Final soupy goodness! Yommmm.......
I’m in cooking withdrawal.
Over the past couple months, we’ve been in various stages of moving, and my pots and pans still haven’t surfaced. But during the process, I made one purchase that made it all OK…my enameled cast-iron pot by Lodge.
It’s awfully similar (actually, identical) to the Le Creuset version that’s about $200. I paid $35 for this at Walmart. And I’ve used it for everything from making soup (see below) to boiling pasta and making grilled cheese.
I win.
Last night, I made a killer white bean and kale soup in said vessel. I took some fun photos of the process, so here you go, dear reader. And remember…salt pork makes everything better.
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- First, I cut the rind off some salt pork and cubed it, then placed it in the pre-heated pot.
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- The salt pork begins to render, or melt the fat. No need for other oils.
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- The salt pork is finally rendered, with all the fat liquified and the meat crisp. I then pulled out the meat with a slotted spoon and left the fat.
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- Next, I added half a diced onion to the fat and cooked it until nearly clear.
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- Next, I added half a diced onion to the fat and cooked it until nearly clear.
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- My haphazard mise en place (my prep bowls are still packed!).
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- My haphazard mise en place (my prep bowls are still packed!).
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- Added the diced orange bell pepper and celery to the cooked onion. Garlic went in a bit later as not to burn it.
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- After cooking down the other veg, I added some washed and chopped kale. Yummy, seasonal and nutritious! Looks like it fills the entire bowl but it cooks way down.
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- After cooking down the kale, I rinsed 3 cans of cannellini (Italian white kidney) beans and stirred them in to soak up some porky goodness.
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- Closeup of the veggie/kale/bean goodness.
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- Closeup of the veggie/kale/bean goodness.
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- I had the stock (homemade from previous night’s roasted rosemary chicken) simmering in an adjacent pot (the only other one I can find). I ladled it into the mixture until the proportions looked right.
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- I had the stock (homemade from previous night’s roasted rosemary chicken) simmering in an adjacent pot (the only other one I can find). I ladled it into the mixture until the proportions looked right.
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- Final soupy goodness! (Well, minus the pork bits I forgot to photo, stirred back in later.) Yommmm…….