Cooking with Emilia: Rosół

You probably know by now that I'm Slavic. That means I take soup seriously.

Soup — especially broth — is one of the ultimate Slavic staple foods, up there with potatoes and pickles. I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say that for the first eighteen years of my life I ate some sort of broth every single day. Most commonly it was chicken soup, so beloved in Poland that it has its own name, "Rosół" or "Rosołek." My mother makes it so well. It's flavorful, tangy, and borderline addictive. It becomes tomato soup with a little bit of tomato paste, and once my mother adds in her handmade egg noodles we're all in seventh heaven.

I will never forget the day I realised that not all broth is created equal. It was my first year at UChicago, and someone was drinking warmed up chicken stock out of a mug. I asked if I could have some and to my horror it was watery and bland. I had genuinely never thought that there could be bad broth. Call this a first world problem, but it made me appreciate how good I had it. So I've made it my mission to make sure that nobody has to live with bland stock again.

Despite its long cooking time this is such an easy recipe. I love to put it on right after getting home from classes or the Reg — by the time I'm hungry I have a steaming and nutritious bowl of rosół to nourish my soul and body.

Rosołek

Time: 3+ hours. Difficulty: Beginner

Ingredients:

  • 3 lbs bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed
  • 1 bag of baby carrots
  • 1 bunch of celery, roughly chopped
  • 1 large onion, roughly chopped
  • Fresh parsley and thyme
  • Bay leaves
  • Whole black peppercorns
  • Kosher salt

Method:

  1. Throw all your ingredients (sans salt) into a large stock pot and add enough water to cover everything.
  2. Bring to a low boil, salting as you go.
  3. As the soup boils keep your eye on it. White, yellow, and grey scum (fat) will float to the top. Scoop it out with a slotted spoon, or more realistically, just any old utensil.
  4. Reduce to a simmer, continuing to salt and remove the scum.
  5. After all the scum is removed (around fifteen minutes) cover and let simmer for at least two hours.
  6. Check every half hour to adjust salt and flavour.
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That's literally it. Don't be scared if your broth tastes like chicken water for the first hour or so. It takes its time but it's worth it.

Happy cooking!

Feature image via

Catch the Tail End of Summer with A Versatile Courgette Soup

Summer is the time of young vegetables, refreshing herbs, and light food. A long awaited season after many months of jumping back and forth between winter and spring, sunny weather has been in full swing in Chicago for the past few months. It's early October and I am so grateful for the weather. Before it gets cold, all I want to do is to savor the last bit of warm weather.

Inspired by the recipe from SeriousEats, I just had the picture of a perfect dinner in mind when I saw these baby courgettes in the produce aisle. They were not “baby” in size, but so young and delicate that a grasp would be enough to leave a mark on the surface.

Here is a simplified version with variations and tips:

Courgette & Basil Soup

Ingredients: 

  • 3 Courgettes (Zucchini)
  • 1 Leek
  • Basil leaves
  • A few cloves of garlic
  • Salt & pepper
  • Olive oil
  1. Prep
    1. Rinse the basil leaves and air dry; chop the leaves right before adding them to the pan
    2. Julienne the leek — cut it into small slices
    3. Peel the garlic cloves and cut them into small chunks; or just mash them 
    4. Dice the courgettes —  I did this while sweating the leek; when I saw clear juice oozing from the cut, I wanted to preserve the freshness.
  2. Cook
    1. Heat the saucepan up a bit and pour enough olive oil to at least cover the base
    2. Add the leak when the pan is warmed up; frequently turn it around and season generously with salt to get the moisture out of the leek (add more oil or some liquid if the leek takes on color)
    3. Add mashed garlic and mix well with the softened leek slices
    4. Add courgettes and a handful of basil leaves when the smell of leek and garlic begins to take over your kitchen 
    5. Mix well and add liquid (water or stock if you want the soup to be light. I added almond milk and very diluted millet porridge because they were at hand and I wanted a little bit starch in my soup)
    6. Simmer till all ingredients are soft and cooked
  3. Blend: Add some more fresh basil leaves and blend
  4. Season: Salt & pepper it the way you like 
  5. Garnish and Serve with bread: usually a few drizzle of olive oil and more herbs would do, but this soup is very flexible so however you want; some ideas: lemon/lime zest and peels,  thinly sliced red pepper, bacon crisp, more basil leaves… or even add potatoes, peeled and cubed, along with garlic if you prefer a thicker consistency.

As a random cook and firm believer in “use whatever is at hand,” I really love this recipe for its flexibility and seemingly unlimited variations. 

This light soup is perfect for a summer evening, be it an entrée or a starter paired with bread, rosé or something sparkling. Toast to the season, bon appétit!

All images courtesy of the author