CRISPY Parboiled Baked Chicken Wings(I)... with Korean Sauce and Bonus Chicken Stock.

Crispy Parboiled Baked Chicken Wings... with Korean Sauce and Bonus Chicken Stock. Because I don't buy ready made chicken stock, I'm always on the "alert" when it comes to meat bones. I try not to toss them out when I'm de-boning. Funny thing is that sometimes I buy bone-in meat, just for the sole purpose of using the bones to have homemade chicken stock on hand. 

Now the other day, I was really craving some wings.... mainly because I had seen a recipe for a Korean sauce that I wanted to make. I thought it would be good to glaze the chicken wings with a different sort of sauce... something outside the usual hot sauce or BBQ sauce I tend to glaze the wings with. In any case, I ended up buying some wings to bake.

I love baking the wings and always skip the frying. But some time ago I had come across Alton Brown's steaming method... a method that promised crispy wings without frying.  I was willing to give it a go. It would be worth a try... 

But as I was fiddling around trying to find something to steam the wings in, I thought, why not parboil the wings instead. It'd be much simpler ... and this way I could make use of the flavorful liquid to make a stock. Oh, and I'd use up those little wing tips to their full potential, because I sure didn't want to throw them away:)!  Plus, I'd also use up those bits and pieces of vegetables I had sitting in the fridge. And that's what I ended up doing. Sort of went my own way with the recipe:)...

These parboiled wings tend to be a bit more drier than normal ... just because most of the fat is rendered in the boiling and baking process. However, they do have a nice crisp exterior. The Korean red pepper sauce worked wonderfully well with the wings. I lightly coated the wings, but it gave them the needed moisture as well as imparting a ton of flavor. A little bit of spice...  a little bit of sweet. 

My husband loved these wings, so I'm planning on making them again this way ... especially since I get the bonus chicken stock in the process. Always, always good to have some homemade chicken stock on hand. 

I made 2 versions of baked crispy wings. This was part 1....next time I'll share the second method. Hope you enjoy...

Note: The Korean red pepper sauce is so versatile... use it in all sorts of stir-fries or add it to ground meat for lettuce wraps, glaze meatballs, etc. 

Since I had some leftover sauce, I ended up using it as a stir-fry sauce for vegetables... it worked wonderfully well with the snap peas and zucchini I picked from my garden, but you can use other veggies of choice. 

You will need:

26 whole wings(about 3lbs), separated in 3 pieces( flats, drumettes, wing tips)

1 TBS kosher salt

1 large garlic clove, sliced

6 cups water

Bonus Chicken Stock

parboiled liquid from above

parboiled wing tips only

1/2 parsnip

1 large carrot

1-2 ribs of celery

1 small onion

1 cup extra water

Korean Gochujang Sauce adapted from Maanghci

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 TBS oil

1/3 cup ketchup

1/4 cup brown rice syrup(now, I haven't used honey, but it should work)

1/4 cup hot pepper paste(gochujang)

1 TBS cider apple vinegar

toasted sesame seeds

Other Sauce of Choice

BBQ sauce 

Hot sauce 

Honey mustard

Directions:

Parboil Chicken Wings:

1. In a large soup pot, bring 6 cups of water to a boil.

2. Add all wing pieces, sliced garlic and salt.

 

3. Boil chicken wings for about 7 minutes, stirring them every so often and skimming off the scum.  

4. Remove pot from heat and with a slotted spoon remove wings (flats and drumettes) unto a plate... leaving behind the stock and small wing tips.

5. Arrange wings on plate in a single layer and allow to cool. You can blot them from excess water and bake right away... or you can place them in the fridge uncovered for several hours(which is what I did).  

Make Bonus Chicken Stock:

1. To the pot with the chicken liquid and wing tips, add the cut up vegetables, 1 cup water and heat to a boil. 2. Lower heat to a simmer and cover pot. 

3. Simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and strain vegetables. 

4. Place stock in small containers and freeze for later use... or use in recipe of choice.  

Make Korean Sauce:

1. To make sauce, add oil and garlic to a medium skillet and cook till garlic is lightly golden.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients, mix to combine  and continue to cook on low until sauce is thickened....3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to use for glazing wings. You can do this while the chicken wings bake.  

