The boy is working at home today. It is damp and dark
outside. I know he loves soup so I am making this for our lunch. It’s from a
book called Moro East. All the recipes are based on the produce from the
allotments in East London, which were cleared to make way from the Olympic
village. I love French Onion soup but like this Spanish version equally.
1kg sweet white onions
5tbsp olive oil
120g serrano ham, chopped finely
2tsp fresh thyme leaves
3 scrapes of nutmeg
150ml Olorosso sherry
1l chicken stock
Slice the onions finely – I think the only trick to not
crying, is to use a very sharp knife, so I have sharpened mine first. Sam &
Sam Clark say that it is important to use the right size pan, so the onions are
3cm thick. Deeper, and they will just stew in their own water, and shallower,
they will brown before they are sweet and soft. Makes sense to me.
Heat the oil and get the onions in. S&S start this on a
high heat and then reduce to low. Stir often until you have a melty slush (my
description, not theirs). This can take an hour, with stirring every few minutes.
This is what Radio 4 is for.
Stir in the serrano ham, thyme and nutmeg and cook for
another 8 minutes. The boy’s cat gets a tiny shred of ham as he’s patiently
kept me company for the onion cooking.
Pour in the olorosso sherry and let the alcohol burn off – 2
minutes. Check that the sherry is a dry one as some blends are often called
this, but are actually quite sweet. Warm the stock up. I’m not using home made
and I’m not washing up another pan so the carton is just getting a minute in
the microwave. Pour it into the onion
pan and bring it to a simmer. I’m getting the boy to check for seasoning, which
will depend on the stock really. We both think onion soup is enhanced by plenty of black pepper.
Serve with toasted rustic bread that has been rubbed with a clove
of garlic and drizzled with olive oil.
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