Food Blogs
COCK-A-LEEKIE RECIPE
We made a version of this recently at St. John, and it was so surprising and good that even though it is an old classic I thought I should include this version. I hope that no one will take offense if it seems to break with hundreds of years of cock-a-leekie culture. This is more than a soup; in fact, it would happily pass as a meal in itself.
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MetricUS Imperial
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Ingredients
BRISKET
- 2 pounds to 2¼brined beef brisket for 10–12 days or salted beef brisket from the butcher
- 2 onions peeled and chopped
- 2 carrots peeled
- 2 leeks cleaned and chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 10 black peppercorns
- a bundle of thyme and parsley
CHICKEN
- 1 free-range chicken or capon if available slit the skin where the legs meet the body
- 2 peeled onions
- 2 clean leeks
- 2 stalks of celery
- 2 bay leaves
- 10 black peppercorns
- a bundle of thyme
- Parsley
- 2 sprigs of rosemary
FINISHING
- 5 leeks cleaned and sliced across
- the smallest dash of duck fat or extra-virgin olive oil
- 24 in prunes with their stones(preferably Agen prunes if you can find them)
Ingredients
BRISKET
CHICKEN
FINISHING
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Instructions
BRISKET
- Place the brisket and its accompanying vegetables and herbs in a pan and cover with fresh water. Bring to the boil, then straight away reduce to a very gentle simmer, skimming constantly. This should take about 2½ hours to cook, but always check with a knife how giving the meat is. Allow the beef to cool in the broth.
CHICKEN
- Place the chicken in a pan with its team of vegetables and herbs, bring to a boil, then place a lid on the pan and remove from the heat. Allow to cool in the stock. This will make for a moist chicken, as it is to be cooked again.
- Remove beef and chicken from their stocks and cut into pieces, not too small but just so it’s possible to eat them with a spoon. Strain both stocks, then add the beef stock to the chicken stock to taste. (Remember, it will be quite salty, so be cautious—it may not take much. A slight salt undertone is a good thing, though, as it plays very well with the sweet prunes we shall add at the end.)
- If your combined stock is cloudy or you are anxious about its aesthetic nature, clarify.
FINISHING
- Now, in a pan large enough to construct your soup, sweat your sliced leeks in the duck fat or olive oil for about 8 minutes, so as to bring out their sweet leeky nature, but not to lose their crunch. Pour on the stock. Add the chopped chicken and beef, bring to a gentle simmer and let the meat heat through thoroughly. Three minutes before serving add the prunes, just giving them time to puff up.
- Serve in big bowls with much bread to hand.