Bake Chicken Wings and Glaze:

• Preheat oven to 425 Deg F

1. While oven is preheating take wings out from fridge.

2. Line a baking sheet with parchment and lightly oil parchment paper.

3. Place wings in a single layer, skin side up unto parchment paper lined baking sheet.

4. Place baking sheet on top 1/3 rack and bake for 20-25 minutes.

5. Turn wings over and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until nicely golden and crispy. 

NOTE: Baking time varies depending on size of wings, so adjust accordingly. 

6. Remove from oven and glaze with sauce of choice. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds, if using the Korean sauce. 

Tip: If you have any leftover sauce, you can easily stir-fry a few veggies with a TBS of oil for a couple of minutes and add in a heaping TBS of the Korean red pepper sauce to coat. For the veggies I used 1/4 of an onion, a couple handfuls of  flat snap peas and 1 medium zucchini.

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Romanian Homemade Chicken "Head Cheese"... or "Toba de Pui"

Romanian Homemade Chicken "Head Cheese"... or "Toba de Pui". I need to start out by saying the recipe I'm posting today might not be for everyone... especially those who aren't used to head cheese, meat terrines, or meat jellies. Having said that, maybe this post might appeal to some... just maybe. Even if... just for one other person:). But it's really geared for those who love pork head cheese(toba), and maybe are looking to make a lighter version of the "head cheese". This recipe omits the pork and uses chicken instead. And when I say you can actually make a chicken head cheese(toba de pui), it might come as a surprise. It did to me. Normally one makes head cheese using pork... though sometimes beef may be used. Romanians, however, tend to use pig parts, especially pig feet, because it's more gelatinous. In any case, the fact that you could simplify the process and obtain a leaner product  by using a whole chicken was a new revelation to me. One that I was excited to try. 

When I looked over the original recipe, I instantly knew making a chicken "head cheese" would require some sort of thickener to bind the meat. Because you won't be able to get that firm gelatin when using chicken alone. So unflavored gelatin made sense. But the thought of cooking the chicken in a bain marie intrigued me. I had never heard of cooking a chicken in a bain marie. But since the unflavored gelatin was added at the beginning, when cooking the chicken, the bain marie also made sense... gelatin will loose it's thickening property if allowed to boil. 

While the recipe worked beautifully for the most part, I felt the need to increase the gelatinous liquid... felt the amount of meat was a bit much compared to the liquid, and maybe I could have added more liquid? I don't know if it was in part due to the chicken I used... it was natural, free of any added solutions, etc. I also added some extra spices for additional flavor. And while the Romanian version of head cheese normally has quite a bit of garlic, I chose to lower it a bit as I didn't want the garlic to be overpowering,... still garlicky but not so strong.  

Now, I was a bit uncomfortable with the 3 hour cooking time required to make the head cheese. Nothing wrong with that really. Even when making the pork version, the cooking time is just as long. But, it's just that I'm always looking to cut the cooking time if I can, and maybe that's why I love my pressure cooker:). However, I think next time I'd like to cook the chicken in a pressure cooker, then add the gelatin to the hot stock and proceed as normal with the recipe. If it works, it would be wonderful:). It's just an idea I have, we'll see. But for my first attempt, I felt the need to follow the recipe as is... later on I could always tweak the recipe to my liking. For now, I'll post the regular version, in case any of you would like to try this recipe.

  

Oh, I forgot to say how we liked it:)... we actually loved it! Almost had that flavor associated with Romanian piftie. And after adding the spices and garlic you'd think you were eating pork. Really. We enjoyed  the head cheese cut in small cubes, and served with mustard, green onion and crisp radishes. Yum! It's also another great lunchmeat alternative, without the preservatives.

I'm indebted to Andreea from Dimineti Insorite who was kind enough to share the idea and recipe with me. One thing I'm grateful for when it comes to blogging... you meet the kindest and sweetest people. People who share their knowledge. Thanks so much Andreea! Hope you enjoy...

Some Personal Notes:

• Depending on how large the chicken is, the amount of gelatinous liquid could be adjusted by adding more stock, or amount of chicken subtracted.
• Wondering if cooking the chicken without the gelatin would cut down on cooking time... Cooking the chicken in a pressure cooker and then adding the gelatin to the stock at the end. 
• My chicken was natural... without any added saline solution, so liquid was minimal(1 1/2 cups) 
• When cooking the chicken in the bain marie... cooking time varies from 3-4 hours... or until chicken is cooked completely.
• When cooking the chicken in the bain marie, adding hot boiling water throughout the cooking process ensures constant heat is maintained... dark chicken meat should be placed on the bottom for even cooking.   

