve and Enjoy!
Did you make this recipe? Tag @EverydayMaven on Instagram with the hashtag #EveryDayMaven and please give a star rating below.
Amanda@ChewTown says
My goodness! That looks sensational.
Holly Bonvissuto says
Holy cow! This soup was amazing! It was perfect for this ten degree night! The heat and the flavors were delish! Thank you!
EverydayMaven says
So glad you loved it Holly – thanks for taking the time to let me know 🙂
John@Kitchen Riffs says
Those spiralized noodles are pretty nifty! In fact this whole dish is pretty nifty. So perfect for the cold weather we’ve been experiencing. Love all the flavors — this is really nice. Thanks so much.
kellie@foodtoglow says
I need a spiralizer in my life! I know you have mentioned them before, so I really must get on the case.Or get my Dad to get me one for my birthday 😀 Love, love, love the sound of this soup. May leave out the pork but it looks like it has bags of flavour without the meat anyway. Pinning this beauty!
Shut Up & Cook says
It’s official…I need you to make this for me!
In fact…I need you to make everything on your blog for me when I get back to Seattle!
Beautiful pictures to boot my dear…you are getting quite fancy!
🙂
EverydayMaven says
We need to go over this plan over some wine! 😉
Norma Chang says
I have been thinking about getting a spiralizer for a while but took no action. Your post convinced me to revisit the idea.
Will substituting sweet potato noodles from the Asian market be acceptable for Paleo diet?
EverydayMaven says
It all depends on who you are talking to since there isn’t a strict set of Paleo laws. Technically, they are Paleo because they are made from Sweet Potatoes and water BUT they are essentially a highly processed and refined form of a Sweet Potato and higher in starch because of it so I think 99% of Paleo people would prefer the “real” sweet potato noodles since it is real food in noodle form if that makes sense.
Alice // Hip Foodie Mom says
I absolutely love this!!! After visiting and seeing all the Instagram posts from Ali from Inspiralized and now THIS, I SO want to buy a spiralizer!!! I love this!!!
EverydayMaven says
You have to get one Alice. I finally broke down and got one last summer and it’s a vegetable game-changer.
Cheryl says
I’m allergic to rice so thanks for that wonderful idea. I have spiraled zucchini before in soup wasn’t quite the same but maybe this will work better.
EverydayMaven says
I hope you like it Cheryl!
Joanne says
I saw that recipe also and was like…how should I veg-ify it! LOL. I love the idea of swapping out sweet potato noodles for rice noodles, though. Might just have to do that.