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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 24, 2010 20:35:15 GMT
Lola, you can experiment with using them as described in the menudo recipe. Also, you might toast them lightly, then simmer them until soft, and blenderize. Use the resulting goop by the spoonful in something to see how you like it. Maybe add some to a cream sauce, for instance, or mix the ancho base into creme fraiche, then spoon that into an appropriate soup. For real delicacy, toast & simmer, then scrape the pulp away from the skin. You could season it and serve it on beef, or add it to a tomato-based dish. I'll be interested to know about your experiments!
To toast large chiles such as ancho, place them on a dry hot griddle, being careful not to let them burn. Remove them, then quickly, while they're still pliable, slit them and open them flat, scraping out the seeds. Now toast the inside.
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Post by lola on Mar 24, 2010 23:14:46 GMT
Thanks, Bixa. I had a friend who used to refer to menudo as The Breakfast of Champions.
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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 24, 2010 23:37:03 GMT
Ha! you made me laugh, but it's oh, so true. It's the traditional Mexican cure for hangovers. Apparently, there's some truth to that belief -- the high vitamin B content does the trick.
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Post by Don Cuevas on Mar 26, 2010 13:56:22 GMT
"MENUDO ESTILO NORTEÑO" I never have made it, as it's widely available here (except that, this not being El Norte, they don't put in the hominy. That's reserved for pozole.). However, most of the menudo available here is not particularly good, as the tripe is never cooked in the chile flavored broth, but in water. The menudo stand vendors do a kind of "hot rinse" of the cut up tripe to warm it, then pour on the chile broth. At best, the final reslts are just acceptable but not great. Despite that, across from the Plaza San Francisco in Pátzcuaro, there is a cluster of 3 or 4 menudo stands that are always thronged with customers.
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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 26, 2010 18:44:32 GMT
Don Cuevas, do try making it. For one thing, when making it at home, you can remove all the excess fat from the tripe before cooking. The ungreasy version is much nicer. I also cut the tripe into bite-sized pieces, as I don't like sawing (& splashing) at them with the side of my spoon when I'm eating. As with chili, one plain recipe can be tweaked to perfection.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 20, 2010 17:44:26 GMT
New soup recipe alert: onlyMark has posted ~~ with pictures! ~~ how to make his "Egyptian Gazpacho". It's in The Galley and will be in the Soup section of the recipe index.
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Post by bixaorellana on May 11, 2010 0:34:50 GMT
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Post by Don Cuevas on Jul 24, 2010 13:06:09 GMT
Summer weather in Michoacán is cool, not hot. This probably explains why hot soups, caldos, consomés, pozoles, birrias, menudos, atapakuas, etc are so popular. (Try finding an atapakua in a restaurant. I dare you.)
Last night our supper consisted of this quick, easy, Spanish-style Sopa de Ajo, y Migas con Huevo:
Sliced garlic, garlic, garlic (6-8 cloves) and a bit of onion, about 1/3rd medium, cooked in a little olive oil. Cook garlic and onion, add one and a half to 2 cups coarse sourdough or hearty "peasant" bread crumbs. Fry slowly until lightly browned.
Add 6 cups of beef stock (made from cubes and a superior beef base.); Pimentón de La Vera and FGBP to taste. Dash of Pepper Sherry, or just dry sherry.
Place a lightly poached egg in each bowl, ladle on the soup.
Just right for cool, rainy weather.
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Post by joanne28 on Sept 6, 2010 15:29:44 GMT
Bixa, here is how I made my very simple chicken stock.
1 whole chicken 6 quarts of water 2 or 3 chopped onions 3 or 4 chopped celery stalks 3 or 4 chopped carrots salt and pepper to taste
Everything into the pot - heat to boiling. Reduce heat to medium simmer.
Remove the chicken when cooked, about half an hour or so.
Simmer for another hour or so - longer if you want to reduce it more.
Strain to remove vegetables. Put in fridge overnight to skim the fat off.
This was quite bland - next time I plan to add some garlic and parsley.
As for the soup I made with the stock, I chopped 4 leeks, 6 carrots and three stalks of celery, added them to 8 cups of stock and simmered till the veg were thoroughly cooked. Then I adjusted the seasoning and blended the whole thing. It made a rather thin purée, perfect for drinking from a cup.
