Chicken soup: Comfort food from a Polish kitchen

Whenever you make chicken soup, try to have a few beef bones on hand, said Anne Applebaum and Danielle Crittenden in From a Polish Country House Kitchen (Chronicle). In Poland, where a hearty chicken soup is “the most basic, most beloved,” and most frequently cooked dish in many a household, starting the soup, or rosol, with just a small chicken carcass and a few odd vegetables simply won’t do. The “real thing” requires uncooked chicken on the bone, “more vegetables than you are usually instructed to use,” and a second kind of meat to deepen the flavor.

Polish cooks often add cabbage or lovage—a fennel-like herb. But “the only absolutely required vegetables” are carrots, parsnips, onions, leeks, and celery root or plain celery. In Polish markets, the five staples are sold bundled together and are said to have been introduced to the country by a 16th-century queen who’d been born in Italy. The beef, it should be noted, isn’t a strict necessity. It can be omitted if you want a more delicate broth, as when you choose to add matzo balls.

Recipe of the week:

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Polish chicken soup

• 5 to 6 lbs bone-in chicken, whole or cut up
• 1 lb bone-in beef or veal, such as short ribs
• 1 large unpeeled onion, halved
• 5 medium carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
• 2 large parsnips, peeled and thickly sliced
• 2 leeks (white and green parts), halved lengthwise
• ½ medium head celery root, peeled and coarsely chopped, or 3 celery stalks, with leaves, coarsely chopped
• 1 slice savoy cabbage, or ½ zucchini
• 5 to 6 peppercorns
• 4 whole cloves
• 4 allspice berries
• 4 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
• 4 sprigs dill, plus more for garnish
• 1 bay leaf
• Handful of fresh lovage leaves (optional)
• 1 thin slice lemon
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp salt, plus more for seasoning
• Freshly ground pepper
• 4 chives, cut into 2-inch lengths (optional)

Place chicken, beef, and onion in a large pot and add about 5 quarts of water, to cover. Bring to a boil, lower heat to medium, and simmer, skimming off foam as needed, for 30 minutes. Add all remaining ingredients except black pepper and chives. Cover and cook at a low boil until beef is tender and chicken is falling off the bone, about 2 to 2½ hours.

Remove and discard beef; transfer chicken to a colander set over a bowl. Once chicken has cooled, shred the meat, set it aside, and discard the bones. Strain broth, pressing on the solids enough to squeeze out their juices. If you wish to skim fat from the surface of the broth, do so now. If you want a clear, minimalist broth, discard all vegetables; for a heartier soup, thinly slice the cooked carrots, parsnips, and celery root.

Rewarm the broth and season with salt and pepper. Divide the chicken among bowls along with the sliced vegetables, if using. Ladle hot stock into each bowl and garnish the soup with dill and chives. Serves 8 to 10.