Sea Bream broth Istrian Recipe

This clear fish broth is very light and has a very pleasant, delicate and mild fish flavour, it is very nutritious and incredibly easy to make as it consists of cooking fresh whole fish in plenty of water together with the onions, celery, bay leaves, parsley, carrots, black peppercorns and seasoned with sea salt, then strained and served hot with fillets of fish and some cooked white rice if desired.

This fish broth can be as rustic or as elegant and sophisticated as you want it to be, it is a very family friendly dish and perfect for any occasion.

It would be normally eaten as a hot starter, however, you can turn this clear soup into a bit more substantial main course by cooking some white rice separately and add it into a broth, and sprinkle some freshly grated Parmiggiano Reggiano (or Padano) cheese on top, which is a very customary thing to do along the Slovenian coast, where this type of soup is very much loved by the locals, cooked recurrently in the households and found on menus in fish restaurants (Ribja juha).

This type of broth would be most commonly cooked using fresh whole Sea bream or Sea bass, but other type of fish can be used like Red mullet, John Dory, Small red scorpionfish and similar fish that have a delicate flavour, and you can also mix and match the fish that you like and found available fresh when deciding to cook the broth.

Fish that is quite strong in taste and quite oily, like mackerel, for example, is not the best choice for the broth, also fish fillets are not particularly recommended (although you can use them for practical reasons) as they will give you a slightly blander tasting broth, and that is because the real flavour comes out of the heads and the bones of the fish.

Recipe for this broth is timeless, it has been cooked and loved by the whole family since I was very little and really does take me right back to my childhood when my family used to run a small fish based restaurant.

This type of fish broth would be cooked in large quantities as it is also a fantastic base to use for sauces and for fish and seafood risotto, as it adds bags of extra flavour.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• fresh whole sea bream, one big in size or a few smaller ones (total weight roughly between 400-600g), cleaned, scaled and gutted

• 1 medium onion, peeled and halved

• 1 medium carrot, peeled

• 1 fresh celery stick, washed (with or without the leaves on)

• 2 fresh bay leaves, fresh or dry

• 2 branches of fresh flat leaf parsley, washed (plus some extra when serving the dish)

• sea salt

• few black peppercorns

• extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling, optional

• white rice, optional

• Parmiggiano Reggiano or Padano cheese, freshly grated, optional

Method

Place sea bream in a pan or stock pot large enough to accommodate the fish lying flat (if using more than one sea breams they can overlap a bit but avoid laying them one on top of the other).

Add onion, carrot, celery stick, bay leaves, fresh parsley and a pinch of salt.

Add 2 litres of cold water and bring to boil.

Lower the heat and gently cook for about 1 hour with the lid partially uncovered.

Check occasionally so the broth does not boil too vigorously (this can break the fish into pieces) and skim off any scum if it forms.

Cook the rice as instructed on the pack, if using to add to the broth (a small handful of rice per person).

Carefully remove the fish from the pan, the use of slotted or unslotted turner spatula on each end of the fish will help to lift the fish out of the pan and place it on a big plate or chopping board.

Allow the fish to cool a bit to a manageable temperature.

Clean sea bream by removing the tails, heads, the skin and all the bones in order to obtain small fillets of fish.

Put the fillets in a dish and cover with the aluminium foil to prevent drying and set aside for later use.

Pour the broth through a fine strainer or sieve into another pan.

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Add previously cleaned pieces of fish (small fillets) back into a pan with a filtered broth.

Discard bits and pieces caught in the strainer or in the sieve.

Taste and adjust the seasoning with sea salt.

Ladle the broth into serving soup plates or bowls, sprinkle with roughly chopped fresh parsley, drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, add a small handful of cooked rice if desired, and serve hot, immediately with some fresh crunchy bread.

Just a thought

Freshly cooked fish broth will keep in the fridge for a few days in the airtight container and is suitable for freezing.

You can cook this broth using only the heads and the bones of the fish and use the fillets for a different recipe or make a second course with them.

