Chinese Salmon & Mustard Greens Soup (Sa-mon Gai Choy Tong)

~In a Chinese household, no dinner is complete without a soup or broth.  The preferred way is to simmer a pork or chicken broth for hours and then add the appropriate herbs, for a flavorful and nutritious soup.  However, modern families are often on a time crunch.  Chinese vegetable soups and broths are usually made with minutes to spare.  Gai choy is a bitter green, but add a very nice counter point to the sweetness of the broth, and cuts through the fattiness of salmon.  I love the old way of using the odds and ends to make something tasty and wonderful.  My mother prefers to use salmon head.  I grew up learning how to eat off the bone, but my son and husband have yet to acquire that skill.  I came across salmon belly meat and found it to be very easy to use and eat.  If you prefer big pieces of meat, consider replacing with cut up pieces of salmon fillet.

Ingredients:

½ lb salmon belly strips

1 large mustard green

14.5 oz chicken broth

3 slices ginger

1 tsp vegetable oil

salt

Directions:

1. Wash mustard green and cut into 1” ribbons. Set aside and discard bottom.
2. Scale off salmon pieces as much as possible and rinse off. Pat dry and cut into 2” pieces.
3. Set a 3 qt soup pot on medium heat, swirl vegetable oil to spread across surface.
4. Sear salmon pieces, approximately 20 seconds.
5. Flip over and sear other side 10 seconds. Add ginger to sear briefly along with salmon.
6. Add broth, scrap bottom of salmon lightly to loosen if needed. Fill can with water and add to soup.
7. Cover and let simmer until soup comes to boil.
8. Add mustard green and let cook for 2-3 minutes. Taste and season with salt for taste.
9. Serve.