Pumpkin-spiced chicken soup: A fall feast with a twist
The abundance of autumn specialties inspires serving traditional dishes with fancy additions. During this season, you can incorporate the popular pumpkin into a chicken soup recipe. Try this twist when preparing soup for a family gathering, and you'll see how they praise you.
Sometimes, it's not worth challenging certain traditions. If chicken soup for Sunday lunch is customary, then let it be. Moreover, it's even recommended for the unpleasant autumn weather. After all, it's a very healthy and warming soup. Do you need to break the routine? The seasonal pumpkin comes to the rescue.
How to make chicken soup that isn't bland?
Unfortunately, it's a common issue, even for experienced cooks. A classic mistake is cooking the broth with only one type of meat. A good-quality chicken is fine, but a piece of beef with bone enriches the taste of the broth and adds depth.
Charring an onion gives the chicken soup more character. You can do this over a gas stove burner, using a crème brûlée torch, on a dry pan, or in the oven.
Ultimately, the spices add flavour to the broth. Add salt, pepper, bay leaf, allspice, and a few coriander seeds. This combination always works.
Ensure your chicken soup is clear
Sometimes regular skimming isn't enough, although it's worth doing. However, when the broth still isn't clear, it's time to turn to other solutions.
Restaurant chefs use ice cubes to clarify broth. Try this method, but be careful not to add too much. After all, you don't want to dilute such an excellent-tasting broth.
What always works and doesn't unnecessarily dilute the soup is egg white. Remove the meat and additions. Beat the egg white into foam and add it to the broth. Simmer together for 15 minutes. After this time, the foam should absorb the impurities. Just strain the broth through a fine sieve.
Serve the chicken soup with pumpkin dumplings
Neat pumpkin dumplings in the chicken soup will surely intrigue your family or guests. They'll quickly discover how delicious they are.
To make pumpkin dumplings, you need:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour,
- 1 egg,
- 300 grams of roasted pumpkin,
- salt.
How to make pumpkin dumplings?
- Mash the roasted pumpkin into a purée using a potato masher.
- Sift the flour into a large bowl, add the egg, pumpkin purée, and a pinch of salt. Mix everything with a spoon.
- If the dumpling dough is very thick, add a little cold water and mix again to achieve a thick but slightly flowing consistency.
- Boil water with a tablespoon of salt in a large pot. When it's boiling, drop in the dumplings. They will be neat if you use two spoons. Use one spoon to scoop up the dough and the other to separate it over the pot of boiling water.
- After 3 minutes, remove the dumplings with a slotted spoon.
The chicken soup with pumpkin dumplings tastes excellent sprinkled with parsley.