Wine suggestion

Vino Bianco "Turno Belo" - Movia

Hungarian style Creamy Potato and Beef Goulash Soup Recipe

This soup, warm, wholesome, and rich in flavour, can be used as a main meal, especially on those cold days when it will be much appreciated. It is made with only a few simple ingredients, and when cooked well and simmered slowly, it makes a perfect meal choice for body and soul, it is also quite filling, so there is no need to plan a main course.

This Hungarian soup, Gulyásleves, is generally made of beef, vegetables, ground paprika and other spices, but originates from a dish, a thicker stew (what is commonly known as beef goulash) that was cooked outside in the cauldron over an open fire, by the cattlemen, the Hungarian cowboys, who camped with their cattle in the Great Hungarian Plain.

This dish, although native to Hungary, became very popular in the countries around Hungary, which, like in most cases, gave a little twist to the original recipe, and is the origin of variety of new regional variations.

For example in Austria, where this dish is called Goulaschsuppe, it is common to cook this soup without its meat component, which makes a fantastic vegetarian and vegan friendly meal.

In Slovenia, where I come from however, this soup (called kromprjev golaž) which is a real crowd pleaser and became part of Slovenian food culture, testimony of the strong presence of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the the territory, is almost always cooked with the meat component, where beef can be substituted by dry meats, i.e. some sort or sausages (smoked varieties are often used for a deeper, smokier, and more “imperial” flavour).

In Slovenia, like in Italy (mountainous parts of some regions like of Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia bordering with Austria), this soup is generally served in the informal mountainside restaurants to the delight of hikers and skiers, as well as cooked in the households.

This seriously delicious one pot meal is quite nostalgic for me and reminds me of my childhood. It was served in the school canteens for lunch, and what were called 'dinner ladies, cooked the soup from scratch with fresh ingredients, and the aroma would travel around the school, into the classrooms, destructing the minds of us children struggling with some impossible maths sexercises, especially when approaching lunch time, when you could hear growling in the little tummies.

The soup would be followed by the Austrian inspired pudding, Buchteln, sweet yeast buns filled with apricot jam. This is the type of lunch, among many others, we children really looked forward to...

When I moved to England, goulash soup is one of those dishes, which for some strange reason has been a bit forgotten, and it was not until our skiing trip to Austria, when I saw this soup on the menu that all my childhood memories suddenly came back to me, this is what food does...

As soon as we got back to England I cooked this wonderful tasting goulash soup, it was a hit. I have been making it on a regular basis since then, and I will most definitely make sure this time it stays on the menu.

It is just so hearty, comforting and cosy, the whole family loves this one pot soup and it is cooked very often for my husband and my son who simply adore it. When I serve it, we get transported to the skiing memories we created together as a family, and the table conversations would start ....

I am sharing here a family recipe how my maternal grandmother used to make it, and how my mother still makes it. If you never had this soup before, try it and it will become one of your favourites, and all you need to serve the soup with is a nice rustic bread to dunk it, yes .... this is 'home' for me...

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 3 medium size potatoes (about 500g) peeled and chopped into small cubes

• 1 onion (about 120g) peeled and finely chopped

• 1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed

• 2 Tbsp Hungarian sweet paprika

• 2 Tsp red or white wine vinegar

• 2 Tbsp tomato purée

• 1 Tsp fresh marjoram (a few springs) finely chopped, (can use dry marjoram)

• 3 Tsp caraway seeds, crashed with mortar and pestle (can use spice or coffee grinder)

  whole caraway seeds can be used if you have none of the above ways to ground the seeds

• 400-500g braising steak or shin of beef, trim any hard fat off the beef and dice finely

• sea salt

• black pepper, freshly ground

• 2 fresh or dry bay leaves

• 2l water or vegetable stock

• sour cream (optional)

• fresh flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped, for garnish (optional)

Method

Put the oil in a fairly large pan, add chopped onions, crushed garlic, a pinch of salt and gently sauté until the onions are soft and translucent.