I've realized I much prefer puréed soups as opposed to a broth with stuff in it. The avgolemono was okay because the rice thickened it up. I just don't like thin soups - I need a little more body to soup.
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Post by bixaorellana on Sept 6, 2010 19:09:52 GMT
Don Cuevas, that is easily one of my all-time favorite soups. It's even delicious made with plain water instead of stock. I don't use onion in mine, and I mince the garlic. I've never had the smoked paprika (although I wouldn't be adverse to a shot of chipotle hot sauce in the soup). The method I learned for making this was to put the paprika in the garlic & bread crumbs once they've browned, stir it through quickly, then add the boiling liquid. Let it simmer for 20 - 30 minutes, then beat the mixture with a wooden spoon to break up the bread and thicken the soup. Adjust seasonings and serve with some minced parsley, with or without the egg.
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Joanne, that sounds perfect -- straightforward and chickeny.
I profoundly agree with you about soup with body versus "broth with stuff in it". Slurp, slurp, chase overcooked object with spoon, slurp, slurp.
Vegetables cooked in soup have leached some of their flavor into the soup. Blenderizing it all together not only gives the soup body, it amps up the overall flavor. Your leek/carrot/celery/stock soup must have been a lovely color, as well.
That said, sometimes a rich, slightly greasy beef soup with hunks of potatoes and carrots can also hit the spot quite nicely.
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Post by joanne28 on Sept 8, 2010 1:35:12 GMT
Here's a cold weather soup. My tweaks follow. INGREDIENTS 1/2 cup crème fraîche Finely grated zest + juice of 1 lime 1 tbsp unsalted butter 1 yellow onion, chopped 2 large cloves garlic, chopped 2 tbsp chopped, peeled ginger 1/2 tsp ground cumin 1/4 tsp crushed red chili flakes 4 cups vegetable stock + more if needed for thinning 1-1/2 to 2 lb (700 to 900 g) sweet potatoes (about 2 large), peeled, chopped 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter 2 tbsp chopped cilantro leaves DIRECTIONS In small bowl, stir together crème fraîche and lime zest. Refrigerate, covered, until ready to use. In large saucepan, melt butter over medium. Add onion, garlic and ginger. Cook, stirring, 5 minutes to soften. Stir in cumin and chili. Cook 1 minute. Add stock and potatoes. Raise heat to high; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer until potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes. In batches in blender or food processor, purée. Return soup to medium heat. Whisk in peanut butter. Stir in lime juice and cilantro. If desired, thin soup with extra stock or water to desired consistency. Serve soup topped with generous dollop lime-spiked crème fraîche. Makes about 6 cups. My Tweaksa) I have never bothered with the crème fraîche & lime zest garnish. I'm too lazy. b) I use a lot more crushed red chili peppers. Ginger and garlic are also adjustable. c) Using salted butter is fine. So is using chicken stock. This is probably my favourite soup at this time. I am a huge peanut fan so it all works out nicely for me.
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Post by bixaorellana on Sept 8, 2010 3:23:49 GMT
My TweakMake twice as much! Oh gosh, that sounds fantastic. I never thought of it before, but after reading this recipe, sweet potatoes and peanut butter appear to be a marriage made in heaven. I don't know if I'd get it together to make the crème fraîche/lime juice thing either, although it does sound tasty -- even more so if a little ginger juice were to be squeezed into it. Joanne -- you might like to try one of my favorite salsas with it one day. Crush small fresh hot green chiles and salt into pulp in a mortar. Scrape that out & mix into some crème fraîche or yogurt. That's it!
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Post by cristina on Sept 8, 2010 3:30:25 GMT
Joanne, your soup sounds fantastic. Eventually I will have some cool weather and will definitely want to try it. Although I confess that I would want to certainly include the lime-spiked creme fraîche (or at least some sour cream).
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Post by lagatta on Sept 9, 2010 11:45:01 GMT
Only thing I change about the chicken soup recipe is to bone the poached chicken and return all bones, skin and cartilege to the pot. I don't bother with the vegetables - by the time the stock is cooked, they have leached all their vitamins into the broth. If I buy a celery, I have too much to use up any way, so I'd just add fresh celery, onion and carrot to the soup, and perhaps other veg.
