Quick Eats: Dumpling Soup

I threw this together for lunch today, as I have a million times, and was several bites in before it occurred to me to share it with you!

Dumpling soup has been my go-to quick lunch for a long time. I usually make it Asian-style, but it lends itself well to an Italian treatment as well.

Here’s the recipe, such as it is: Place a handful of pre-cooked frozen dumplings (gyoza, ravioli, siu mai, whatever) in a bowl. Add frozen peas and/or any other frozen vegetables that seem appropriate. Rifle through the refrigerator for appropriate seasonings and add-ins. Pour in enough broth to cover thoroughly. Put the bowl in the microwave and heat until nice and hot. Eat.

Today I used bite-sized spicy chicken won tons, Swanson chicken broth, peas, a few slivers of fish cake, some Vietnamese sweet-and-spicy fish sauce, and a handful of cilantro.

A good Italian take might include tortellini, a chunk of frozen pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, and a grating of Parmesan cheese. The beauty is it goes together in an instant, uses whatever you have on hand, and always tastes better than the sum of its parts.