homemade soups

[lady cop]

i am sure many of you have made your own soups...today i took a leftover chicken :yh_chickn and made a lovely stock, let it simmer for several hours. then added carrots, onions, celery, and finally egg noodles. it was so simple and so delicious! many of the FG people are already into cooler weather, anyone have some soup recipes to share? .... (one thing that i think is great is that you control the salt, so many canned soups contain huge amounts of sodium.)

[venus]

My Gran makes the best home made soup ever!!!

Ive made her stand next to me whilst l make it and copy everything she does and do as she tells me, but no matter what l do it never tastes the same as hers?:-2

[ProfessionalMoron]

I love food.

I love to cook.

Lucky for me, i don't really gain weight from eating (except for all the beer)

I also enjoy helping others make good food. About 4 years ago i came up with a recipe for potato soup with chicken. Unfortunately, umm..... i kinda forgot how to make it, so, gimmie a bit to remember the thing. I could ramble off most of the major ingredients if you want, but it will take some time to peruse the file cabinet for quantities and minor ingredients. In fact, i might have to make some soon, I miss it.

[nvalleyvee]

Leftover Turkey Soup

boil the carcass and remaining meat

add: onion, celery

remove meat from the carcass and return meat to pot.

add: green chili, cream of celery soup and cheddar cheese soup

Serve with tortillas

[Betty Boop]

My mum used to make chicken soup, she'd boil the carcass of the chicken for days, then remove all the meat, she'd then add leeks to the stock and serve this concoction as chicken soup!

What did she do with the meat???





Fed it to the cat of course!!:wah:





She would never accept that she'd actually made Leek soup with a chicken stock!!

[lady cop]

i think the key to great soup is always homemade base/stock. the nice thing is all stocks freeze well. one of my favorites is a potato and fresh kale soup, i use a chicken stock for the base. cook it down until the potatoes have disintegrated into a white creamy soup and then add chopped fresh kale. to make this really hearty some cut- up italian sausage or linquica is a good addition. ...............welcome to FG Professional Moron, nice to meet you

[ProfessionalMoron]

JAB wrote: First off, welcome Moron! Hmm, wait a minute :-3 that didn't come out right...

Anyway, welcome to FG and please do go find the recipe. I love eating soup and with fall and winter coming on, it'll be good to have new ones to try.


Thank you JAB, good to be here. And, you said it right. I like to keep myself in check (an ego is a terrible thing to haste).

i don't think i have it written down anywhere. The file cabinet is my head, which isn't necessarily organized :-3

Although it might violate LC's low sodium mandate, a very simple egg drop soup is an easy way to warm up and get some good proteins and vitamins:

- veg or peanut oil

- chicken broth/ stock

- ginger, minced

- scallions (the white part), sliced thin/ shallots/ vidalia/ yellow onion, minced (preferably scallions)

- cornstarch, as needed

- white/ black pepper, to taste (preferably white)

- salt, to taste

- eggs, beaten

if your base liquid needs more flavor or is too heavy in flavor:

celery, minced

carrot, minced

garlic, minced (if desired... it's good for you)

- essentially stir-fry the ginger and onion (+celery, carrot, and garlic, if desired)

- add the broth/ stock and bring to boil

- in a small ramakin or something, add some cornstarch to some cold broth/ stock or water and mix with a fork (or, chopsticks ;p)

- slowly add some of this cornstarch slurry to your liquid, constantly stirring

- be careful, cornstarch is powerful. too much can give you Jell-O quickly

- return to boil, check consistency, add more cornstarch mixture if desired

- cornstarch isn't REALLY necessary, but, it does make a nice "suspension" for all the goodies to hang out in

- while simmering, drizzle in the eggs. i don't recommend dumping the whole lot of egg in at once (no egg dump soup here)

- add remaining seasonings

- garnish with thin slices of the green part of the scallion

Note:

- fresh ginger isn't extrememly common in a kitchen. use powdered ginger before adding the cornstarch, if you want. ginger can be powerful and distinct, so, you might wanna use it sparingly.

