Asian What-cha-got Soup

I don't remember if Liz Troldahl coined the phrase or if I have always called this kind of recipe "What-cha-got" but basically you take what you have in the cupboard and combine it to create a dish, and depending on whether the final product is liquid, solid or somewhere in between you call it What-cha-got Soup, Casserole or Stew, respectively.

While living in Japan, many Asian staples became my staples as well, so I always have sesame oil, garlic chili paste and the like in the house.

Today's soup recipe draws heavily on some of my favorite flavors from various Asian cuisines, and even more heavily on leftovers from my salad the other day (see Salad Days post from yesterday)

1 qt chicken stock (we use Kitchen Basics exclusively because it tastes best to us and is half the sodium of other stocks with no loss of flavor)

small amounts of:

Bok Choy

Frozen Spinach

Celery

Carrot

Bell Pepper

Or whatever veg you have lying about.

Small amounts of:

Sesame Oil

Garlic

Ginger

peanut butter (about a heaping Tablespoon full)

Rice Wine Vinegar

Soy Sauce

and a good squeeze of garlic chili sauce.

1/2 can black-eyed peas, or another protein of your choice. I have also sliced up turkey cold cuts in this kind of soup and it tastes fine.

And that's it. If you have some leftover cooked rice, add that. If you have rice noodles, or other noodles, add them. I had neither, so I ate it without.

(I used a bowl I inherited from Grandpa Miller for the photo shoot... I have a weakness for exuberantly flowered china)