You will need: inspired by lalena and originally brought to my attention by Andreea from Dimineti Insorite. 

Bain Marie ingredients:

1 whole broiler chicken

1/4 cup(5 packs or 35 grams) unflavored gelatin

1 TBS dried onion flakes

1 TBS+1tsp kosher salt, or to taste

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

dried chile flakes, to taste, optional

2 small bay leaves

1 TBS Trader's Joe 21 seasoning salute, or other favorite spices

Additional:

3 medium garlic cloves, grated 

extra salt as needed

extra stock as needed(to make 2 cups liquid)

Use leftover chicken bones to make chicken stock for later:

see this post to make stock

Directions:

1. Wash chicken, and cut in 8 pieces ( or so).  Remove skin... I left the skin on the back and wings.

2. Get 2 large stock pots ready... one pot should be smaller so it can fit inside the larger pot... as a bain marie. Add enough water in the bottom larger pot  so that the top smaller pot does not touch the water.

3. Place both pots on the stove...  and add the chicken and bain marie ingredients in the top smaller pot. Stir until chicken pieces get coated with spices and gelatin. Place the darker meat on the bottom. Cover top pot with lid. 

4. Bring the water in the the bottom larger pot to a boil, and then immediately lower heat to low.  You do not want a high heat as the high heat will deactivate the gelatin.

5. Cook chicken on low for 3-4 hours... monitor the cooking process, by adding extra boiling water to the bottom pot, as needed... and lifting the lid off the top pot to switch the chicken pieces around so that it cooks evenly. The chicken is cooked when it is no longer pink and juices run clear. 

6. Take chicken from pot and allow to cool, debone and cut in 1-2 inch pieces. Set bones aside to make stock for later, if you like.

7. To liquid that has accumulated in pot, add the grated garlic and adjust liquid amount if too little...  with extra chicken stock. You should have about 2 cups worth of liquid.

8. Strain stock and garlic through a fine mesh strainer. Remove any fat that has accumulated.

9. Add strained stock to chicken... and combine.

10. Grease a mold of choice with a bit of oil and add the chicken and liquid, pressing down.  

I used a bread baking glass tube with 2 openings on either side. I sealed one end. But you can use any container that you can eventually cut, such as plastic 2 liter bottle, or a cardboard-style juice bottle. You can also use any secure lock glass containers, and when congealed remove  meat with the help of a flat plastic knife, etc. The gelatin helps the meat mixture slide out pretty easily once congealed...  

11. Cover  pressed down meat mixture and refrigerate overnight. 

Slice and serve with bread and mustard... and any veggies of choice. Or make a sandwich with the "deli" meat.

Extra:  Make stock with bones and add extra vegetables. Save in freezer for other dishes.  See link above.

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Jewish Matzo(Matzah) Ball Soup

Jewish Matzo(Matzah) Ball Soup... You know, I've never had matzo ball soup  before... well, until a few weeks ago in NYC... at the Carnegie Deli. Oh, I've actually known about the soup for a long time, just never tried it before. And the reason being, is that all this time I thought, " Neah, it can't be better than the Romanian version of Chicken Soup with Farina Dumplings (or Supa de Galuste)." Ashamedly not the best attitude... because when one isn't open minded, one misses out. And you know what? I was pleasantly surprised to find out that matzo soup is right up there with the supa de galuste. It's equally delicious... even though they're both slightly different from one another. I'm so, so glad I finally tried it! Plus, it actually gives me an excuse to switch from one soup to the other:).

So if you remember, when I made the shredded chicken in my pressure cooker, I had some leftover chicken stock. And since I had some matzo meal on hand, I decided to make a quick matzo soup. Even with the stock being lighter in color from not using chicken bones, it still tasted delicious! It's funny how the photo actually makes the stock look like water, but the lighting was off that day... it really was chicken stock:). 

In any case, I thought I would share this recipe that's become a favorite of mine. Real comfort food. Great soup for those cloudy and dreary days.... or when you just need to take the chill off from all the shoveling:). Oh, and I forgot to mention, the soup re-heats quite well  because the matzo balls don't fall apart. So in reality, it would be a great make-ahead sort of meal you can give to someone who's fighting a cold... or just to cheer them up. Great even for the elderly, a new mom, or as a dish to bring to a gathering. We absolutely loved this soup! Hope you enjoy...    

