Re: Jewish Cookery Book
This is the recipe I use:-
BEST EVER CHICKEN SOUP
INGREDIENTS – serves 6 -8
3 lbs chicken cut into portions (I use breast meat)
3 Onions – quartered.
6 pints of water
5 celery stalks – sliced
4 carrots – sliced (I leave these out if I am going to make it as Cream of Chicken soup - they spoil the colour)
1 small parsnip – sliced
2 Tablespoons chopped parsley
2 Tablespoons chopped dill
Pinch of turmeric
2 chicken stock cubes
2 cloves of garlic – chopped
Salt and pepper to taste.
Put the chicken pieces in a very large pan/cauldron. Add the other ingredients – reserving half the dill to garnish.
Cover the pan and bring to the boil. Lower the heat to simmer. Skim and discard any scum that rises to the surface.
Add the stock cubes and simmer for about 2 hours. Skim off any fat..
At this point you can decide on how you want your soup to look. Traditionally it would be served as it is now –clear and rather chunky – and with delicious little dumplings called knaidlach or lokshen (Noodles)
If you want a smoother, less chunky look you can blitz it in a blender.
Here’s where it becomes Cream of Chicken Soup.
Not sure if this bit is strictly kosher – but – after I have blitzed the soup and returned it to the cauldron - I make a liaison with two egg yolks, whisked into 6 x tablespoons of fresh single cream – a dash of dry white wine, and a pinch of freshly ground nutmeg.
Drizzle this carefully into the soup – stirring the whole time so it doesn’t split. Heat it through for a few minutes just to cook the egg yolks. Garnish with the remaining dill and serve immediately or package and freeze. Keeps for 4 - 6 months in the freezer. Needs whisking as it thaws or the cream will separate.
Enjoy!