Ingredients (Makes 7 cups)

6	dried shiitake mushrooms
1-1/2	tbsp peanut oil, plus extra to finish
2	slices fresh ginger, about 1-1/2 inches wide, smashed
2	tsp finely diced jalapeño chile
2	tsp minced garlic
1/3	cup cilantro stems, finely chopped
2	bunches green onions, including 2 to 3 inches of the greens, finely sliced
1	cup finely diced celery
1/2	package (8 to 10 oz) soft tofu, drained and diced
1/2	cup chopped cilantro leaves
1	tsp soy sauce, or to taste, plus extra for serving

Instructions

1. Cover mushrooms with 5 cups boiling water and set aside while you dice and chop the vegetables.
2. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat (or use a flat-bottomed wok-shaped pan) and add oil. When hot, add ginger and 1/2 teaspoon salt, stir, then add chile and garlic and stir-fry for 2 minutes, adding cilantro stems during the last 20 seconds or so. Reduce heat to medium, add green onions, and cook until bright green, about 3 minutes.
3. Add celery, another 1/4 teaspoon salt, then the soaking water from the mushrooms poured through a fine strainer, squeezing the mushrooms when you remove them from their water to get every drop.
4. While soup is simmering, thinly slice mushroom caps and add to soup. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes. Add tofu, give it 2 minutes to heat through, then add chopped cilantro leaves and soy sauce.
5. Serve soup with a few drops of peanut or sesame oil in each bowl and extra soy sauce, if desired.

Excerpted from Vegetable Soups from Deborah Madison's Kitchen by Deborah Madison Copyright © 2006 by Deborah Madison. Excerpted by permission of Broadway, a division of Random House of Canada Limited. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

Spotlight On