You will need: matzo ball ingredients taken from the back of the matzo meal box:)

Matzo Balls: makes about 8 (1 1/2 TBS) balls

1/2 cup matzo meal

2 eggs, lightly beaten (I forgot to beat mine)

2 TBS oil (can use chicken fat) 

kosher salt to taste( I used a big pinch)

1/4 tsp dried onion, powdered, optional but quite tasty

2 TBS chicken stock (can use water, I suppose)

For Soup:

8 cups prepared chicken stock(or as needed), homemade is best*

1 cooked carrot, thinly sliced, optional

a few sprigs of dill, parsley, celery leaves, etc. thinly sliced

thinly sliced leeks, green onion, totally optional

freshly ground black pepper, optional

* I ended up using the stock from when I made my pressure cooker shredded chicken, so it's lighter than normal

Directions:

1. Mix all matzo ball ingredients in a bowl. Cover and place in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes.

2. Add 6 cups of water to medium sized pot. Salt water well... as you would pasta water.

3. Bring water to a full rolling boil. Reduce heat to simmer.

4. Wet or oil your hands and form matzo balls... I like to use the 1 1/2 TBS cookie scooper and then  lightly shape into balls. Roll them loosely. Do not compact the mixture as you roll. You want to use as light of a hand as possible when rolling. This ensures your matzo balls won't be heavy.

5. Drop the balls into simmering salted water... one at a time. 

As a side note: You can cook the matzo balls directly in your chicken stock, if you like... it will just make the soup a bit more cloudy. 

6. Cover the pot and cook for 30- 40 minutes.

Assemble Soup:

1. Bring prepared chicken stock to a simmer... add any cooked carrot slices you may have from making the chicken stock... or omit.  

2. Ladle some soup in a bowl, add 2-3 matzo balls and sprinkle any fresh herbs, or sliced leeks/green onion. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper, if desired.

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Pressure Cooker Shredded Chicken... with a bonus Chicken Stock.

Pressure Cooker Shredded Chicken... with a bonus Chicken Stock. Oh, and a quick tip on shredding chicken. You know, sometimes I'm all for a quick meal... because there are days when you really need to put something on the table without being in the kitchen for too long. And there are those days that you simply don't have a lot of ingredients on hand... except some chicken. I don't know about you, but I always seem to have chicken around. Chicken is just easier to cook and can be used in lots and lots of dishes. I'll be honest, sometimes I can run out of ideas when it comes to using chicken breast meat. Don't get me wrong, there are a ton of recipes out there. But when I want to fix something quick, like say in under a half hour, I tend to fall back on a stir-fry, or a quick pan sear. Normally, I have quite a few vegetables around that I toss in to make a whole meal. But the other day, after coming back from my recent vacation, I  found myself with just a few vegetables on hand... a bit of celery, carrots and some onion.What to do...

It's interesting but when I am in a hurry, I most always reach for my pressure cooker. It just cooks foods faster, and makes it taste a ton better! I couldn't do without my pressure cooker, and use it on a weekly basis. Over time, I've learned to tweak certain recipes and find it works rather well. So the other day, when I had a few chicken breasts and limited vegetables on hand, I immediately thought of making some shredded chicken. At the time, I was thinking of using some pantry/freezer items to complement the chicken and make a meal of it... could make some chicken salad, or burritos, or "pulled" chicken.  Actually I was leaning more on making some flautas, but last minute I decided to use up some BBQ sauce and made "pulled" chicken sandwiches... with a soup(coming soon). 

I wasn't planning on posting this idea, but because I normally have my camera nearby, I thought it would be great if I would just snap a few pictures... would think about it later if I posted or not. Then I thought, maybe this post would be of help to someone... especially busy moms. So I'm posting it:). You can make the shredded chicken early in the week and use it  in all sorts of dishes throughout the coming days. I'm thinking, if you have a larger pressure cooker, you can easily double the recipe if you like. 

Another thing that I like about this recipe, is that  after the chicken breasts are cooked, you will have some chicken stock left in the pot. Not a lot, and not as flavorful as one made with bones, but it's still great. You can freeze the stock, use it in other dishes, or make a chicken noodle soup... or any other soup you like. Oh, and if you've never used the mixer to shred your chicken, you might want to give it a try... saves you a ton of time shredding it by hand. Well, you'll have shredded all the chicken in under 1 minute! Feel free to use the shredded chicken as you like. Hope you enjoy...         

