Cock a Leekie Soup is a peasant dish with many regional variations, some which goes back as far as the 16th century. Some cooks add chopped grilled bacon, some use beef stock, some add Jamaican pepper and many suggest offering stewed prunes with the finished dish. Talleyrand, the French gourmet, recommended cooking prunes in the soup. Whichever choice you make this easy recipe from Ronnie Clydesdale of the Ubiquitous Chip in Glasgow is a sure-fire winner.
Prep Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 2lb 12oz/ 1.25k fresh, whole chicken
- 12 medium sized leeks, well washed and chopped to ¾"/2cm lengths
- 4 oz/ 100g washed long grain rice
- 3 - 4 medium sized carrots, peeled and grated
- Salt and crushed black pepper
Preparation:
Serves 4
- Put the chicken in a pot with enough water to more than cover. Add 6 leek
- Cover the pot and simmer gently for 1 hour or until the chicken is falling off the bone Remove the chicken and reserve.
- Strain the stock into a fresh pot, add the rice and cook in a covered pot for 10 minutes Add the grated carrots and the remainder of the chopped leeks and continue cooking for 20 minutes.
- Taste for intensity of flavour and, if necessary, reduce further to increase the taste Season with salt and pepper.
- Chop a little of the reserved chicken and add to the finished soup.
