Friday 7 April 2006

game soup


If a pheasant galette is not enough frugality, here I present game soup ; a sure fire way to make yourself feel good. Good because this is a delicious, refined and just as restorative version chicken soup. And good because you have used almost all the parts of the pheasant you roasted earlier in the week. And the barley, not quite the same as the noodle in the chicken noodle soup but barley in the game soup is in many ways better. Barley in a soup makes the soup more of a meal. And this is a great meal with some hot buttered toast!

Game Soup
Adapted from a recipe in Meat by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

The pheasant carcass from the roasted bird, cut into pieces
1 carrot, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
a splash of brandy
a large splash of port
a small glass of red wine
500mL of chicken stock
1 tablespoon of tomato puree
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and bashed, but not minced
1 bay leaf
a sprig of thyme
1 tablespoon of chutney
100g of pearl barley, rinsed

Sauté the vegetables in some fat or oil until they start to caramelise. Add the carcass and sauté briefly. Add the rest of the ingredients except the barley. Bring to a boil then turn down to simmer gently for an hour and a half. Strain well, ideally once through a sieve and then through some muslin. At this point you can chill the soup and then remove the fat from the top before you reheat it. Bring the soup back to a boil and add the barley. Simmer for about 30 minutes or until the barley is cooked.


Lovely!

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