Pour wine vinegar and cook for a minute or so stirring the onion and garlic mixture. The vinegar will help to deglaze and release any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan.

Add diced beef and continue to cook, turning and stirring regularly, until the meat is nicely browned on all sides.

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Add cubed potatoes and cook briefly for a few minutes together with meat and onions mixture.

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Add paprika, tomato purée, fresh or dry marjoram, crushed caraway seeds and bay leaves, sea salt and black pepper.

Add water or vegetable stock, bring to a boil.

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Cover with the lid and simmer on a gentle heat for about 2 hours. After this time, the soup will become slightly thicker and the meat will become so tender it will just melt in your mouth.

To make the goulash soup slightly “creamier” in consistency, you can press with a fork few cubes of potatoes on the side of the casserole pan and give it a good stir.

Taste and adjust the seasoning with sea salt and black pepper and add more paprika to your liking, if you wish.

Serve hot with a spoonful of sour cream, if desired, sprinkle some roughly chopped fresh parsley for garnish and a bit more paprika. Place some crunchy rustic bread on the table to dunk in the goulash soup and life just cannot get any better.

Just a thought

Double the amount of the ingredients in the recipe, if serving for 6-8 people or, if you wish to make a bigger batch and freeze.

Like most stews and soups, this goulash soup is best made in advance, as it tastes better every time you reheat it.

Wine suggestion

Vigneti delle Dolomiti Rosso IGT "Fojaneghe" 2015 - Bossi Fedrigotti, Masi

Green Split Peas Soup Istrian Recipe

This comforting, filling and hearty soup is a perfect winter warmer, incredibly easy to make, super delicious in its simplicity, and once you try it, you will add it to your soups recipe collection!

Split peas are quite different from their fresh counterpart, they are a specific kind of field pea, which are dried in order to be stored for a longer period. They are called split peas because after the outer hull is removed the peas are then split in half along a natural seam.

This wonderful soup is protein packed and here I am sharing my nona's recipe. For her, this dish represents a good “old fashioned” basic recipe and is a real staple in the gastronomic repertoire since she learned to make this soup from her grandmother, and so this is a very old family recipe.

She told me that when she was a child, this soup was very often on the tables, as it is a a traditional and classic soup made in Slovenian Istra, where locals refer to it in dialect as Maneštra iz biži špakaj while in standard Slovenian is called Mineštra iz suhega graha.

My nona also shared with me that when she was small, most of the ingredients were home made but this is not the case for dried green split peas, they were bought at the local food market or in a small family run food shop, since for both types of local businesses it was a crucial time for the local microeconomy.

This soup is normally home made and not typically found on the menus in the restaurants.

Try this very tasty one pot soup, and you will think twice before you open a can of soup bought in the supermarket!

Ingredients

• 500g green split peas, soaked for about 8 hours or overnight

• 1 medium potato (about 200g), peeled and roughly diced

• 1 medium onion (about 100g), peeled and roughly chopped

• few celery leaves

• fresh flat leaf parsley, a handful (about 10g), roughly chopped

• 1 small carrot (about 50g), peeled and finely grated

• tip of fresh or dry bay leaf

• 4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• sea salt

• ground black pepper

• 2l cold water

Method

Place dried green split peas in a bowl, cover completely with plenty of cold water and soak for about 8 hours or overnight.

Drain soaked peas in a colander and rinse with cold running water.

Transfer soaked peas in a soup pot and add peeled and roughly diced potato, peeled and roughly chopped onion, few celery leaves, roughly chopped parsley, peeled and finely grated carrot, tip of fresh or dry bay leaf, extra virgin olive oil, pinch of sea salt and ground black pepper.

Add 2 litres of cold water and bring to boil.

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Turn the heat down, partially cover with the lid and gently simmer for about 1 ½ - 2 hours or until the peas are completely tender and disintegrated. Stir occasionally to avoid peas sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Taste and adjust the seasoning with sea salt and black pepper and fish out the tip of bay leaf.

