Chinese-Style Chicken Soup
中華スープ（鶏肉）
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
This is the kind of clear, gentle soup that shows up again and again on Japanese preschool lunch menus, especially alongside Chinese-style mains like mapo tofu or fried rice. Small dice of chicken thigh, soft-simmered onion and tender bok choy float in a light chicken broth seasoned with just a little salt and soy sauce, so it stays mild enough for toddlers while still tasting savory and comforting. The bok choy is blanched separately and stirred in at the very end so it keeps its bright green color and does not turn mushy in the pot - a little habit from the preschool kitchen that makes the bowl look inviting to children.
Wheat-free, but uses soy sauce (made with wheat). Japanese school-lunch allergy menus usually allow it, so check with your doctor. How to read the labels
Added. Open the recipe helper (bottom right) → ☰ Menu → 🛒 Shopping list to see the ingredients for your family size.
Printing uses the number of adults and children set under Ingredients, so set those first.
Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 19.5 gbok choy
- 7.5 gonion
- 16.5 gchicken thigh (skin-on)
Seasonings
- 150 gwater
- 0.5 gchicken stock powder (Chinese-style)Japanese granulated chicken bone soup base used for Chinese-style soups and stir-fries. Substitute: Chicken bouillon granules or powder.
- 0.2 gsalt
- 0.9 gsoy sauce
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- chicken stock powder (Chinese-style) (鶏ガラスープの素)
- Japanese granulated chicken bone soup base used for Chinese-style soups and stir-fries. Substitute: Chicken bouillon granules or powder.
Directions
- 1
Cut the bok choy into 2 cm wide pieces and boil until tender.
- 2
Cut the onion in half lengthwise, then into thin slices. Cut the chicken into 1 cm dice.
- 3
Put the water, chicken stock powder and onion in a pot and bring to a boil, then add the chicken and simmer.
- 4
Add the salt and soy sauce and simmer. Stir in the bok choy from step 1 just before serving.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 36 kcal | 72 kcal | 36 kcal |
| Protein | 3 g | 6 g | 3 g |
| Fat | 2.4 g | 4.8 g | 2.4 g |
| Carbohydrates | 1 g | 2.1 g | 1 g |
| Fiber | 0.5 g | 0.9 g | 0.5 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.3 g | 0.6 g | 0.3 g |
| Calcium | 22.5 mg | 45 mg | 22.5 mg |
| Iron | 0.3 mg | 0.6 mg | 0.3 mg |
| Potassium | 114 mg | 228 mg | 114 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 36 kcal | 3 g | 2.4 g | 1 g | 0.5 g | 0.3 g | 22.5 mg | 0.3 mg | 114 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 72 kcal | 6 g | 4.8 g | 2.1 g | 0.9 g | 0.6 g | 45 mg | 0.6 mg | 228 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
