Chicken and Rice Soup with Napa Cabbage

For this meal in a bowl, store-bought chicken broth gets a big flavor boost and a good dose of umami from either Chinese black bean-garlic sauce or spicy chili-bean sauce (called toban djan); look for jars of these ingredients in the international aisle of the supermarket. We also add powdered gelatin to approximate the richness of long-simmered chicken stock. If you prefer, you can skip the gelatin and simply add the broth, bean sauce, cabbage and rice to the pot, then bring to a boil. To make the soup heartier, add diced tofu or top servings with a soft-boiled egg.