Note: Feel free to add any BBQ sauce you like to make the "pulled" chicken filling. 

You will need:

2.5 lbs fresh chicken breast

1 large carrot, sliced in chunks

1 celery rib, cut in chunks

1/2 onion, cut in 2 pieces

1 garlic clove, cut in 2 pieces

4 cups water 

salt as needed

Directions:

1. Wash chicken breasts. Season with a bit of salt. Set aside.

2. In pressure cooker pot, place the "foot" of the insert pan at the bottom. Add chopped vegetables and garlic.

3. Pour in water and season with salt... I think I used a couple big pinches.

4. Add the insert pan on top of the "foot"...  The pan will be sitting on top of the water and vegetables. Water will barely touch the insert pan. 

5. Place the chicken breasts on top of the insert pan. 

6. Add lid and lock. Bring to pressure on high heat. 

7. When pressure is reached, lower heat to low and cook chicken for 12-15 minutes. Mine took about 15 minutes...

8. Release pressure and remove chicken.... check to see the chicken is cooked through. If you notice that your chicken isn't cooked at 12 minutes,  bring to pressure again and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.

9. Place chicken in the bowl of the Kitchen-aid mixer and using the paddle attachment mix on low-medium for 30 seconds-1 minute ... or until chicken is shredded to your liking. Be careful at the beginning, as the chicken can "jump"around. 

10. Strain stock, season with extra salt if needed, and freeze... or use for soup, or other dishes. Stock isn't as deep in flavor as one made with bones, but it is a great 'lil bonus that you can use for a quick soup.

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Pressure Cooker Chicken Stock.... and maximizing the use of a whole chicken.

Pressure Cooker Chicken Stock.... and maximizing the use of a whole chicken. Growing up I saw that my mom knew how to make something out of nothing. Well, or so goes the saying. But I was always amazed to watch her "stretch" a whole chicken to feed a large family... and make 2 or 3 different dishes at the same time. From that one single chicken, my mom would reserve the chicken breasts so that she could make us one of our favorite meals, the Romanian Snitel with mashed potatoes. With the rest of the chicken, she would make the Romanian Dumpling Soup... and then used the cooked chicken(from the soup) to make the Romanian Ostropel. Nowadays, I challenge myself to see if I can come up with as many dishes as I can.... granted there aren't as many mouths to feed, but it's actually quite fun to see how I can "stretch" a whole chicken:).

I grew up with plenty of brothers and sisters, and my parents taught us eat everything off our plates. None of us were given choices if we didn't like the meal that was being served. We ate what was put before us.... My dad worked hard to provide for us, and my mom worked hard to stretch the dollars. Mom rarely let anything go to waste(or throw away for that matter), but made good use of what she had on hand. Most times the dishes she made couldn't be duplicated because she would use whatever ingredients she had in the fridge.... substituting one thing for another and often using leftovers to make something new.

So when I got married and started cooking on my own, I took with me what I had learned as a kid. Started cooking from scratch and maximizing the use of my ingredients....was real glad for my husband who shared the same values as I, and was reared the same way. Real glad... because it makes life so much easier:). It's wonderful to be content... in abundance or lack thereof... with a bowl of beans, or with a plate of shrimp scampi.

In any case, I thought it would be nice to share what I sometimes make in my own kitchen.... how a whole chicken can often be used to make more than one dish, even though the dishes are scaled down somewhat. But I've posted a few photos just to show what I mean...

I usually cut up a whole chicken into 8 parts... and then remain with the ribs, neck, back, breast bones and wing tips. I'll use the bones to make a stock and then remove all the cooked meat from the bones to make a smaller portion of the Romanian Salata de Boeuf.... I know, some people wouldn't even think of extracting the meat from the bones. And for the most part, you don't necessarily get a ton of meat... but it's enough to make use of.

With the dark meat I'll make other dishes ... which may include Romanian Chicken Meatballs, Chicken Cacciatore, or the Rosemary Chicken I just posted recently. With the breast meat, I'll use it to make all sorts of dishes... from lettuce wraps, to Chicken Picatta, to Baked Chicken Cordon Bleu, to Cashew Chicken... to name just a few. But really, the possibilities are endless.

So in this post, I'll share the quicker version of making a homemade chicken stock... using a pressure cooker. This version doesn't involve browning the bones before making the stock.... which is how it's normally done. But the stock still has a ton of flavor, and it's just simpler to place all the ingredients in a pot and let it cook away. The stock can then be used to make all sorts of soups... or it can be used to make other dishes as well. Hope you enjoy...

