An Exaltation of Soups (12 page)
Read An Exaltation of Soups Online
Authors: Patricia Solley
UATEMALA
LAMB SOUP WITH TAMALES
CALDO DE CARNERO
“G
IVE
Y
OURSELF
W
HOLLY
”
Fly kites with your children, cultivate your philosophies; give women your tenderness and men your energy.
And at every moment valiant, sincere, at every moment of all your days, give yourself wholly!
Say, “I shape always with equal care my clay or my gold.”
And at midday when the sun burns highest, like a good workman—like a good workman!
And at evenfall play with your children, feel yourself lightened; and at night’s coming, sleep wholly.
Give yourself wholly until you fall motionless in the final moment; and when death comes, give yourself wholly!
—R
AFAEL
A
REVALO
M
ARTINEZ
,
twentieth-century Guatemalan poet
Serves 6 to 8
T
HIS SIMPLE SOUP
reflects the hardscrabble life of Indian farmers, who grow lots of potatoes but for whom meat of any kind is a great luxury. A meat soup, reserved for weddings and other high festivals, should not be complicated by vegetables and seasonings, but rather savored in small portions for its own pure meatiness. The small tamales, though, serve as rich corny dumplings and make this a very special soup indeed.
F
OR THE SOUP
3 pounds boneless lamb, cut into bite-size cubes
2 large onions, cut into cubes
8 cups (2 quarts) cold water
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
F
OR 40 SMALL CORN FLOUR TAMALES
(TAMALITOS PACHES)
4 cups masa harina (instant cornmeal mix for making tortillas)
4 cups (1 quart) cold water
2 teaspoons salt
½ cup corn oil
Mashan
(palm) leaves or—and I recommend this—forty 6-inch squares of aluminum foil (a modern convenience that is so easy to use that you’ll actually make the tamales instead of just thinking about it)
O
P
REPARE
1. For the soup, cube the lamb and the onions.
2. For the tamales, mix the masa, water, salt, and corn oil into a paste. For each tamale, spoon a heaping tablespoon of the paste
onto a 6-inch square of aluminum foil (or
mashan
leaves, if you have them). Match opposite edges of the square and double-fold it to seal, then twist each end tightly a couple of times so you end up with what looks like a fat saltwater taffy or firecracker party favor. Continue until you use up all the paste.
O
C
OOK
1. In a large soup pot, combine the lamb, onions, and water. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, until the lamb is tender, about 1½ hours. Do not skim the foam, as it should remain to intensify the meatiness of the soup. Season with the salt.
2. Bring about 2 cups of water to a boil over medium-high heat in a large pot and add the tamale packets. Reduce the heat to low, cover tightly with a lid, and steam the tamales for 1 hour.
O
S
ERVE
Ladle the soup into bowls. Hand around the tamales, inviting your guests to untwist them and pop them into their soup bowls to eat like dumplings.
R
IDDLE
M
E
T
HIS
Q
UESTION
: What kind of ear cannot hear?
UNGARY
CHICKEN SOUP WITH “SNAIL” PASTA
TYÚKHÚSLEVES
“I
N
P
RAISE OF
B
OUILLON
”
Shine oh eyes, drool oh mouth with joy: the delicious bouillon is ladled up, served right in front of you.
Look, how golden yellow it is, glistening, and how nose-titillating its smell is! What a taste! Ambrosia!
Surely it has its own soul—this is what you really need—
Do you divine—tell me—its marrowbone, its aromatic vegetables, and its spicy soul of ginger that cures all ills?—Believe me, this is the only thing to live for, this is the direct line to salvation, otherwise you are a bitter toothless dog, barking at the world—not transported beyond by this heavenly morsel of heavenly ham.
—B
ERDA
J
ÓZSEF
(1902-1966), “the vagabond poet of Budapest salons,” also known as the “Saint Francis of Hungarian poetry,” the “Sacrificer of Well-Laid Tables,” the “Patron Saint of Poke Puddings,” and the “Exarch of Geese”
Serves 6 to 8
O
RDINARILY MADE IN
huge quantities for a typical country wedding feast, this soup is very rich but pure—a strong broth with special homemade pasta in the shape of little snails, traditionally made by the friends of the bride. The soup is always served as the first course of the feast after the wedding, and is followed by the cooks being invited to dance at a “snail stomping.” Because making the “snails” requires laboriously rolling the pasta dough around a stick on a ribbed board, I have substituted either small shell pasta or gemelli pasta. I brought some “snails”—csiga
tészta—
back home from a trip to Eger, though, and they are adorable. I don’t think anything could be sweeter than to begin wedded bliss with a white soup plate full of crystalline chicken broth that is stuffed with these funny ribbed coils.
4 pounds chicken, cut into pieces
A few chicken feet, with their nails clipped off (optional)
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
12 cups (3 quarts) cold water
2 carrots, trimmed, scrubbed, and chopped
2 parsley roots, trimmed, scrubbed, and chopped (or 1 parsnip)
1 small celery root, peeled and chopped (or chopped celery)
1 kohlrabi, trimmed, scrubbed, and chopped (can also use cabbage or turnip)
2 garlic cloves
1 small onion
1 cup small shell pasta or gemelli pasta
O
P
REPARE
Prep the ingredients as directed in the recipe list.
O
C
OOK
1. Place the chicken pieces in a high-sided soup pot and sprinkle with the salt and peppercorns. Pour the cold water on top. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes, not removing or stirring in the scum.
2. Add the vegetables, but don’t stir them. Return the broth briefly to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat again, partially cover, and simmer for another hour. Take the soup off the heat and let sit for 10 minutes.
3. Carefully ladle the soup through a strainer lined with moistened cheesecloth into a clean pot. You do not want to cloud the soup by pouring it through the strainer. Discard the solids. Cool down to room temperature, uncovered, if you plan to refrigerate before serving, to avoid clouding the broth.
4. In a separate large pot, bring at least 8 cups of water to a boil. Add a tablespoon of salt and pour in the pasta. Cook until tender. Drain and reserve.
O
S
ERVE
Reheat the broth to a boil and taste it to make sure it is well seasoned. Stir in the cooked pasta, and let the flavors mix for a minute or two. Take the pot out to the table and ladle the soup into bowls.
