This delicious old English onion broth recipe must have warmed the bones of peasants over centuries of cold damp English winters.
At first glance, it doesn’t seem to have much in the way of ingredients. It certainly can‘t boast the luxury of its cheese-laden French cousin. In fact, I would forgive for thinking this is just the base for most other soups. And yet it is surprisingly delicious, belying its rather uninviting name.
The key to this soup is using fresh, homemade chicken stock, which brings the flavours from all the other ingredients together. It costs pence to make and is perfect to revive you after a cold winter’s day in the garden.
Old English Onion Broth
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 4 large onions (finely chopped)
- 1 large stick celery (finely chopped)
- 1 large carrot (chopped)
- 40 grams smoked bacon lardons (diced)
- 1 litre chicken stock (preferably homemade)
- 30 grams oatmeal
- Salt and black pepper
- pinch of nutmeg
- 2 tbsp flat leaf parsley (finely chopped)
- 2 potatoes (peeled and diced)
- cheddar cheese (grated)
Instructions
- Heat the butter and oil in a saucepan over a medium heat until the butter has almost melted, then and fry the onions, celery, carrot and bacon lardons until onions have softened but not browned.
- Add the chicken stock, oatmeal, nutmeg and herbs.
- Bring to the boil and then cover and gently simmer for 15 minutes.
- Add the potato and simmer for a another 15 minutes or until the potato is cooked, but still firm.
- Serve into soup bowls and top with grated cheddar cheese and enjoy with with some crusty bread.