Note: If you don't have a pressure cooker, you can still make the stock in a regular pot... just cook it for longer, usually double the time.... 1 1/2 - 2 hours on low.

You will need:

ribs, back, neck, wing tips, breast bones of a 4 lb whole chicken

2 carrots, peeled and cut in half

2 celery stalks, peeled, cut in half

1 medium onion, peeled and cut in half

2 garlic cloves, quartered

1 bay leaf, optional

12-16 cups water

1- 1 1/2 TBS kosher salt

onion skin, turmeric, optional*

* only if you want a "yellowish" tinge to the stock. I sometimes skip this, but I have used a couple of onion skins in the past, and it makes a beautiful "homemade" looking stock.

Directions:

1. Cut up whole chicken into 8 parts, remove most of the breast meat and set aside. Place the breast ribs in the cooking vessel. Add the chicken backs, the ribs, neck bone, and wing tips.... if you are planning on de-boning the chicken legs/thighs, add those bones as well.

2. Add the carrots to the pot along with the celery, onion , bay leaf(if using) and garlic cloves,

3. Add water and turmeric/onion skin(only if using).... make sure you have a large enough pressure cooker, so that you still have about 1/3 open space from the top of the lid. Basically, you don't want to fill the pot all the way to the top.

4. Add salt.... you may want to use just 1 TBS salt if you are planning on using less water, to get a more concentrated stock. You can always add more at the end if need be.

Place lid on top and bring to pressure. Lower heat to maintain pressure(on low) and cook for 40 minutes.

5. Remove pot from the stove and place it in the sink. Release pressure naturally.... or quick release, though you will get some sputtering liquid coming out, which is normal..... that's why the sink:)

6. Remove lid when pressure valve has fallen and strain the stock. Adjust seasoning, if need be.

7. Allow the meat to cool enough to handle, then remove as much meat as possible form all the bones. Reserve the carrots if you are planning on making the Romanian salata de boeuf.

8. Store stock in small containers... and freeze for all sorts of recipes. OR use the stock immediately to make soups of all sorts... or freeze half and use the other half. It's up to you:)...

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Romanian Meatball Soup...Ciorba de Perisoare

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Romanian Meatball Soup...Ciorba de Perisoare. During the winter months, I tend to make soups much more often than during the summer months. I guess it's only natural as the colder months tend to bring below zero weather... and plenty of snow. Granted we don't always have the minus zero temps, but we do have snow and cold weather in general. We can't always stay inside, as there's snow to be shoveled, logs that need to be split, firewood that needs to be brought in... and yes, there's the regular walks that need to be taken:). In order to keep us warm, I often make a pot full of "ciorba" or Romanian soup. A bowl of good ol' Romanian soup usually does the trick of warming us up... especially if you add some hot peppers:).

Most Romanian soups are generally "soured"...meaning acidity is added to the soup in the form of lemon juice, citric acid, bors de tarate ( fermented wheat bran liquid), sauerkraut juice, etc. The sour element adds a slight tang to the soup and changes the taste of a regular chicken soup to that of a "soured" version.

Since I tend to want to make things "lighter", I usually adapt certain Romanian dishes according to my own preference. The traditional Ciorba de Perisoare or Meatball Soup, is usually made with beef.... but I most often make it with chicken. I find it's quite delicious and I don't necessarily miss the beef version. I will use a whole chicken to make the soup stock(from the bones) and then use the rest of the meat to make the meatballs. I like to grind my own meat and use the dark meat as well as the white. Using a regular size chicken will usually yield about 2 lbs of meat(+/-)... which is just the right amount for making the meatballs.

I am posting how I make my soup...from scratch. It might seem like a great deal of work, but since I make it often, I hardly think about the work involved:). Lately, I started making the soup stock in a pressure cooker.* The pressure cooker speeds up the process a bit and makes the stock taste incredibly delicious. While the stock cooks, I usually get all the other ingredients ready...so the soup comes together rather quickly. It really isn't that bad:). You can probably use a good store-bought chicken stock and store-bought ground meat. I have to admit that I've never made it that way, so I am not really sure how it would taste. My version is a bit different than most people make theirs... I don't saute the vegetables and most often will skip the beaten eggs/sour cream, but that is how I make mine....and is actually the version I grew up with (though my mom would add the beaten egg from time to time...just to vary it up a bit). Anyway, I thought I should add yet another Romanian recipe to my collection. Hope you enjoy...

