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It's kind of chilly out, and I'm taking time off from work due to a mean cold. Does anyone have any recommendations on how to fend off both cold and cold? I was thinking about some Pho from around Argyle way, but I'd love to entertain more ideas. I just feel wretched. Thanks!

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Get a bicycle. You will certainly not regret it, if you live. --Mark Twain

Maybe an English style whisky/lemon toddy. but I think the Pho is the best bet.

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"Strange how potent cheap music is."

Pho or Udon would be a good bet. I find sometimes when I'm sick something a little spicy is helpful--maybe slap some sriracha or other tasty hot-ness in your noodle soup of choice. Helps clear up the sinuses and all.

Good luck, I'm currently sick as well so I feel your pain.

Also, brew yourself a big old pot of herbal tea and drink it with honey and lemon. You'll feel better in no time.

JBanana and Sal,

Chicago is rife with restorative soups, from matzo ball at Manny's or the Bagel to Pho at Tank, Bun Bo Hue at Dong Thanh, Yuk Gae Jang at San Soo Gap San, menudo at Nuevo Leon, carne en su jugo at Taquería Tayahua to any number of delicious bowls of goodness, but the best, for when one is weary from neverending coughs and sniffles is Ssyal.

Ssyal specializes in Samgyetang or hot ginseng chicken soup, which is renowned for its restorative powers. The soup consists of a whole small chicken lightly filled with short grain brown rice, three kinds of beans, bits of garlic and red date all served in a light, but flavorful, broth that contains whole ginseng root.

The chicken soup is served with small dishes of Korean style accompaniments; ginseng root in red chili paste, daikon radish kimchee, translucent cooked yam gelatin, and a slightly bitter water vegetable. There is also a side dish of short grain brown rice studded with multiple types of beans that is quite reminiscent of macrobiotic restaurants. Ssyal ginseng, has an over all feel not unlike the late 60's, early 70's. Slightly meditative, relaxing and peaceful.

Ssyal, while having a different feel than most Chicago restaurants, is a place to eat, not meditate. The whole chicken, along with side dishes, is filling and the place, at least the few times I have been there for lunch, had a number of customers, all eating chicken ginseng soup. Ssyal has two other offerings, fish and miso soup, though chicken in broth is the main focus.

Enjoy,
Gary

Ssyal Ginseng Growing Company
4201 W Lawrence
Chicago, Il 60625
815-648-4601
773-427-5296-7

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Sauce on the side, always, implied, axiomatic..........never a doubt, BBQ sauce without.

Low & Slow

In my opinion, Gary's Ssyal rec is nonpareil. If however, you opt to stick closer to your own original inclinations, I would recommend the Bun Bo Hue at Dong Thanh for it chili-infused restorative powers. This is basically a bowl of rice noodles with a simmered pork hock at its core. I like it with the shredded red cabbage, fresh mint leaves, and a heaping teaspoon of the deep-fried garlic/oil suspension sitting on the table. It also comes with congealed blocks of pork blood which, if you are not feeling particularly adventurous, you can probably skip.

Dong Thahn
4925 N Broadway St # B

I've always found Middle-Eastern lentil soups do the trick for me when I'm/have a cold. Taste of Lebanon on Foster between Ashland and Clark does a good one I think.

LionRock,

I apologize, I accidentally deleted your post. I intended to delete something that was double posted in the thread and, clumsily, deleted yours instead.

In answer to your question, yes, absolutely, Ssyal is worth a visit even if you are feeling in top form.

I owe you one.

Enjoy,
Gary

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Sauce on the side, always, implied, axiomatic..........never a doubt, BBQ sauce without.

Low & Slow

Sally Baby,

Chicken soup, aka (as per Mimi Sheraton's nomenclature and recipe for said dish) "Jewish penicillin." If you can make it there, Barnum and Bagel in Skokie makes the best version around - deep flavored broth, bits of vegetables, and maybe some rice or a matzoh ball to fill you up. And the place (as are all Skokie dining establishments) is non-smoking, so you don't have to worry about the Pnomh-Penh like Killing Fields full of dead waitresses, busboys, bartenders, and hostesses which clog those deadly pathways of smoking-friendly establishments within city limits. Or just have your cigarette outside. (Dammit, Mike G, you pulled the plug on a topic designed, almost by divine providence, for me, just as I was approaching the batter's box and hefting my two bats for better weight, ready to grab some dirt to rub into my batting gloves and knock the mud from my cleats, wad of tobacco juice ready to spit in the pitcher's general direction as a full indicator of how I intended to knock his weak, bush-league bullshit junk pitch out of the damn park.)

