Instant Pot Egg Roll Soup

This soup is egg roll flavour without the wrapper: pork, cabbage, carrots, ginger, coconut aminos, and broth, pressure cooked together in about twenty minutes. The result is deeply savoury, warming, and filling in a way that satisfies without being heavy. It is the kind of recipe that works for a weeknight when you are tired and need something real on the table without a lot of decisions.

Pork is a source of zinc, a mineral involved in immune regulation and gut-barrier integrity. Both of these are central to what you are managing with an autoimmune condition - the gut barrier and the immune response are not separate conversations, and zinc plays a role in both. Cabbage brings glucosinolates, compounds involved in supporting the liver's detoxification pathways, which carry extra load when the body is in an active autoimmune state. Ginger adds warmth and is associated with supporting circulation and digestive function, both of which are worth attending to during recovery.

If you can source pastured pork, do it. An animal that lived well and ate well gives you a different nutritional profile and a better flavour than the other kind. Cook this on a night when you need something that feels generous. It is.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon lard or extra virgin olive oil
• 1 pound ground pastured pork
• 1 large onion, diced
• 4 cups chicken or beef broth
• 1/2 head cabbage, chopped
• 2 cups shredded carrots
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon unrefined salt
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2/3 cup coconut aminos
• Optional: 2 to 3 tablespoons tapioca starch, for thickening

Method

Set the Instant Pot to saute and add the lard or olive oil. When the fat is hot, add the ground pork and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon or spatula, until it is no longer pink - about 5 minutes. Add the diced onion and stir for another 2 minutes until softened.

Add the broth, cabbage, shredded carrots, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, ground ginger, and coconut aminos. Stir to combine.

Lock the lid and set the valve to sealing. Cook on high pressure for 5 minutes. Allow a natural pressure release for 5 minutes, then carefully release any remaining pressure and remove the lid.

If you want a thicker broth: ladle about half a cup of the hot broth into a separate cup or small bowl. Whisk the tapioca starch into this liquid until smooth and no lumps remain, then pour the mixture back into the pot while stirring. Set the pot to saute and stir for 2 to 3 minutes until the broth thickens to a light, glossy consistency.

Taste and adjust the salt. Serve in deep bowls.

Instant Pot variation

The method above is the Instant Pot method. The short pressure cooking time - 5 minutes on high - is enough to fully cook the pork and cabbage and marry the flavours. Do not overcook; the cabbage should be tender but not completely broken down.

Slow cooker variation

Brown the pork in a skillet on the stovetop over medium-high heat, breaking it up as it cooks. Add the onion and stir for 2 minutes, then transfer everything to the slow cooker. Add all remaining ingredients except the tapioca starch. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours.

If thickening: whisk the tapioca starch into a ladleful of the hot broth until smooth, stir it back into the pot, and cook uncovered on high for 10 to 15 minutes until the broth thickens.

*Adapted from thecuriouscoconut.com (Jennifer Robins, shared with permission by Amanda Torres)*

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*Provenance: method rebuilt in ARM's own words from /Users/Christopher/Documents/Claude/01-Projects/ARM/aip-source-archives/the-curious-coconut/instant-pot-egg-roll-soup.md (thecuriouscoconut.com, Jennifer Robins, shared by Amanda Torres). Ingredient list used as factual reference. All ingredients confirmed AIP Core. No third-party text reproduced. Provenance class: source-derived (re-grounded).*