Darina Allen: Here is my formula for the perfect bowl of soup, and a chicken stock recipe

It's a soupy kind of day. I’m sitting by the fire listening to the horizontal rain spattering against the windowpane. I’ve totally abandoned my plans for the afternoon and I’ve decided to make a big pot of comforting soup instead.

Don’t we all love soup? I always have a few containers in the freezer – two portion pots that can be defrosted in just a few minutes in any emergency – a readymade hug in a bowl.

Everything from ‘chicken soup for the soul’ to Laksa, that Asian noodle soup you never knew you loved until you’ve tasted it. 

Slurpy noodles are super comforting too as is a ricey broth. I just did a bit of research with Cully and Sully soups to check out what were their bestselling flavours – chicken and vegetable by a long mile, then vegetable soup followed closely by tomato. How perfect do they sound on a wet Sunday afternoon or on an evening after a stressful day at work?

To make really flavourful soup, you’ll need good stock – chicken stock is my favourite for soups and broths but vegetarians and vegans will need a supply of rich vegetable stock.

Fresh ginger and lots of fresh herbs help to boost the flavour and if all else fails, there’s water, but it’s difficult to compensate for the lack of a good base. Nonetheless, Japanese dashi which forms the base of miso soup is really easy to make and accentuates the savoury umami flavour in many dishes.

Years ago when I first cooked in the kitchen at Ballymaloe House, Myrtle Allen showed me this brilliant formula used to make many of the delicious soups on the menu:

• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped potatoes
• 3 cups of any vegetable of your choice or a mixture eg carrot, carrot, parsnip and celeriac…pea, bean
  and courgette…
• 5 cups stock or 4 stock + 1 cup creamy milk

This formula works brilliantly for a myriad of soups. We’re in the midst of the root vegetable season now – Jerusalem artichokes are just coming on stream but it’s also great for greens – kale, chard, spinach, watercress, even the often-overlooked cabbage which makes one of my favourite soups of all. These soups can be puréed or served in their brothy state, scattered with some freshly chopped herbs for extra zing.

I also love to add a variety of ‘drizzles’ or toppings: a herb and chilli oil adds extra oomph; and how about some tahini with sunflower, pumpkin and sesame on a squash soup to add a delicious cheffy touch.

Soups provide the opportunity to be endlessly creative with ingredients you have close to hand, something to suit your every mood: light broths, purées, chunky vegetable soups, Asian, Mexican, Mediterranean. Every country has its soup, enough to fill endless volumes.

But best of all in these challenging times – delicious, nourishing, wholesome soups can be made with a few inexpensive ingredients in minutes.

Involve the kids and turn up the music, get them chopping and having fun and then tuck into big bowls of delicious soup around the kitchen table.

Chicken stock

recipe by:Darina Allen

This recipe yields 3.5 litres of richly flavoured homemade stock that will keep for several days in the refrigerator

Servings

8

Preparation Time

 25 mins

Cooking Time

 3 hours 0 mins

Total Time

 3 hours 25 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 2–3 raw or cooked chicken carcasses or a mixture of both giblets from the chicken (neck, heart, gizzard — save the liver for a different dish)

• 1 onion, sliced

• 1 leek, halved

• 4 outside celery stalks or 2 lovage leaves

• 2 carrot, cut into chunks

• a few parsley stalks

• sprig of thyme

• 6 black peppercorns

Method

1. Chop up the carcasses as much as possible. Put all the ingredients into a saucepan and cover with about 3.4 litres cold water. Bring to the boil. Skim the fat off the top with a tablespoon. Simmer very gently for 3–4 hours. Taste, strain and remove any remaining fat. Do not add salt.

2. For a more intense flavour, boil down the liquid in an open pan until it reduces to about half of the original volume. Taste and add salt.

3. Pheasant or guinea fowl stock is also made on the same principle as chicken stock. Use appropriately in game dishes.

4. Goose or duck stock may be made in the same manner as chicken stock. However, some chefs like to brown the carcasses first for a richer flavour and darker stock. 

Chicken and Coconut Soup

recipe by:Darina Allen

All these ingredients can be easily found in Asian shops on most supermarket shelves and keep well in your pantry.

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 25 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Irish

Ingredients

• 900ml (1 1/2 pints) homemade chicken stock

• 1 x 400g (14oz) can coconut milk

• 8 thin slices of fresh ginger or galangal

• 2 lemongrass stalks

• 1 tablespoon red curry paste (we use Mae Ploy)

• 1 - 2 tablespoons sugar

• 1/2 onion (50g/2oz), thinly sliced

• 225g (8oz) crimini or brown mushrooms, thinly sliced and slivered if larger

• 5 tablespoons fish sauce

• 225g (8oz) chicken breast, very thinly sliced

• 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 2 limes, juiced (at least 50ml/2fl oz or more to taste)

• 1 tablespoon grated lime zest

• 20g (3/4oz) fresh basil leaves (use Thai basil if available)

• 110 - 225g (4 - 8oz) cooked white rice (optional)

• To serve:

• fresh basil leaves

Method

1. Remove the tough outer leaves of the lemongrass, use only the pale tender portion, chop into 5cm (2 inch pieces) and slightly crush with the back of a knife.

