La Potée Auvergnate

300g salted pork belly (poitrine demi-sel)
400 g salted pork ribs (plat de cotes demi-sel)
1 salted ham shank (jarret)
150 g cured ham, on the bone
1 onion, whole, peeled and stuck with 3 cloves.
6 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 medium-sized turnip, peeled and quartered
1 leek, white part only, cut into 5cm lengths
a bouquet garni
2 large pork cooking sausages, pricked
1 smallish cabbage (curly)
4 medium-sized carrots, peeled and left whole
4 medium potatoes, halved or quartered (or neatly turned)

Soak the pork belly, shank and ribs in water for at least a couple of hours, preferably up to 24 hours to remove the salt. Alternatively, if in a hurry, blanch the meats by dropping them into in boiling water for 5 minutes. Discard the water.

Cover the meat with fresh water, bring to a simmer and skim thoroughly for a few minutes. Add onion, carrots, garlic, leek, turnip and bouquet garni. Simmer gently for an hour and a half, skimming several times. (If you want the carrots to maintain a little texture, only add them after the first hour of cooking. Alternatively, remove them from the pot when they are done to your liking)

Meanwhile, cut the cabbage into 4 quarters and blanch it in boiling water for 5 minutes. Throw away the water, squeezing the cabbage dry. Refresh it in cold water.

After an hour and a half, add the cabbage, the potatoes and the sausages. Cook for another 30 minutes or until the potatoes are soft. Skim one last time. Throw away the leeks, onion and the bouquet.

The broth may be served separately with some fine pasta cooked in it.  The meats and vegetables are arranged attractively on a serving platter or individual shallow bowls and sprinkled with salt. Some broth is ladled over each plate. The potée is often served with mustard.

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Pot-au-Feu

 

500 g stewing beef

500 g shin of beef, on the bone

500 g beef short ribs

1 whole chicken leg and/or any giblets and carcasses 

1 kg beef bones, sawn into short lengths (if available)

250 g beef liver in one piece, or chicken livers (optional)

2 large leeks

2 large onions

1 turnip

1 small parsnip

2 stalks of celery

1 tomato (optional)

bouquet garni

1/2 head of garlic

3 cloves

12 peppercorns

 

Place the meat and bones in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a simmer,  removing all the foam that rises to the surface by skimming regularly. When it starts to simmer, add another cup of cold water to cool it down and enabling more scum to rise as it heats up again.

Meanwhile, if a darker coloured broth is desired, slice one of the onions in half and char the flat surfaces over a flame or on the grill. This will add colour and flavour to the broth. Alternatively, if the onions have a nice brown skin, a good colour can also be achieved by leaving them un-peeled.

Continue skimming the simmering broth for twenty minutes until no more scum rises. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for three hours, occasionally removing any fat that collects on the surface.

At the end of the cooking time, lift out all solids. Put the beef into a covered dish and keep warm. Strain and skim the broth again.

The vegetables from the pot-au-feu may be sliced and served with the meat. Alternatively they may be discarded and replaced with fresh vegetables, steamed or boiled separately until perfectly cooked.

The meat is rather bland and therefore served with mustard, horseradish sauce, coarse salt, cornichons and capers.

Generally, the broth is served at a separate meal. Often rice or pasta is added.

If marrow bones are available from the butcher, they should be cut int 5 cm lengths, tied in a muslin bag and added to the pot 45 minutes before the end of cooking. The cooked marrow is served on toast with salt and parsley.

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Soupe aux Tomates au Riz

 

TOMATO SOUP WITH RICE

(for 4 people)

2 tablespoons olive oil, lard or butter

1 medium-size onion, chopped

1 medium-size carrot, chopped

1 celery rib, chopped

50g  diced bacon /  a piece of cured ham bone

4 garlic cloves, minced

6 médium-size tomatoes, peeled and chopped

a pinch of sugar

salt and pepper

1.5 litres chicken stock

1 bay leaf

thyme

50 g rice

butter

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Potage Parmentier

(for 4 people)

200 g leeks (use mostly the white portion)

150 g onions

40 g butter

250 g potatoes

chives, chopped (optional)

1 litre light chicken stock

50 ml heavy cream

salt

 

Split the leeks down the middle and rinse them to remove any grit. Trim the root end off and slice finely. Peel and slice the onions. Melt the butter in a pot and sweat the onions and leeks for 20 minutes, stirring often to ensure they aquire no colouration. Meanwhile, bring the stock to a simmer and add it to the vegetables. Cut the potatoes into chunks and add them to the soup. Continue cooking at a slow simmer until the potatoes are completely soft.

