Step 1- Roast it

• Wash 4 of the lemongrass stalks, the white part of the leek and the 4 garlic cloves, chop finely and store in separate bowls/cups.
• In a frying pan, heat 6 tablespoons of rapeseed oil on high and add the chopped leeks and stir-fry.
• Once the leeks are golden, add the lemongrass and keep stirring. 
• When the ingredients are slightly brown, add the chopped garlic and stir-fry for another 1 minute.
• Finally, add 1 tsp of cayenne pepper and set aside.

Step 2- The broth

• In a large pot, fill 3.5 liters of water.
• Wash and peel the radish and carrots, divide them into bite-sized pieces (e.g. quarter them lengthwise and slice them) and add them to the pot.
• Peel, quarter and core the apple and add to the pot as well.
• Wash the greens from the leek and the remaining 2 lemongrass stalks and add them uncut to the pot.
• Peel and halve the onion and ginger and sauté them, cut side down, in a pan without oil until they are dark brown and add them to the pot as well.
• Then place the pot on the stove top and bring to a boil on high.
• Add about 3 tablespoons of salt, 4 teaspoons of sugar, 200 ml of pineapple juice and 5 tablespoons of soy sauce and turn the stove to medium and simmer for 30 min.
• After the 30 mins, take out the leek, onion, lemongrass stalks, apple pieces and ginger and add the fried lemongrass mixture and let it simmer for 2-3 hours with the stove off.

Step 3- Prepare the toppings

• Remove the water from the tofu blocks, give them a quick rinse and drain. To do this, take a cutting board, place a kitchen towel on it, then place the tofu blocks on it, again a kitchen towel and a second cutting board. On the top cutting board, place an object weighing about 1 kg and let it drain for 20 minutes.
• You can deep-fry the tofu or use it "raw" in the soup.
• Deep-fried version: Cut the tofu blocks in half lengthwise and fry them in a pot or wok with rapeseed oil on both sides until golden brown and drain. Then cut into pieces.
• Raw version: simply cut into bite-sized pieces.
• Prepare the rice noodles according to package directions and rinse with cold water until the noodles are completely cool.
• Clean the 300 g mushrooms, cut them into quarters and add them to the broth as well. Bring this to the boil again.
• In the meantime, wash the bean sprouts and the mint. Chop the mint or serve it with the soup at the table.

Step 4- Serving

• We recommend you to use large bowls.
• Put the rice noodles, bean sprouts, mint and tofu in the bowls and then pour the broth and the vegetables cooked in it. Make sure that your broth is very hot, it cools down quickly due to the cold ingredients.

Now you can enjoy your Asian noodle soup.