Recipe and Photograph by Vivienne
This soup, or chowder, has had rave reviews from my family so clearly it is as good as I say. It’s magnificent. Please do not try to substitute any of the ingredients because I can’t possibly guarantee the flavour, the yummy scale or the look.
Ingredients
- 60 g butter
- 1 big or two small rashers of bacon
- half a large or one whole leek
- 1 carrot
- 1 celery stalk
- 1 large potato
- 3 dessert spoons of wholemeal plain flour
- 5 cups of stock made with Massel Vegetable powder (about 5 teaspoons altogether)
- 16 – 20 Tasmanian scallops (they’re fresh and available now)
- 300g of raw prawns (Aussie)
- 1 whole prepared fresh calamari/squid
- 150-200 g cream
- parsley and chives
- salt and pepper
Finely chop all the vegies and the bacon.
Using large Le Creuset pan/pot – melt the butter and fry bacon over low heat (cook it, don’t crisp it) and then remove and set aside.
Into the butter add all the vegies and cook over medium heat stirring all the while for about 5 minutes until they are softened.
Add the flour and cook for a minute then gradually add the warm stock. Cook and stir for a further 5 or so minutes until it boils and thickens, then simmer for another 10 minutes giving it a bit of a stir. Then whiz gig it until relatively smooth.
Leave scallops whole, cut prawns into 3 or four pieces and thinly slice the squid (and cut into 2-3 cm lengths). Add all the seafood and the prepared bacon to the pan and keep on low simmer until seafood is cooked.
Now taste for seasoning. It didn’t need much salt. Add the finely chopped chives and parsley (about tablespoon) and stir in the cream.
Serve with a sprinkle of parsley/chives for garnish and some sour dough bread rolls.
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lindyp said:
Sounds like a little bowl from heaven Vivienne-I will have to make it -without the bacon of course . I use Massel stock all the time as it’s minus animal ingredients -unfortunately I have a weakness for prawns so am consequently classed as a pescatarian ! Or as my friends call me -a pesky vegetarian –
Thanks Vivienne for a mouth watering recipe
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vivienne29 said:
I remember Lindy your fondness for prawns. I have a friend who is Jewish but whose liking for crayfish also overrides tradition etc. but she will never eat pork of any kind. Massel stocks are better than any other I have ever used. Been a pantry staple now since I first spotted them on the supermarket shelf – 15 years I guess.
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algernon1 said:
Looks very good Vivienne. Something for the younger and I though as Mrs A has an allergy to prawns.
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vivienne29 said:
Maybe you could put a serving in another pot and only add the scallops and squid for Mrs A. Worth considering if you are going to make it.
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gerard oosterman said:
The sound delicious Viv. H makes a good veg. soup, of course with a fresh chilli. Just came back from a big walk and could eat a horse.
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vivienne29 said:
You can afford a leg of lamb now the ‘carbon tax’ is gone !!!!!
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algernon1 said:
Apparently Whyalla is still there too..
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Hung One On said:
Wow, sounds fantastic Viv. Could I use marg instead of butter and is it thin cream? The only lactose free cream is thin.
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vivienne29 said:
I never use margarine but I should think it would be fine. I used regular cream but I also think thin cream would be fine. Actually you could probably skip the cream entirely as not totally essential (being such a small quantity).
This recipe would provide 5-6 serves. I managed to put two serves into freezer containers for my daughters – it thawed and reheated just fine.
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vivienne29 said:
When I said not to substitute the ingredients I was referring to the seafood and vegetables in particular. I’d forgotten about the lactose aspect.
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Hung One On said:
Cheers mate. I can eat a little bit of lactose but I never know how much till the next day. Makes a hang over seem nice.
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sandshoe said:
Brilliantly written. How to prepare it is simply clear. I made a couple of versions of your pea & ham soup, Vivienne, ‘after’ I think the expression is your original recipe. They have whole frozen peas I noticed in the s/market. 10.00 for 2 kilos might be a bit steep. Anyhow, the inspiration is great now to pick up a blender. I don’t have one at the moment. Yay to your recipe writing! The Pigs Arms will live long!
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vivienne29 said:
Great to hear from you Shoe. I use a hand held stick gizmo for all soup whizzing. You don’t need to beat the heck out of it. I have power points close to my stove top and it is so easy to plug in and whizz and smoosh it up – everything stays in the pot/pan. To explain, there are blenders and blenders – get a stick one – cheaper and less messy in the long run. Take care.
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vivienne29 said:
My original pea and ham is 100% me but it can be fiddled with easily. One daughter had plenty of home grown butternut pumpkin so she used that instead of the carrots and pronounced it excellent.
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sandshoe said:
Thank you for all the info, Vivienne. I am researching stick mixers and not had one before. Many thanks for your advice..
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vivienne29 said:
Mine is a Black & Decker. I don’t think they make them any more. I was in Myer this week and took a look at their range. $80 to $100 seems to be the go.
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