Like most folks, I grew up eating canned soup. But as soon as I realized that making soup is the easiest thing in the world, I’ve never gone back. There may be some washing, dicing and slicing involved, but after everything is transferred to a pot, you’re free to go just letting the ingredients simmer, soften and fuse on medium heat for about 30-45 minutes.

You can use leftovers and, my favorite part, any wilted forgotten vegetable in your produce drawer you would normally throw out.

That’s what inspired my soup below. I’d bought a large bag of beautiful baby bok choy for $1.99 but never got around to cooking it, and the leafy tips were turning yellow. I already had a package of plain precooked udon noodles and a carton of tofu in the kitchen, so this quick soup worked out fantastically. Just bring a pot of broth* to a boil and add at least 4-5  ingredients: protein (egg, tofu, beans, lentils), starch (noodles, potato, rice, any whole grain), vegetables (aim for 3+ different kinds!). Carrots and root vegetables take the longest to soften so cut them into smaller pieces for speedier cooking; if using greens add them the last 10 minutes as they cook very quickly.

Below is sliced tofu, portobello mushrooms, the bok choy (I simply washed and tore off the leafy tops into the soup), diced green onions and crushed red pepper. Because everything was already cooked, the soup only took 15 minutes. If you have uncooked ingredients like whole grains, allow up to 1 hour to simmer.

*To reduce the sodium, use a low sodium broth or dilute a regular broth with extra water. Be sure to add plenty of sodium-free herbs and spices to pump up the flavor!