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You can serve this soup as it is with a bit of texture or if you prefer a creamier texture purée the soup using an immersion blender (like I did for this recipe) or a regular blender.

For a smoother texture you can also use food mill or pass the puréed soup through a sieve which will result in an exceptionally smooth soup.

The soup should generally have a nice thickish consistency, but not too thick, in which case, dilute it adding a bit of water.

This soup is great served hot with some bread croutons, roughly chopped parsley and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

Traditionally it is served with small shaped pasta (ditalini, stelline, orzo, ect.) or rice, both cooked previously and separately and then added to the soup.

Just a thought

This soup is great made in advance and freezes very well.

Wine suggestion

Alto Adige Valle Isarco Sylvaner DOC 2020 - San Michele Appiano

Barley, potato and borlotti beans Istrian soup Recipe

This hearty and filling one pot barley soup is a traditional soup from Slovenian Istra, a perfect choice to warm you up on a cold day, delicious in its simplicity, and it could not be easier to make.

Barley soup is a very popular choice in many households and is found on the menus as Ječmenova mineštra in more rustic, informal, mountainside, and family run restaurants.

Barley soup together with other types of soups like Jota (sauerkraut, borlotti beans and potato stew), Bobići (Sweet corn soup), Pasta e fasoi (Pasta and borlotti beans soup) play an incredibly important role in Istrian cooking as the soups were eaten as a main dish and sometimes the only hot meal of the day. The choice of the ingredients to make mineštre/maneštre (Istrian dialect word, from Italian minestra, indicating thicker soup) would rely exclusively on the type of vegetables and pulses that were available during a particular season.

Barley soup is traditionally made during colder autumn and winter months using dry borlotti beans, potatoes and barley that were harvested by the end of summer and autumn and appropriately stored to be used later in the year when the cold weather did not allow you to grow a vast array of vegetables, unlike during the spring, when it was warmer, and you could grow them in abundance to make even a lighter Minetrone Primavera.

In Slovenian Istra it is very common to put in some soups, besides different pork cuts, dried ham bone or pešto or taca (smooth paste made with pancetta, crushed garlic and very finely chopped parsley) to boost the flavour of the dish.

Traditionally this recipe calls for some unsmoked or smoked pork meat cuts to be added to the soup however you can turn this soup into a vegetarian and vegan friendly dish by simply leaving out the meaty component.

This family recipe really goes back generations. I am sharing with you the recipe for barley soup from my paternal nona's grandmother.

Ingredients

Serves 8-12

• 300g dried borlotti beans, soaked overnight

• 300g pearl barley

• 500g roughly of pork ribs, ham hock, pig trotters or similar (slab of pancetta or bacon, about 130g). You can use smoked version of the meats if you prefer a slightly deeper smoky flavour or a combination of both.

• 2 medium size potatoes (about 300g), peeled and cubed

• leaves from 2-3 sticks of celery

• 1 medium size onion (about 130g), finely chopped

• 1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed

• 1 medium size carrot (about80g) peeled and finely grated

• handful of fresh flat leaf parsley (about 15g) finely chopped

• 1 bay leaf, fresh or dry

• sea salt

• black pepper

Method

In a fairly big stock pot place all the ingredients, except the sea salt and black pepper, add 4 ½ litres of cold water and bring to boil.

Turn the heat down and skim the surface as needed.

Cover partially with the lid and cook the soup on a gentle heat for about 1h ½.

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After this time the soup should have a nice thicker velvety consistency as the potatoes and the barley release the starch. If the soup gets too thick simply dilute it with a bit of water.

Season with sea salt and black pepper, taste and adjust the seasoning.

Just a thought

Barley soup will keep well in a fridge for few days and is suitable for freezing.

Wine suggestion

Search results for 'Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso DOC "Villa Locatelli" 2019 - Tenuta di Angoris