#and chicken. we always have chicken with kluski

[misiahasahardname]

What’s your favorite food? (For the inbox 1 thing you want to know)

kluski śląskie!!!!!!!! my mum used to make a BRILLIANT sauce for them but they don't sell the right spice packets for them anymore 😔😔

also a big stir fry fan... doesn't matter too much what's in it ...... OH and i also really like just. italian food in general

but kluski śląskie are my favourite food overall

[arlia11]

Making Soup!

My dad taught me how to make soup.  When I was a kid, he would start early Sunday mornings and by the time we all got back from church there would be a simmering pot of something that smelled absolutely amazing. The soup rarely followed a recipe, but always was delicious.

He taught me how to make stock, and basically feed no less than an army.  Soup is always an experimentation, because no matter what you do it won’t always be the same. But if you stick to some basics, it can definitely be tasty.

Making your own broth/stock

This is actually easier than you think, and your soup will thank you for it.  Sure, you can buy the canned/boxed broth, and that works in a pinch. But you will save more money if you make it on your own, and you can control all the ingredients that go into it.

Did you have a chicken roast the other night? Save the bones and leftover bits you didn’t eat - because those can go right in the stock. Have a pork chop that had a bone in it? Save that bone! T-bone steak? Sirloin steak that was a bit fatty and you didn’t eat all of it? I think you get where I am going here.  All those already cooked bits make great stock fodder. I throw them all in plastic baggies and into the freezer until I am ready to make stock.  Same thing with leftover veggies - whatever you don’t eat, throw into those baggies. 

Not all broth/stocks need to have leftovers in them. Sometimes I buy too much meat and it gets freezer burned, and then it won’t be so good for me to cook and eat like I normally would. Guess what, the soup won’t care. If you buy some meat and trim off fat or other trailing pieces, those can also go into your stock, so really, it’s about not wasting anything.

Getting started

Get your biggest pot. This stuff reduces down, so in the end it won’t be so much. The point is to make sure you have enough room to get things in the pot and make magic happen.  

Fill the pot with your meat pieces/leftovers first, and then add in the leftover veggies (or new ones if you are so inclined). Also helpful would be to add any spices you have hanging around. I love adding Garlic, oregano, basil, thyme, peppercorns, tiny bit of kosher salt. Don’t oversalt, it will reduce down and get salty as it goes, so a little will go a long way. Also, don’t add potatoes or anything starchy, that will muddy the broth and make it cloudy.

Bring it up to a boil then bring it down and let it simmer away. If you filled it too much, you could risk letting it boil over, so be careful. You can have the top on the pot, but don’t necessarily leave it alone - you don’t want the pot to have so much foam it boils over. I usually put the cover on a bit askew to vent it. Plus, it makes the house smell amazing.

Next Up - Prepare your storage

You are going to want to store this. I like storing it in soup sized containers that can freeze and stack. Or you can pour it into bags, lay them flat on a cookie sheet and refrigerate until you firm - then you can put them in the freezer stacked. The broth will gelatinize, so prepare for that!

Also, you aren’t going to keep everything you boiled. The only thing you want to have after this is the broth. Get yourself some cheesecloth, and a sieve strainer to fit over a large bowl. Put a layer or two of cheesecloth on the strainer directly, and put that over the bowl. Basically, you are going to ladle the broth into that cheesecloth, and it will strain out any nasty bits you definitely don’t want to have in soup.

Just About Done

Really the foolproof way to tell if it is done is to taste it. It should reduce down significantly, and be very flavorful. Depending on how much salt you used, it will either need more or be just fine to your liking.

It doesn’t need to be on the heat anymore, so you can either strain the broth from it’s spot on the stove (once you turn off the heat) or move it to the counter on top of a heat safe trivet or cutting board. I recommend the cutting board on the counter so that the cleanup is easier.

You can let it cool, it shouldn’t be hot when you are straining it and putting it into the containers (or bags). You can use tongs or a big spoon to get the large chunks of stuff out of the bowl and toss those right away. Ladling into the strainer is the best solution to get through the pot because if you pour from the pot you could accidentally splash things everywhere.

When the bowl gets full, remove the strainer for a bit and then transfer the newly strained broth into the containers/baggies. Those can be closed and put in the fridge/freezer. Repeat as necessary.

Uses For Your Broth

You can of course use it as a basis for soup - just one container and then add more water until you get the amount of soup liquid you want. I also occasionally drink it in a mug by itself, or with little noodles like or orzo. When you make soup, you can basically have all the flavor ready to go with this broth, and you are just adding whatever new veggies and meats you want. You can also use the broth to braise meats, or to make really insanely flavored Kluski with.

Hope you like this :) <3 ya.