Serves 4 to 6
Chicken soup is a given in Jewish cuisine and culture. So, what would a Jewish comedian do if he couldn’t fall back on his stock of Jewish mother and chicken soup jokes? A bowl of chicken soup is comforting, nurturing and satisfying. Put kreploch in it and it becomes a holiday specialty. Chicken soup and kreplach are almost synonymous with Rosh Hashanah and Chanukah. So, a bowl of chicken soup never hurt anyone.
Quick and easy method:
About 6 cups chicken stock – or 3, 14.5-ounce cans of commercial
1 medium size yellow onion, diced
1 carrot, peeled and cut into thin slices or julienne
1 rib of celery, trimmed and diced
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Kreploch
About 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
Put first five ingredients into a pot and bring to the boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook, covered, until the vegetables reach the desired degree of tenderness. Add kreploch and cook until all is hot through. Gently stir in the parsley, salt and pepper. Serve hot garnished with sprigs of fresh parsley.
From Scratch Method:
The Broth:
1 whole chicken, or the equivalent in chicken parts
1 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 stalk of celery, diced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon sugar
Rinse the chicken and place in a large pot with the remaining ingredients. Cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a rapid simmer, cover and continue to cook for about an hour or until the meat is falling off the bones. Strain and return the liquid to the pot. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove all the meat from the bones and set aside. Return the bones and cooked vegetables to the pot and continue to simmer for another forty-five minutes to an hour. Strain, allow to cool and skim off as much fat as possible.
To Assemble:
1 medium size yellow onion, diced
1 carrot, peeled and cut into thin slices or julienne
1 rib of celery, trimmed and diced
Kreplach
Diced, cooked chicken meat
About 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
Add the onion, carrot and celery to the broth in the pot, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a rapid simmer and cook, covered until the vegetables reach the desired degree of doneness. Add the kreplach, chicken meat and parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper. Continue to cook only until hot through. Serve hot. |