Purée the soup with a blender and then pass through a fine sieve. Add the cream and season with salt. The soup can be served hot or chilled. Serve in chilled bowls. Sprinkle with chopped chives in the centre. The  soup can also be topped with a dollop of very lightly whipped cream and a sprinkle of chives.

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Potage Cultivateur

FARMER’S SOUP

(For 6 people)

40 g butter
4 slices bacon or salt pork (80 g)
1 leek (120 g)
1 carrot (120 g)
1 turnip (60 g)
1 stick of celery (60 g) 
2 or 3 leaves of cabbage (60 g)
1 potato (200 g)
30 g string beans

30 g peas

1.5 litres light chicken stock
50 g Gruyère cheese, grated
slices of baguette

Peel and wash the vegetables. Finely slice the leeks and celery. Dice the beans. Cut the carrots, potatoes and turnips into paysanne. Slice the cabbage in chiffonade. (At this point, in order to add to the flavour, the leek, carrot and celery trimmings can be simmered in the stock for 20 minutes and then discarded.)

Remove the rind from the bacon. Cut it into lardons. Sweat it in the butter without colouring. Sweat the leeks, carrots, celery and turnips in the same pot until well cooked. Add the stock and bring to a simmer. Add the cabbage and cook 15 minutes. Add the potatoes and cook for 10 minutes  and lastly the beens and pees. Cook for another 5 minutes or until the beans are just done.

Serve with toasted slices of baguette, topped wth melted Gruyère cheese.

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Potage Bonne Femme

VEGETABLE SOUP BONNE FEMME

The term bonne femme refers to dishes that are pepared in a simple, family, or rustic manner, similar to dishes cooked à la ménager and à la paysanne. Such dishes are usually served in the container they are cooked in. This old-fashioned soup is delightfully simple and tasty.

For 6 people

250 g white of leeks

250 g carrots

500 g potatoes

butter

1 liter water or very light chicken stock

a little cream

parsley

seasoning

Melt the butter in a soup pan and gently soften the finely sliced leeks and diced carrot. Add the stock and the diced potatoes and simmer until the potatoes are soft.

The soup can be blended, half blended or left as it is. Just before serving add 50 g butter, a decent splash of cream and some chopped parsley. A few drops of lemon juice will brighten the flavour. Serve with thin slices of baguette that have been dried in the oven.

The carrots are not essential to the soup but add a little extra flavour  and colour.

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Consommé

Consommé is a meat broth with all traces of fat and impurities removed through the use of egg protein. The result is a beautifully clear and sparkling soup.

(For 6 people)

For the stock

1 unpealed onion, halved

500 g  beef bones

500 g lean beef

1 kg chicken bones

200 g carrots

200 g  leeks

100 g celery

1 bouquet garni

4 cloves of garlic

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

Place the split onion, cut sides down, in a wide pan and place on medium heat. Let cook until the onion is burned and very black. (Use no oil.) This will give the typical amber colour to the consommé.

Place all the ingredients in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and skim the skum that forms on the surface. When boiling, lower the heat and simmer slowly for 6 hours. Strain through a fine sieve and let cool. When the stock has cooled, remove all the fat that has risen to the top.

