I decided to make a chicken soup during the winter, but I wanted one that was more robust than I normally make. I decided to lean into Mediterranean flavors and started making this in a couple of steps. Firstly I marinated the bone-in/skin-on thighs overnight. After I roasted the chicken I pulled the meat reserving the skins make crispy, and the bones to fortify the broth. I also wanted a rich, deep flavor in the broth, so I roasted a lot of onions and garlic to make the enrich the base of the soup.
I wanted this soup to have a rich flavorful broth, with texture coming from the vegetables and chickpeas. To do that I used preserved lemons and harissa as the base and fortified it with the bones from the thighs. The next step was to blanch the vegetables off in the broth. Doing this adds their flavor to the broth, while keeping the texture of the vegetables that you want. Then I used the roasted garlic and onions with the chicken to give the broth thickness. To finish the soup I roasted off kale, and added the chicken skins that I had crisped up to finish it.
Feel free to play with the ingredients and change it to your liking, but the balanced heat with lemon, the chickpeas with vegetables, and the finish of kale with chicken skins give you a very nice soup that can be enjoyed as a meal or as a snack.
Enjoy.
Chicken Marinade
Ingredients
Bone-In/Skin-On Chicken Thighs 4 lbs
Extra Virgin Olive Oil 2 T
Avenue Spice 2 T
Harissa Paste 2 T
Tomato Paste 1 T
Sichuan Peppercorns, ground 1 T
Preserved Lemon, minced 1 T
Method of Procedure
Mix all ingredients together well, mix with the chicken thighs overnight.
Broth
Ingredients
Chicken Stock 4 qt
Bones to Fortify all
Harissa Paste 1 T
Preserved Lemon 1 T
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Method of Procedure
Combine all ingredients and bring to a simmer. Season to taste for you liking, but keep in mind the flavors will get stronger as you make the soup.
Soup
Ingredients
Roasted Chicken Thighs, bones removed, skin reserved 4 lbs
Chicken Broth 4 qts
Celery, sliced 1 bunch
Carrots, oblique cut 6 ea, medium
Onions, cut in half 5 ea
Garlic Heads 8 ea
Lemon, zested and juiced 2 ea
Chickpeas, drained and rinsed 2 - 14 oz cans
Avenue Spice 2 T
Crispy Kale 1 bunch
Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1 T
Salt to taste
Cracked Black Pepper to taste
Garnish
Chicken Skins, cracked black pepper
Method of Procedure
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Roast your chicken and remove. Once cool, peel off the chicken skins, remove chicken from bones and use bones in the broth.
Toss your onions and garlic with extra virgin olive oil, and 1 T of avenue spice. Roast in the oven until softened, around 40 minutes.
Make your chicken skins and reserve for later to garnish the soup.
Make your broth and bring to a boil.
Blanch off your carrots and celery, then shock and reserve.
Chop up your roasted garlic and onions as well as your chicken meat and put into your soup pot on medium heat with your remaining avenue spice and cook while stirring for around 10 minutes.
Zest and juice your lemon and add to your chicken.
Add your chickpeas, then your fortified broth.
Bring to a simmer and season to taste. Simmer for 40 minutes or until your soup reaches your desired consistency.
To finish your soup add crispy kale , carrots, and celery, then simmer for for 15 minutes.
Ladle your soup and add chopped up chicken skins and fresh cracked black pepper.
Comments