* I didn't use the pressure cooker for this post... just because I know most people don't have a pressure cooker. If you have a pressure cooker and would like to use it, you can check out step#4(soup stock) below).

Tip: If you want to make this soup as a beef version, just exchange the chicken bones with beef bones( beef marrow bones that also have some meat) and ground beef for the meatballs. You can also see my veal "ciorba" version here...Romanian Veal Soup

You will need:

SOUP STOCK:

6 QT soup pot

1 whole chicken

2 carrots

1 onion

2 celery ribs

1/2 parsnip (optional...it is good to use, though I don't always have on hand)

1 garlic clove, sliced

1 TBS Kosher salt

water( about 13 cups or so)

EXTRA VEGETABLES FOR SOUP...if you like you can saute the vegetables in a bit of oil and then add it to the soup

3 tomatoes, grated (or processed in the food processor)

1/2 cup onion, small dice

1/2 cup carrot, small dice

1/2 cup bell pepper, small dice ( different colors make it look pretty)

1 TBS tomato paste( or more if you want a more tomato-ey flavor)

MEATBALLS:

2 lbs ground chicken

1/2 onion,grated

3 TBS short grain rice, halfway cooked

1 egg,

1 TBS fresh parsley, chopped

1 tsp fresh dill, chopped

salt and pepper, to taste

ADDITIONAL:

1 ex-large potato, optional (you can add a bit of broken spaghetti or even a bit of rice/orzo instead)

salt, if needed

chopped parsley/lovage, to taste

3-5 TBS lemon juice( or to taste)

beaten egg/s or beaten eggs mixed with a bit of sour cream, optional

SERVE WITH:

crusty bread

hot peppers

Directions:

1. Wash whole chicken and cut into 8 pieces....I also remove the skin.

2. Cut meat from off most of the bones...except wings, back, and ribs. Basically, you will have the chicken breasts, with tenderloins, and the thigh meat as well as the leg meat.

3. Place bones in a large ( 6 QT) soup pot. Set aside.

4. Grind meat and make meatball mixture.

Make meatball mixture:

1. In a sauce pan, add rice along with a bit of salt and about 1 cup of water. Cook rice until it still has a "bite" to it about 5-8 minutes. Strain.

2. In a bowl add the ground meat, grated onion, strained rice, egg, chopped parsley, dill and season with salt and pepper. Mix to fully combine. Cover meat mixture and refrigerate. Refrigerating helps with "stiffening" the mixture a bit so that it is easier to form into meatballs.

Make Soup Stock:

1. To the pot with soup bones, add 1 TBS kosher salt, celery, carrots, parsnip(if using), onion, and sliced garlic.

2. Fill pot with water... almost to the rim((not quite...about 1 1/2 inches below) .

3. Turn heat on high. Bring to boil and skim scum that accumulates. Lower heat and cover.

4. Cook on low for 1 1/2 hours...While the soup is cooking, you can cut up your soup vegetables.

You can also do the stock in the pressure cooker... just place the chicken bones, water, vegetables and salt. Cover. Bring up to pressure. Lower heat to low and cook for about 40 minutes. Release pressure naturally and proceed to next step.

5. Strain soup. Place soup back on the stove and heat to medium-low heat.

6. Add extra soup vegetables to clear stock. Also add the grated tomatoes along with tomato paste. Let it cook while you make meatballs.

7. Take out meatball mixture from refrigerator. Working with wet hands( have a bowl of water nearby) form meatballs( about 1 TBS ) and place them in the hot soup. (if you have a small cookie scoop, you might make it easier on yourself, by using that...I tend to do it the old fashioned way:)).

8. Continue making meatballs and placing them in the soup until all meat is used up.

9. Add diced potatoes. Cover the pot and cook until meatballs and potatoes are cooked( about another 20 minutes or so....sometimes I let it go a bit longer ...especially if I feel the soup needs more flavor. Just letting all the vegetables and meatballs simmer away helps it all come together eventually).

10. Uncover and add lemon juice to taste.( Add beaten egg, if using...most times I don't bother with the egg). Taste and adjust seasoning. Sprinkle with chopped parsley or lovage (leustean)....even chives will work.

Serve ciorba with crusty bread and hot peppers.

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