3 Ingredient Recipe: 3-Way Chicken, Leek and Sweet Potato Soup (no laughing at the title, now...)
Today I'd like to talk to you about economy.No, not THE economy, though the subjects areintrinsicallylinked. I mean food economy, and what this little experiment is teaching me about it. Being raised by a thrifty mom, I have always known to be aware of which grocer has the best price for bulk goods and how to clip my coupons. I have apreternaturalsense for sniffing out deals - it's in my blood... but this, this is something different: something pulled down from your grandmother's kitchen shelf, wiped of it's dust, and hugged close as a family heirloom.
I am talking, maybe obviously, about using every part of your ingredients to the fullest: throwing nothing out until they've relinquished every remaining ounce of flavor and nourishment. And so was born the concept of 3-way soup. I couldn't think of a better name for it, so it remains a slightly suggestive title, maybe... but oh well.
This is by far the most complex of the 3 ingredient dishes I've experimented with for this challenge. I held my breath the whole time hoping not to create a epic disaster as it requires making your own stock out of the trimmings from your 3 ingredients, plus roasting and caramelizing and frying... but as many of the steps can be preformed simultaneously, it takes a little less time than one might imagine: about 2 hours total. I've included some of my tried and true tips for roasting chicken in this as well as a trick for caramelizing leeks without using sugar. The result is buttery and dense and has a round mouthfeel I've rarely had in any soup.
So be forewarned, this is not a throw together dish, however, the results are well worth it, I'm proud (and relieved) to say. Oh, and I'm forgetting the verybest part: All in the cost of a meal for 4 people is, get this, a whopping $5.46. To me, that's worth a little effort right there... I'd suggest reading thru the directions below before starting so you have an idea of how this works. It might seem like a lot of steps, but much of this is intuitive and makes more sense once your understand thecontextof each line.
For a refresher on the rules of my 10 day, 3 ingredient challenge, check out thefirst post.
The 3 Ingredients...
- 4 chicken pieces w/bones and skin (combo of thighs and breasts suggested)
- 2 large leeks, split and washedthoroughlyof grit
- 3 sweet potatoes, peeled (reserve peels)
What to do with it...
For the roasted chicken...
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees and coat your chicken with melted butter and cracked pepper (no salt)
- Add chicken to a heavy ovenproof skillet or roasting pan and place on bottom rack of oven
- Roast for 35 - 40 mins or until internal temp is 175 degrees (at this point see sweet potato steps)
- Remove and allow to cool thenseparatemeat from bones and skin, saving everything
- Chop meat and add salt and pepper
- Pour pan drippings into gravyseparatoror use spoon toseparatefat and juices - juices will be added to stock and fat will be used for the last step
Prepping leeks...
- Trim bottoms and dark green tops and reserve for stock
- Thin slice your remaining white portions and divide out 1/4 cup for your last step, the rest will be caramelized
For the stock...
- Add your leek bottoms, sweet potato peelings, chicken bones, skin and pan juices (reserve fat) to a large stock pot and add about 10 whole peppercorns
- Pour enough cold water to cover plus one inch and bring to a boil
- Reduce to a simmer and cook for at least 1 hour, skimming fatoccasionally
- After cooking, allow stock to cool then strain thru mesh colander or cheesecloth into large heat-proof container and then return strained stock to the pot
For the sweet potatoes...
- While the chicken is roasting, cut all but 1/3 section of one potato (or about 1/4 cup) into a small dice - cut the remain 1/4 cup into juliennestrips for the fried shoestring sweet potato topping at the end
- Heat a heavy-bottom, ovenproof pan over medium heat and add 3 tablespoons of butter
- Add diced sweet potatoes and saute until golden, then remove from pan and set aside
- Keep pan on the heat and add 1 more tablespoon of butter for the caramelized leeks...
For the caramelized leeks...
- Add all but 1/4 cup white portions to the sweet potato pan (the brown bits from the potatoes will help caramelize leeks) and 2 pinches of salt
- Saute on medium until they just begin to turn brown, then reduce to lowest heat and cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure they are not burning
- At the end of 45 minutes leeks should be very soft and deep golden color
Compiling the soup...
- Bring your reserved stock to a gentle boil and then add sauteed sweet potatoes
- Cook until potatoes are just soft then add your caramelized leek mixture
- Reduce heat to a simmer and use an emulsion blender or fork to cream about half of the soup (be sure to leave it chunky)
- Add chicken and salt and pepper to taste
Making the fried leek and sweet potato shoestring topping...
- Spoon reserved chicken fat into a skillet (add some butter if there's not enough)
- Toss injuliennepotato in and fry on medium-high heat until golden, remove to paper towel to drain
- Add your reserved 1/4 cup leeks to fat and fry until golden, remove to paper towel to drain
Serve soup in individual bowls topped with a little fried leek and sweet potato shoestrings!
4 down (and that was a doozy!) 6 to go!
