Yesterday afternoon Lorna, our darling neighbor who was Tara's nanny growing up, taught us how to make a Jamaican specialty, Chicken Soup. Watching Lorna cook was like watching an artist at work, her skilled hands carefully kneading, cutting, peeling and stirring. She transformed a pile of vegetables, some flour and some chicken into the most incredible meal ever. After a long day, Lorna's love-filled soup nourished our weary bodies and challenged hearts. We smiled the entire time we ate dinner last night. And since we miss all of you, we wanted to share with you a little taste of our life here.
Cook time: 1:30-2 hours
Ingredients:
Water
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 quarters of a pumpkin
2 tbsp pimento
1 pack of boned Chicken Breast
2 large carrots or 5 small carrots
1 ChoCho
2 potatoes
3 cloves garlic
1 cob of corn
1 cup flour
Pinch of Seasoned Salt
1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper
3 Scallions
1 sprig of thyme
1 caldo con sabor de pollo
Directions:
1. Boil a big pot of water and add a splash of olive oil.
2. Take the skin off of the chicken and skin one quarter of the pumpkin.
3. Cube the chicken into large pieces. Cube the quarter of pumpkin into large pieces.
4. Place in water and allow water to be brought to a slow boil.
5. Add teaspoon of pimento into pot for flavor.
6. On the side, fill up a large bowl half way with water to place chopped vegetables in.
7. Skin the other quarter of pumpkin and cube. Place in large bowl with water.
8. Add 3 cloves of Garlic into the simmering water.
9. Take out second medium sized bowl to make dumplings. See Dumpling instructions.
10. Skin and Cube potatoes then place in bowl.
11. Skin and chop carrots then place in bowl.
12. Peel and chop Chocho. Remove the middle by halfing it and cutting it out.
13. Chop cob of corn into 4 or 5 pieces with large knife and set in waternbowl.
14. Let vegetables rest in water as you work on the base of the soup.
15. Place boiled pumpkin, garlic, and a cup of the soup broth into the blender and puree until smooth.
16. Pour blended mixture back into the soup pot.
17. Let the soup simmer.
18. Add corn and cubed pumpkin into the water pot.
19. Return to Dumpling instructions for rolling instructions.
20. Take out chicken pieces to de-bone. Add meat back into the pot.
21. Add all the veggies (Carrot, potato, chocho) from the water bowl.
22. Add scallions, sprig of thyme, scotch bonnet pepper, and caldo con sabor de pollo.
23. Add a few shakes of seasoned salt. Taste.
24. Let simmer for 20-30 minutes, while occasionally stirring.
Dumplings
1 Cup flour
pinch of salt
1. Hand mix salt and flour together.
2. Pour water as needed (small amounts) as you knead the flour together into one large clump.
3. You know it’s a good consistency when it sticks to your hands but remains in a ball.
4. If soft, add flour. If hard, add water. When you push it down with your finger, it should slowly rise.
5. Cover with damp paper towel and set aside for 15-20 minutes.
6. Pick off small pieces of flour to roll.
7. Dumplings can either be round or long and skinny. Either mold into spheres and press down to flatten, or roll them into long tube.
8. Place dumplings into the pot and stir continuously to make sure dumplings don’t stick.
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