- cornstarch will loosen if cooked for too long and too hard

- some people add some soy sauce to this

- this is an inexpensive and forgiving recipe (except for the ginger), so, play with it... add some minced red bell pepper or mushroom while stir-frying, if you want

- if you feel sassy, try out some Arrowroot in place of cornstarch. it can give you a boost in flavor, but beware of the price tag for it

I used to have a recipe for some amazing Kung Pao chicken.... sigh... i haven't made it in about 6 to 7 years and forgot it

I'll post my pot soup when i remember it.

John Randomly,

Professional Moron

[lady cop]

that sounds excellent...and i LIKE salt, i was really thinking of those on low-salt diets. it's good to be able to control the amounts.

[ProfessionalMoron]

lady cop wrote: that sounds excellent...and i LIKE salt, i was really thinking of those on low-salt diets. it's good to be able to control the amounts.


I was being silly about the salt mandate.

I love salt. I'm sure it has to do with my high metabolism and over-active nerves (sodium being a main ingredient in nerve and neural functions). But, over time, especially after wacthing my dad consume WAY too much of the stuff, i began to understand how it can really take away from the other subtle, yet important, flavors in food.... and.... well... destroy your heart.

Salt in the right quantity brings out the flavor in many ingredients, kind of like using scallions or shallots instead of regular onions... you get a nice shallow sweet flavor.

The first time i used Leeks, i was hooked. Leeks are mmm.

[lady cop]

leeks and shallots are superb! subtle and fragrant.

[ProfessionalMoron]

lady cop wrote: i think the key to great soup is always homemade base/stock. the nice thing is all stocks freeze well. one of my favorites is a potato and fresh kale soup, i use a chicken stock for the base. cook it down until the potatoes have disintegrated into a white creamy soup and then add chopped fresh kale. to make this really hearty some cut- up italian sausage or linquica is a good addition. ...............welcome to FG Professional Moron, nice to meet you




Thank you Lady, it's very nice to meet you.

I agree, a well balanced home-made stock is like a tomato sauce....

everything works around it. Lasagna is no good w/o a good sauce.

I like the Italian sausage idea. Sounds delicious.

I cheat a little in my pot soup and use potato flakes, heavy cream, half-and-half, and cubed boiled potatoes (I don't have a burrer for quickly "mashing" the pots, and hate doing dishes) Also, a thick chicken base seems to work best for this one.

So...

It's basically:

pots

creams

chicken

chicken base

onion

garlic

seasonings

and a few "secret" ingredients (one being Tobasco) (and a good white wine)

OK, no more secret ingredients.

I do like the Italian sausage. I have to make some now. Just wondering... do you boil the pots in the stock itself, and reduce everything?

You are true. Homemade is best. You are in control of everything (hopefully). Canned food too often relies on salt for substance. Contrary to some belief, salt isn't really necessary for most canning. Unfortunately, i had to have hand surgery recently (cut myself cooking!!!!) and have had to rely on frozen and canned food

[lady cop]

"do you boil the pots in the stock itself, and reduce everything?"...yes, and you sound like a fabulous cook! the potato flakes are a great idea too.

[ProfessionalMoron]

I'll just put it this way:

My mother is an incredible cook. She never really let me near the stove. She's also neurotic about cleanliness. God forbid i ever let 1 drop of anything hit the elements. Soo.....

when i was young, i got great food living with parents, but never got to cook

... moved out....

suddenly she was MORE than happy to share her secrets when she didn't have to clean up after me... lmao

now that i think about it, that's about the time my pop showed me how he grills.

also, i have worked in many cooking atmospheres.

Food is life. I love life. I like others to love life. So, i love to make ppl's belly's happy. Too bad food isn't the way to a woman's heart. Guess i better learn more about chocolate and strawberries and wing it the rest of the way :-5

Strange enough, i never considered boiling pots in broth. Actually, that will help a lot in some of the things i do. Pot starch is such a good binder it's a shame to waste it by dumping out the boiling water.

