1000 Foods (pgs. 292 – 293) for information, recipe is my own creation, but lacks eels

            Like other places in Northern Europe, the German city of Hamburg gets quite cold and dreary during the winter months. A specialty found there is eel soup, with chicken, beef, ham, vegetables, dried fruit, vinegar, and raspberry jam. If it sounds crazy, recall that combining sweet and savory flavors like meat and fruit used to be common in European dishes and is still popular in other parts of the world. Turkey and cranberry sauce, sauerbraten, and Swedish meatballs with lingonberry jam are some modern examples of this principle.

            Since eels are hard to find where I live, I decided to make “eel” soup without them, because the flavor combination sounded interesting. For the base, there’s beef chuck, ham, chicken, onions, bay leaves, and thyme. To prevent overcooking, carrots, celery, parsnips, leeks, parsley, prunes, and dried apricots are added a bit later. At the end of cooking, the soup gets a finishing touch of vinegar and jam. You can also add mini dumplings.

            For a dish that sounds so weird, the eel-less eel soup is actually delicious. The vinegar and jam give it a sweet-tart flavor resembling sauerbraten.

            Here’s what you need to make your own eel-less eel soup:

• 1 pound beef chuck or similar cut, cubed
• 2 chicken breasts or 4 thighs, cubed
• 1 pound ham, chopped
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme or 3 teaspoons fresh
• 2 carrots, washed, halved, and sliced
• 2 ribs celery, with some leaves if possible, sliced
• 4 parsnips, peeled and chopped
• 12 prunes, halved
• 12 dried apricots, halved
• 1 leek, halved and sliced crosswise
• 1 bunch parsley, chopped
• ¼ cup vinegar (I particularly like apple cider vinegar)
• 2 tablespoons raspberry jam

            To make it:

1. Put the beef, chicken, and ham into a large pot and turn on the burner to medium, stirring frequently. When it starts to brown, add 1 cup of water and scrape any browned bits off the bottom of the pot.
2. Add the onion, bay leaves, thyme, a pinch of salt, and enough water to cover. Simmer for about 45 minutes.
3. Add the carrots, celery, parsnips, leek, prunes, apricots, and parsley. Stir and add more water to cover. Simmer for another 45 minutes.
4. When the meat, vegetables, and fruit are tender, add the vinegar to the soup, followed by the jam, and stir to combine.

            And remember, subscribing is free, and you’ll get a notification whenever there’s a new post.