TAKING STOCK

NEIL CORDER (C)

I woke up with cold feet this morning. Not because we've suddenly grown tired of living in the country side, but it's distinctly Autumnal. Being recent immigrants from the West Indies, the boys and I would say it's freezing. Others would say it's Late Summer.  The Natal Midlands isn't really Africa - it's sort of Zulu Gloucestershire.

Time to start thinking about some warming foods, although I'm not quite ready for venison just yet. Soups are it. We love soups and we make them everyday in the bakery, so there's a bulging soup recipe file that I can plunder for home.

First things first however: Stock. Don't all roll your eyeballs when you hear the word mentioned, although I do confess it's not the most riveting of subjects.

This stock, however, is without a shadow of a doubt the best stock recipe ever. Extravagant  though it may seem, you will never look back after this:

NEIL CORDER (C)

Very Good Chicken Stock 

1. Take one whole organic chicken
2. Plonk it into a large saucepan along with 2.5 litres of cold water
3. Add black peppercorns, bay leaves, a peeled onion cut into quarters (if you leave the leaves on the stock will go dark) and about 3 peeled and sliced carrots, along with a big bunch of parsley, 4 chopped stalks of celery and their leaves.
4. Slowly simmer for about 1.5 hours. If it boils it will go cloudy. 
5. Strain (feeding the leftovers to the dogs or the chickens)

You will have the perfect golden chicken stock. Makes an absolutely killer risotto too. I'll put up the recipe for our Roasted Pumpkin + Rosemary Risotto soon - so you can test me on that one.

Use the leftover poached chicken for a multiplicity of recipes such as Hainan-style or this Spaghetti al Limone from Serious Eats. Alternatively you can make our rustic Chicken Barley Soup below. So, so, so easy:

NEIL CORDER (C)

Chicken Barley Soup

Ingredients

1 shredded organic chicken, cooked
1 large onion, diced
4 carrots, peeled and cut into a medium dice
4 stalks of celery, chopped
250g pearl barley
Big knob of butter
2 litres chicken stock
Handful of parsley, roughly chopped

Method

1. Gently fry onion in the butter. Don't burn them like I usually do and then have black bits floating around the top of an otherwise delicious soup
2. Add celery and carrots to onions and fry for about 2 minutes
3. Add the pearl barley to coat and half the parsley
4. Add the stock and cook for about 45 minutes or until the vegetables are soft
5. Add chicken to heat through but not cook and the rest of the parsley.
6. Season

Eat outside on the stoep with your Uggs on, accompanied by lots of warm crusty bread and lashings of farm butter with a chilled glass of Sauvignon Blanc.

Autumnal nectar.