[robinseggs]

This may sound really dumb but I have never made home made soup before and was wondering the most basic question.......how does one know how much water to start out with? What ratio of water to meat/veggies I guess???? Is there a general rule? I think I would wind up with one watered down mess!!

[Tombstone]

lady cop wrote: i am sure many of you have made your own soups...today i took a leftover chicken :yh_chickn and made a lovely stock, let it simmer for several hours. then added carrots, onions, celery, and finally egg noodles. it was so simple and so delicious! many of the FG people are already into cooler weather, anyone have some soup recipes to share? .... (one thing that i think is great is that you control the salt, so many canned soups contain huge amounts of sodium.)


Mmmmm.... A subject close to my heart - er - stomach!

Nothing like homemade soup. The only thing close is pie!

[ProfessionalMoron]

robinseggs wrote: This may sound really dumb but I have never made home made soup before and was wondering the most basic question.......how does one know how much water to start out with? What ratio of water to meat/veggies I guess???? Is there a general rule? I think I would wind up with one watered down mess!!


It does not sound really dumb. Soups confused me for a long time. I was mostly a steak and potato guy.

Soups can be as sipmle as boiling bones, or as complicated as a consomme' with a 3rd tier of Gruye're cheese.

Soups, as far as i have known, are generally made in one of two ways (for simplicity):

1. Cooking the main flavor (i.e. chicken, turkey, beef carcass or assorted meat and bones, or vegetables) in enough water to cover it, and then some. Then draining the liquid off to save as a stock or broth, to which you would later add your other junk to to make the finished vegetable soup, beef stew, gumbo, chicken soup, etc. The liquid poured off after boiling your bones and random meat and stuff is what you find in that can of Swanson chicken broth.

2. This one is not water based, in itself. Non water-based soups can be quite a pain if you let them. Soups like Minestrone, bisques, chowders, etc. require a better understanding of how fat, acids, starches, and water mingle (or don't).



A general rule for chicken soup might be something like this:

1/2 gallon or so chicken stock

1 - 1 1/2 celery stalk 1/4 inch dice or 1/8 inch slice

1 medium carrot jullienne

1/2 small onion minced

1 large or 2 small chicken breasts, cooked and cut

about 5 - 7 ounces egg noodles (or rice)

you would combine all of your chicken stock, celery, carrot, onion, cut chicken and whatever seasonings you wanted and boil for a bit. The boiling will tenderize the meat and soften the veggies. You would add the pasta or rice or whatever about 6 - 8 minutes before you think the veggies are done. Since pasta sucks up water, you might wanna add about 1 cup water to your concoction. But, a little thickness to your soup is good. Personally, i would cook rice separately if i used it.

There really isn't much of a ratio of water to stuff in soup, except for the fact that you want it to be soup, and not paste. And you want it to be soup and not a flavorless lake. Cooking is easy.... when cooking, water evaporates and flavors condense... this is called reduction. So, you can often start out with too little or too much water, and it won't matter... cause you can add more water later, or let some boil off But, if you boil veggies too much, you will almost certainly end up with "watered down mess"

I know that doesn't really tell you much, but, i hope it helps a little. Cook food, it's good

[capt_buzzard]

Hello & Welcome

[chocjunior]

have u any roots speciality soup

:driving:

[robinseggs]

Professional Moron, thanks so much for the detailed help with soups! It has always been confusing to me and so I never attempted to make it from scratch! I will use your direction this winter and finally "dive in" (no pun intended!!!)....

[lady cop]

Robinseggs, you may like this as well...if you cook a ham, save the hambone with some meat on it, or you can purchase hamhocks at some supermarkets. simmer them with some dried beans or split peas (after the dried legumes have soaked in water overnight.) add onion as well. if you like bean soups they are very rich and make a complete meal with some fresh crusty bread. i really like the 15-bean variety of dried beans.

[robinseggs]

Thanks so much for these tips!!! I am getting excited about making me some soup!!!!! So is the 15 bean variety how you buy it?? I mean is it packaged as 15 different varieties in one bag??

