Chicken Soup, without the matzo balls

For my second choice...

I decided to make my mom's chicken soup, without matzo balls. Why without matzo balls? Not because I don't LOVE them, but simply because this past Rosh HaShanah, I made matzo balls with my grandmother, as those are her specialty.

So, having mastered perfectly fluffy matzo balls, I decided to master beautiful, clear, non-greasy chicken soup. In general, I don't like most people's chicken soup, but my mother's chicken soup is one of the most delicious foods in the world, so obviously I needed to learn how to make her recipe.

Put it in the refrigerator overnight!

This is key: At the very end, after you strain the soup and let it cool down, you should cover the pot or bowl in plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning, the fat will have solidified into a thick layer on top of the soup. Scooping off this layer will ensure that your soup is not greasy.

An Ethnic Favorite

If I could pick one food as the ethnic Jewish food, it would be chicken soup. Used for generations as the ultimate medicine, and a part of almost every holiday meal, chicken soup is a staple in Jewish cooking. For generations, purchasing or acquiring meat was extremely expensive and difficult, and therefore a delicacy. As slaughtering young hens, who were still laying eggs, was impractical, women had to use older hens, who were past their egg-laying prime. The result? The stewing hen! Perfect for making soup stock, stewing hens are old hens with little else to offer. Not only did making soup allow women to use all of the chicken, it also allowed them to use every chicken.

Ingredients

1 chicken [4 to 5 pounds], preferably a stewing hen
3 quarts water
1 tablespoon salt
1 large or 2 medium-sized yellow onions
4 ribs celery with leafy tops
1 bunch fresh dill
4 carrots, peeled
3 parsnips, peeled
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Rinse the chicken and trim off the excess fat. Cut the chicken into quarters and place in a large stock pot. Add the water and 1 tablespoon salt. Cover the pot and heat to boiling. Uncover and skim off the scum from the top.

2. Add the onions, celery and half the dill. Cover and simmer over low heat for 1 hour.

• Note about the onion: some people leave the skin on the onion, as they say that it helps the soup achieve that perfect golden color. My mom peels the onion, so I peeled the onion.
  

3. Cut the onions, celery and parsnips in half and add to the stock. Simmer until the chicekn is fork tender, about 1 hour.

• Note about the celery: Make sure to use celery with plenty of leaves on top. The celery leaves contain a ton of flavor!
  

4. Remove the chicekn from the pot and reserve for another use. Remove the carrots and parsnips and set aside.

5. Strain the stock through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean saucepan. Discard the solids. Let the stock cool.

At this point, my mom stops following the original recipe, which tells you to cut the vegetables into julienne strips. We like our chicken soup pure, without vegetables in it. So, my mom sets aside the vegetables and we eat them as a side dish instead.

Don't forget to put it in the refrigerator and skim off the fat in the morning!