 

For clarification

500 g lean beef, turkey or chicken breast, ground

100 g carrot, finely chopped

100 g leek, finely chopped

50 g celery, finely chopped

200 g tomatoes, finely chopped

3-6 egg whites (2 egg whites per litre of stock)

1 tablespoon chopped parley

1 tablespoon chopped tarragon

Put all the solid ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Add the egg whites and  keep mixing. Add this mixture to the warm stock or cold stock and bring to a boil, stirring as often as possible. As it comes to the boil a raft will form and should not be broken. Stop stirring as soon as the raft forms and reduce the heat to a steady simmer and cook for an hour.

Turn off the heat and carefully ladle the clear consommé through a damp napkin. (The napkin will have been boiled previously to avoid any unpleasant taste). Chill the stock, removing any solidified fat. If the consommé is to be served immediately, most of the fat can be removed with a spoon and then the remainder skimmed off the surface with paper towels.

After the clarification, a  couple of tablespoons of Sherry or Madeira can de added.

There are literally hundreds of garnishes for consommé.  In the picture I have used small and even cubes of skinned tomato pulp.

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Garbure

Garbure is a thick soup of bacon or cured ham with cabbage and other vegetables. Often a confit of duck is added. It is traditional in Gascony, particularly in the Béarn, les Landes and the Pyrenees. It differs from one home to the next and varies with the the seasons and the resources of the cook. The soup is so thick that the ladle stands up in it. It is served on slices of bread in each plate. As each person gets to the end of his soup, he adds a glass of wine to the remaining bouillon on his plate, a custom they call  faire chabrot.

(Serves 4)

water or light chicken stock

300 g cured ham (the cheap end bits)
2 legs, or several wings, of duck confit (optional)
200 g fresh or dry white beans (soaked for at least 12 hours)

100 g broad beans, inner skins removed (optional)

a handful of French beans, diced (optional)
1 large onion
2 carrots
2 leeks
2 branches of celery
1 turnip
half a head of garlic
a bouquet garni; parsley, thyme, bay

3 cloves

a little paprika or cayenne pepper (optional)
3 potatoes
half a  green cabbage

salt and pepper

Soak the dry beans overnight in soft water. Cut the carrots, leeks and turnips into 1-2 cm chunks. Chop one half of the onion coarsly and slice the celery quite finely. Stud the remaining onion half with the cloves. Sweat the cut vegetables in duck fat (from the confit) or lard. Cut the ham into 2cm chunks and add to the pan.  Cover all this with water or stock  and bring to a simmer adding the beans, the bouquet garni and the crushed garlic. Cook all this for an hour and a half.

Cut the potatoes into chunks. Remove the large ribs from the cabbage leaves and  roughly slice them into large pieces. Add both of these to the pot.  An hour later the confit, along with a good coating of fat, is dropped in . Cook for another 20 minutes. At  this point the soup should be thick enough for the ladle to stand up in it. Discard the onion half and the bouquet garni. The soup can be slightly thickened by crushing some of the vegetables against the side of the pot. A splash of vinegar can be added to brighten up the flavour.

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Tourin à l’ail

GARLIC AND ONION SOUP

(for 2 people)

Here is a simple soup from the South-West of France which is said to be admirable on chilly nights or when suffering from a cold or hangover.

1 onion

1 head of garlic

1 tablespoon duck or goose fat

750 ml light chicken stock or water.

2 eggs

2 tablespoons of vinegar (or to taste) 

french bread, sliced and toasted till very hard in the oven, or in a pan with oil.

 

Gently soften the sliced onion in duck or goose fat (olive oil or lard will do). Crush the peeled cloves of a whole head of garlic, keeping them more or less intact and put them in with the onion. Cook this very gently for a good while and when it is extremely soft, pour over the of water or, better still, light chicken stock  and let it simmer for half an hour minutes or so.

Separate two eggs and drop the whites into the simmering soup, stirring or  gently whisking all the while so as to achieve a stringy effect yet preventing large curds forming. Remove the pan from the heat. In a small bowl, mix the yolks with the vinegar and a few tablespoons of the hot soup and, when the soup is no longer boiling, return this mixture to the pan. (When the yolks are added the soup should be just off the boil so that they thicken the soup without over-cooking and coagulating.) The slices of French bread are put into soup plates and the soup poured over.

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