I do skim this broth once I've put it in heatproof glass jars - leaving the skin in adds flavour, but too much fat. Chicken fat easily floats to the top as the soup cools.
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Post by joanne28 on Sept 9, 2010 13:54:23 GMT
Good idea about the skin & bones, Lagatta. I'm sure it would add more ooomph to the stock also.
I have just started making stock, so I appreciate any and all tips. I'm embarrassed to say that I have used canned or jarred stock till now. Next up will be beef stock, as I want to make my dad's onion soup au gratin.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 9, 2010 14:09:34 GMT
I am going to be boiling some oxtails soon, and that makes great beef stock.
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Post by joanne28 on Sept 9, 2010 14:47:26 GMT
I'll have to try the oxtails. Thanks, K.
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Post by lagatta on Sept 9, 2010 16:18:35 GMT
K2, do you brown the oxtails before boiling them? That would give more colour and perhaps a deeper flavour to stock.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 9, 2010 16:36:33 GMT
No, I don't brown them. I'm always afraid to "overbrown" them ( = burn) and that is a flavor I don't want in the stock.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 10, 2010 18:27:16 GMT
Okay, here are the oxtails I bought today (2.3kg) and here's how they looked after boiling for about 2 hours -- but probably 2 more hours to go. Some people may be dismayed to see such things as cardamom pods or cloves floating in the broth, but I am the master of my realm.
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Post by hwinpp on Sept 11, 2010 4:36:53 GMT
I thought it was garlic. Was 4 hours enough?
This kind of soup I just lap up with French bread.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2010 8:36:52 GMT
Four hours was plenty for the meat to fall off the bone. It might take longer with Cambodian oxen, because they must build up so much muscle in their tails, whipping them around to try to get the flies and mosquitos off.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 20, 2010 18:20:33 GMT
I made a leek and potato soup last night, delicious and completely unauthentic, because I threw in everything that was lying around. This means: potatoes, leeks, carrots, an orphan courgette, some wilting grated cabbage, Chinese celery, garlic, some wilting parsley and various spices. After boiling for a bit, it went into the food processor to be pulped. I have wonderful soup for the next 4 or 5 days.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 24, 2010 18:42:41 GMT
That does look like a glorious soup. What herbs or spices did you use besides the parsley?
Did you just put the sausage directly into the simmering soup, without browning it first?
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Post by Deleted on Nov 24, 2010 18:45:59 GMT
It was boiled sausage, so I did not brown it.
I didn't use any weird spices for once: salt, pepper, cumin, thyme.
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Post by bjd on Nov 24, 2010 20:03:03 GMT
Now that it's cold here, I have been making soups again. I made some pumpkin/carrot soup the other day and blended it, but generally I prefer to leave the bits of vegetables whole. Traditionally, I have the impression the French like their soups blended but I prefer to see what I am getting.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 24, 2010 20:54:19 GMT
The French have constant discussions about this. I am a blender, but I have many non blending friends.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 25, 2010 4:52:32 GMT
I really like the texture in Kerouac's picture -- it's blenderized enough to mix and meld everything, but it's not baby-food smooth. The little pieces in it make it look rich and interesting.
Every once in a while I'll make a soup that's meant to be brothy with stuff in it, but which is sort of boring. Giving it the blender treatment & a boost of spice can turn it into something much better.
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Post by joanne28 on Nov 27, 2010 2:45:07 GMT
I'm a big blender. There are a few soups I make that aren't blended but I have a preference for blended soups.
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Post by lagatta on Nov 27, 2010 11:35:09 GMT
There are non-boring, unblended soups - the ones that are practically meals (or are meals) such as fish and seafood soup (there are also blended fish soups) or Asian noodle soups that also have lots of interesting "stuff".
Got a crockpot's worth of pork bones from the butcher round the corner. Not so used to making pork stock - I think that like mutton stock, it is very "specific" in use. See it can go in some soups from Latin American countries, also some East and Southeast Asian soups - though that is very, very general. Any ideas?
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