Chicken and sweet corn soup

This is a modified version of John from work’s soup. He made it for us one lunch and it was delicious, so I thought I’d try it myself.

Ingredients
1 can corn kernels
4 bulbous spring onions
2 cloves of garlic, crushed ( or 1 teaspoon of cheaters pre-crushed garlic)
1 knob of ginger peeled and diced ( or 2 teaspoons of cheaters pre-crushed ginger)
12 chicken wingettes (the meaty part of the wing)
20g dried shitake mushrooms (1/2 a pack)
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 star anise
5 cups boiling water

Instructions
Cut the white heads of the onions, tail them, cut them into quarters and separate the wedges. Reserve the green parts for later.

Heat the oil in the bottom of a large saucepan and add the onion, ginger, garlic and chicken, and cook until the skin of the chicken has coloured a little (about 10 minutes).

Add the boiling water, shitake mushrooms, and star anise to the pot and allow to simmer gently with the lid on for at least 1/2 an hour. As the fat rises to the surface, gently skim it out with a spoon.

Add the corn kernels and allow to simmer at least another 1/2 an hour, still skimming fat if required. Add the sliced green spring onions just before serving.

Variations
Replace the wingettes with chicken legs for a more substantial meal, or with chicken breast for a low fat one. If you use chicken breast, add it when you add the corn, and substitute at least some of the water for chicken stock. You could also add noodles to thicken it up.

A vegetarian version would use tofu instead of chicken breast, and vegetable stock.

John doesn’t use shitake mushrooms with his, and he uses normal onions and chicken wings instead. He also adds pasta and milk to make a creamier, thicker soup.

Serves
Four to six, and it freezes well.