2. Place the chicken stock, coconut milk, ginger, lemongrass, curry paste, sugar and sliced onion in a saucepan and bring to a boil.

3. Add the mushroom and fish sauce. Reduce the heat to medium, and simmer for about 4 minutes.

4. Add the shredded chicken, salt, lime juice, lime zest and basil. Simmer for about 3 minutes until the chicken is just cooked through and changed from translucent to opaque – taste and add the rice if using.

5. Serve soup with a few fresh basil leaves

Creamy tomato soup

recipe by:Darina Allen

Deliciously easy, this soup can be made with good quality tinned tomatoes

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 30 mins

Course

 Side

Ingredients

• For the béchamel sauce:

• 110 g butter

• 110 g flour

• 1 pint milk

• Few slices of carrot

• Few slices of onion

• 3 peppercorns

• Small sprig of thyme

• Small sprig of parsley

• Salt and freshly ground pepper

• 750 ml homemade tomato purée
  or 2 x  tins of tomatoes, liquidized and sieved

• 1 small onion, finely chopped

• 15 g butter

• 250 ml homemade chicken stock or vegetable stock

• 2 tablespoons freshly chopped basil

• Salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar

• 120 ml cream

Method

1. Melt the butter and cook the flour in it for 2 minutes on a low heat, stirring occasionally. Use as required. Roux can be stored in a cool place and used as required or it can be made up on the spot if preferred. It will keep at least a fortnight in a refrigerator. 

2. Put the cold milk into a saucepan with the carrot, onion, peppercorns, thyme and parsley. Bring to the boil, simmer for 4-5 minutes, remove from the heat and leave to infuse for 10 minutes. Strain out the vegetables, bring the milk back to the boil and thicken to a light coating consistency by whisking in 45g of roux. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper, taste and correct seasoning if necessary.

3. Sweat the onion in the butter on a gentle heat until soft but not coloured. Add the tomato purée (or chopped tinned tomatoes plus juice), Béchamel sauce and homemade chicken stock. Add the chopped basil, season with salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar. Bring to the boil and simmer for a few minutes.

4. Liquidize, taste and dilute further if necessary. Bring back to the boil, correct seasoning and serve with the addition of a little cream if necessary. Garnish with a tiny blob of whipped cream and some basil.
   
   Note: 
   Tinned tomatoes need a surprising amount of sugar to counteract the acidity.
   Fresh milk cannot be added to the soup – the acidity in the tomatoes will cause it to curdle
   This soup needs to be tasted carefully as the final result depends on the quality of the homemade purée, stock etc.

Hot Tips

An energy saving tip: Electric kettles are very energy intensive, just boil the quantity of water you need for coffee, tea…every little gesture helps to alleviate or contribute to climate change…

Ballymaloe Cookery School Gift Vouchers

Still racking your brain for a special pressie for Christmas? How about a Ballymaloe Cookery School Gift Token for an Afternoon Demonstration, a Day, a Weekend course or a Subscription to Ballymaloe Cookery School Online Courses. Lots of options, could be a bespoke course for your family or work colleagues. You decide on a special course or just choose an amount, your friend can top up if they fancy.

• For more information, see http://cookingisfun.ie/vouchers/gift-voucher-ballymaloe-cookery-school

McNally Family Farm

At last I got to McNally’s Family Farm in Balrickard in the Dublin suburbs.

A family run enterprise with a Farm Shop and Café (open Wednesday to Saturday) where one can buy a wide variety of vegetables, herbs, salads, roots and fruits grown on the 77-acre farm certified organic for over 20 years.

McNally’s Family Farm also sells at three Farmers’ Markets in Dublin – Naomh Olaf GAA (Friday), Temple Bar Market (Saturday) and Honest2Goodness in Glasnevin (Saturday).

• For more information, see www.mcnallyfamilyfarm.ie

Fermentation Workshop with Penny Allen & Maria Walsh at Ballymaloe Cookery School on Tuesday, November 29, 2022 from 2.30 – 5.30pm

Fermentation is and has always been an important part of a healthy diet. We have lost many traditional fermented foods that would have been part of our everyday food. Learn how to put these foods back into your family’s diet.

In this afternoon demonstration, Penny and Maria will show you how to make Sauerkraut, Kombucha and Water Kefir…You will leave full of enthusiasm with a jar of starter cultures for Water Kefir. Penny and Maria will demystify and remove the fear from making your fermented foods in your home kitchen.

• For more information, see www.cookingisfun.ie