[lady cop]

robinseggs wrote: Thanks so much for these tips!!! I am getting excited about making me some soup!!!!! So is the 15 bean variety how you buy it?? I mean is it packaged as 15 different varieties in one bag??yes, there will be a large variety of dried beans in your supermarket, but that one package is my favorite. you will also see black beans (turtle beans) i will post cuban black bean soup later, it is fabulous!! i can't wait to hear how your soups come out, you'll be an expert in no time!

[robinseggs]

Thanks!

[lady cop]

a southern classic.....

Jumbo Gumbo 1 1/2 pounds uncooked head-on shrimp

3 cups water

2 onions, divided use

2 bay leaves

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons butter

1 green bell pepper, seeded and minced

2 celery stalks, minced

3/4 pound, spicy or andouille sausage, cut into 1/2-inch slices

1 whole chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch chunks

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

1 cup chopped, peeled, canned plum tomatoes

1 1/2 cups frozen okra

2 small cans crabmeat, drained

Cooked rice for serving

Hot sauce (optional)

Peel and clean shrimp, reserving heads and shells. Cover shrimp and refrigerate until ready to use.

Place the shrimp shells and heads in a saucepan with the water, one peeled and quartered onion and 1 bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then partly cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Strain, throw away shells, and set remaining liquid aside.

To make the roux, heat oil in a heavy-bottomed skillet. When the oil is hot, add flour, a little at a time, and blend to a smooth paste.

Coover over medium-low heat, stirring constantly for 25 to 40 minutes. It is done when mixture is the color of a penny or peanut butter. Remove from the heat and continue stirring until cool.

Melt butter in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan or flameproof casserole with lid. Finely chop remaining onion and add to the pan with the peppers and celery. Cook over medium-low heat, until the onions are soft, stirring occasionally. Do not allow vegetables to brown.

Add the sausage and chicken, stir well, and cook for 5 minutes. Add garlic, stir, and cook for another 2 minutes.

Add the remaining bay leaf, thyme, salt, black and white pepper and cayenne. Stir well then add shrimp stock and plum tomatoes. Bring to a boil, partly cover the pan, lower the heat, and simmer for about 20 minutes.

Whisk in the roux. Raise the heat and bring to a boil, whisking well. Lower the heat again and simmer, uncovered for 40 to 45 minutes longer, stirring occasionally. While pot is simmering, remove okra from the freezer to thaw.

Stir in shrimp, crabmeat and okra. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until shrimp is pink and okra is cooked through.

Serve over a mound of rice...........

[robinseggs]

OMG!! I bet that is so good LC....think I will take that to Orange Beach next summer and cook for the whole family when we stay in that house again!!! We are going back!!! Yipppeeeee!!!!

[lady cop]

Cuban black bean soup....another meal all by itself! buy package of dried black beans. soak overnight. rinse and place in pot with a couple quarts of chicken stock and water mixed. add some ham hocks and onions, simmer a few hours until it thickens up, it should be pretty thick, not watery. cook some white rice, and place some in a large bowl, then spoon the black bean soup over it. on top of that you HAVE to put a few dollops of sour cream and chopped- up scallions/spring onions! :yh_drool if you can get some fresh cuban bread, you will have a feast!!

[minks]

lady cop wrote: Cuban black bean soup....another meal all by itself! buy package of dried black beans. soak overnight. rinse and place in pot with a couple quarts of chicken stock and water mixed. add some ham hocks and onions, simmer a few hours until it thickens up, it should be pretty thick, not watery. cook some white rice, and place some in a large bowl, then spoon the black bean soup over it. on top of that you HAVE to put a few dollops of sour cream and chopped- up scallions/spring onions! :yh_drool if you can get some fresh cuban bread, you will have a feast!!


OH MY that sounds delightful.

[scotty]

Scotch Broth for me, or another is cullen skink (fish in milk) lol

Aye nothing beats your mothers soup to keep you warm in the winter.

Scott