Making some Majorcan Soup

We had something of an excess of cabbage, which was causing issues in our refrigerator - and nobody likes excessive cabbage issues. During the weekend, I decided the only thing to do was to make some DELICIOUS CABBAGE soup.

To say that Shannon was sceptical would be understating the issue. I too had some doubts. The whole concept of cabbage soup conjured memories of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and pantomime 19th Century poverty. However, I was committed to making the soup delicious and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

So, my starting recipe was 'Majorcan Soup', from the book Soups by Hannah Wright. I picked up a copy of this book at the library about four years back and photocopied a few recipes out of it. With the exception of Lettuce Soup, the recipes I've made from the book have been winners. I'll often make them a bit fancier - Hannah Wright will use water in a lot of soups while I think that as a rule, any soup without stock or ham or bacon bone is a sucky soup.

This recipe was a case in point. I replaced the water with the chicken stock I had sitting in the fridge, and also got a little wacky, adding some left over roast chicken. Otherwise, I stayed true to what Hannah had going on.

The soup begins with a simple base of onion, garlic and if I had had them in the house, green and red peppers. Fry up the onion and a couple of cloves of garlic in a good amount of olive oil. Add chicken, chicken stock, a can of tinned tomatoes (Hannah asks for four fresh), dried basil, salt and pepper. Bring to the boil and then simmer the lot for ten minutes.

After this point you can add your finely shredded cabbage. You really only want to simmer the cabbage for five or so minutes because OVERCOOKED CABBAGE IS THE DEVIL. No hyperbole.

 

This is what a huge pile of cabbage looks like
 

It was at this point that I had to do some adjustment with my liquid. I guess the rule here is the same as always - keep tasting your soup and make sure that you've added enough salt.

As an accompaniement, Toast was perfectly adequate, but the recipe I was using also suggested making some large garlicky croutons. Doesn't that sound heavenly?

In conclusion: no Grandpa George or Grandma Georgiana in sight, this cabbage soup is moreish. A++ would trade with again.

 

Soup! In my Crown Lynn Tam O'Shanter bowls, on my Formica table. Seventies much?