The One Trick That Will Majorly Upgrade Any Soup Recipe

If you frequently make homemade soup, you already know what a laborious and time-intensive project it can be — especially if you make your own stock or broth from scratch. You have to boil your chicken, veggies, or whatever you're using as your base, for hours, then strain it all out, let it cool, and store your stock somewhere for use at a later date, if you don't use it all at once (and who has the fridge room for that?).

But what if you could quickly and easily make a flavorful, veggie-based stock without ever turning on your stove? That is exactly how you can make a quick and easy stock to upgrade any soup recipe, according to Simone Tong, chef-owner of Little Tong Noodle Shop in New York City — and you don't have to use this stock only for soup. It also works well in a range of recipes.

So how exactly do you make this overnight stock? According to Simone Tong, when speaking to People magazine, all you have to do is combine grated ginger, chopped garlic, and scallions in a large bowl. Fill the bowl with water and then let the water sit overnight, soaking up the flavor. In the morning, strain the solids from the liquid and you have an easy and quick stock to use in soup, noodles, dumplings, or just about any recipe. You don't even have to turn on the stove and this method allows you to make stock overnight, in the exact quantity needed.

Don't have time to wait for your ginger, scallions, and garlic to soak overnight? If you are really in a crunch for some veggie stock, there are a few substitutes you can use. Try a mixture of water and tomato sauce, wine, tea, water-diluted soy sauce, or, when all else fails, just plain water. Of course, keeping a pack of bouillon cubes in the pantry to use in a pinch is always a good idea, too.