Anyway, Sal, Jewish chicken soup - Barnum and Bagel is my favorite, but a closer and acceptable option to your neck of the woods might the Bagel on Broadway or perhaps New York Kosher Outlet on Devon. As the old lady in the balcony said when informed that the great actor had died on stage, "Give him some chicken soup!"
"Lady, the man is dead!"
"It couldn't hurt..."

-Reb

Titus,

Bun Bo Hue is a great cold/flu soup, in fact it's one of my favorites whether under the weather or in the pink. Actually, I probably owe you a thanks as you turned me on to Dong Thanh's Bun Bo Hue via a long ago c-h post.

While I'd still recommend Ssyal overall I, in the interest of full disclosure, should mention that a couple of weeks ago, when under the weather myself, I opted for take out from Spoon Thai in the form of Tom Yum and Tom Kha, both on the hot side, spice wise. I ordered Tom Yum and, as an afterthought, added Tom Kha. It was lucky I added Tom Kha as the smooth richness of the coconut milk helped smooth out the spicy goodness of the broth and soothe my throat.

Enjoy,
Gary

Spoon Thai
4608 N Western
Chicago, IL 60625
773-769-1173

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Sauce on the side, always, implied, axiomatic..........never a doubt, BBQ sauce without.

Low & Slow

If you are feeling just a bit too sick to trek around town for soup here's a simple ginger tea-- always works for me. Grate a large fresh ginger root, set in a medium saucepan or a teakettle, cover generously with water, and boil slowly for 7-10 minutes. Cool with ginger in the pan. Strain off the liquid: depending on the ratio of ginger to water, you will have a concentrated base for a ginger tea with quite a kick. Refrigerate the concentrate and you are in business. Mix in cold water to taste & reheat. (My daughter likes honey and lemon in hers.)

On the other hand, it might be easier just to hop in a cab. . .

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Man : I can't understand how a poet like you can eat that stuff.
T. S. Eliot: Ah, but you're not a poet.

I'm under the impression that you can use this concentrate to make ginger beer as well, adding some simple syrup and seltzer. Anyone try this?

J.B.'s Deli in the pharmacy at the corner of Clark and Gregory bills itself as "One of the few Jewish delis" (their emphasis) -- rather than run all over the city, you might check in to see if they've got any soup handy.

Whenever I am feeling under the weather I know that I can rely on the Vietnamese rice porridge called chao to make me feel alot better, even if only temporarily.*

Chao is a soup made from long-cooked short grain rice, water, and/or stock. It generally contains some form of protein, and the diner is usu. provided with a wide assortment of garnishes.**

A number of the shops in the Argyle neighbourhood serve chao, and usu. several different ways:

long--combination
thit--gr. pork
(thit) bo--gr. beef
ga--chicken
xa ga--chicken and lemongrass
vit--duck
ca--fish
etc.

Pho Xe Tang (a.k.a. Tank Noodle) makes a particularly good version of this dish. The broth is very flavourful, and the soup is fortified with a hefty lot of slivered ginger.

In light of the recommendations in this thread I took an informal survey of Vietnamese people today while lunching at Tank. When asked what they would recommend to someone who was not feeling well, eight people said chao, two people said chao or pho, one person said pho, and one person said that they would recommend a Whopper™ at Burger King (?!).

I find the softened rice and relatively small amount of meat very easy to digest, and the stock and ginger seem to have wonderful restorative powers. And, hey, really, it has a reputation all over the world as being good for the young, the elderly, and the infirm.

Rice Congee @ Wikipedia

Spinach Rice Congee @ da*xiang

Pictorial : Congee @ EGullet

Congee: Asia's Bowl full of Comfort @ PepperTrail

Congee @ AcupunctureNorthwest

Pho Xe Tang (a.k.a. Tank Noodle)
4953 N. Broadway
773-878-2253
Closed Wednesdays


E.M.


* Chao is commonly understood to have originated in China, and it is probably more widely known as congee, or by the Chinese names zhou and jook.

** These garnishes might include ground peanuts, scallion oil, minced scallion, soy sauce, bean sprouts, etc.

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"Don't even touch my gold, I'm good."

ndgbucktown wrote in connection with a ginger infusion:


My wife makes an infusion of sliced ginger root in a light sugar syrup. Mixed with seltzer, maybe with a dash of lemon or twist of lemon peel, it beats any commercial ginger ale I have ever had. This mix doesn't seem too good in connection with an upper respiratory infection but is good for a queasy stomach. Even if I feel good, this cold mixture makes me feel even better.