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Smoked Hock and Lentil Soup

14/7/2012

 

Smoked Hock and Lentil Soup

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Smoked hock and lentils have been on my family's menu for generations
Lentils have been on the menu in my family for generations. My mother always kept packs of green/brown and red lentils in the larder. She made beautiful soups with them, and a hearty lentil stew which I didn't really appreciate the flavour of until I was in my twenties. Similarly, smoked pork hock featured often on mum's Hungarian repertoire, mostly in soups, such as bean soup or lentil soup; and sometimes with cabbage rolls. 

As I write this post, it's pouring with rain outside and I am reminded about walking home from school on rainy winter days. Mum never learned to drive and my father was at work, so there was no such thing as the luxury of being driven home. The only time my father picked me up from school (very occasionally) was to take me to piano lessons, which I hated at the time. I was taught by nuns and the curriculum was ever so boring. Did I really need to learn how to play 'Song of the Volga Boatmen'?! Not to mention that I didn't enjoy having my hands slapped by Mother Superior if I made a mistake during 'pianoforte' examinations! Besides, she smelled, too. But I digress.
Arriving home from school on a rainy winter's day was always delicious. Our little house was warmed by north-facing windows and the Rayburn wood heater. And mum always had a bowl of soup and crusty bread waiting for me. I would step out of my wet Bata ponytails and grey tunic and into my dressing gown and slippers. Was I spoilt? Not with material things, as such. But my mum and dad did always pamper me and my siblings with love and good, nourishing food!

Each and every one of us deserves some self-indulgent pampering from time to time. What we need at the end of a rainy winter day is a hot bath, pyjamas and a bowl of soul-satisfying soup. This smoked hock and lentil soup is one of the favourites at our place during winter. Make the soup a day ahead and it will taste even better (more so, since you won’t have to cook!).

LENTIL SOUP
300g lentils*, rinsed and drained
1 brown onion or 2 French escallots, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
2-3 carrots, peeled and diced
1-2 sticks baby celery, diced
1 rack smoked bacon bones or a smoked hock
1 can Italian tomatoes, chopped
2 litres water or vegetable stock
a few peppercorns
parsley for garnish

Place the hock or bacon bones into a deep stock pot, together with the onions, garlic, carrot, celery, lentils and peppercorns. Add the can of peeled, chopped tomatoes and cover with the water or vegetable stock.

Bring to the boil, then pop a lid onto the pan, reduce heat and simmer very gently for 1-2 hours until the lentils are tender and the meat is falling off the bones (slice into the hock with a sharp knife to allow the flavours to infuse into the soup). Serve the soup with chunks of meat and crusty, fresh bread. Garnish with parsley. Serves 4-6.

* Use organic French green lentils or black Beluga lentils in preference to ordinary brown lentils. Both have an earthy flavour and will hold their texture and shape, rather than cooking to mush.
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Organic black Beluga lentils
The smallest of the lentil family, Black Beluga lentils are a tiny black lentil with an earthy flavour and lovely texture. I love the colour of these lentils, especially in a salad.
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Fresh vegetables, including home grown celery, perfect for this lentil soup
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Place all of the ingredients into a deep stock pot, then add the chopped tomatoes and the water or stock
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What we need at the end of a rainy winter day is a hot bath, pyjamas and a bowlful of soul-satisfying soup

Were you spoiled as child? What's your favourite winter indulgence?
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Celia link
13/7/2012 11:13:22 pm

Yum! We could (and have) subsisted on this soup! We make ours with free ham bones that our friends at the deli give us, using puy lentils. I'll watch out for the beluga ones - haven't seen them before! Last week I made a pot with purple potatoes and purple kale thrown in, and it turned the most glorious colour! :)

Lizzy
13/7/2012 11:38:15 pm

Delicious, Celia! Yes, I use ham bones too, or just bacon bones. But have also made it sans meat. Love it. Look out for the lentils and other products from Honest to Goodness. I've been buying them for a while now and love them!

Jane @ Shady Baker link
13/7/2012 11:46:44 pm

Good evening Lizzy. The description of your family home and the love your parents gave you is beautiful. Food is certainly much more than just something we eat isn't it? It can represent family memories, nourishment, traditions and so much more.

This soup is simple winter perfection, I feel warm just reading about it. Do you buy your bacon bone or hock direct from a butcher…is it something most butchers would have?

Enjoy the rest of this winter weekend my friend x

Lizzy
14/7/2012 01:58:32 am

Hello Jane, thank you so much! Yes, it is indeed. And as I get older, the memories are more intense, as is the longing to step back in time for just a moment.

Pork hock is available from butchers, delicatessens and the deli counters at most supermarkets. My mother, a fastidious cook, used to have a special Bic shaver that she used to carefully trim away any little hairs that may have remained on the skin.

You can use a ham bone too, as Celia suggests. Happy cooking xo

A Canadian Foodie link
14/7/2012 12:59:41 pm

one of my mother's favourites... from her childhood - she is crazy over it. Your photos look lovely, but I am actually turning up my nose physically as I write.... just not my thing... but haven't eaten it for years. Maybe I should again.
:)
V

Lizzy
14/7/2012 01:13:11 pm

LOL Valerie... that's ok. Thanks for stopping by.

Maureen link
14/7/2012 04:10:08 pm

I schooled with the nuns too. We had this soup and a barley soup that I loved. I must have been incredibly lucky because I had the best time with the nuns. They were loving, kind and compassionate and I don't remember any of them smelling bad. Even mother superior. I still remember Mother St.Arsene. She was a giant of a woman and took no guff from anyone, especially the priests. :)

I want to make your soup. I'm really cold today.

Lizzy
14/7/2012 04:40:08 pm

Hi Maureen... I only had the nuns for piano lessons, which I did for about five years at my parent's wishes. We had a friend who had a piano and I used to tap out tunes by ear, hence mum and dad, god love them, though I had channelled Liszt! LOL. I did have one Sister who allowed me to bring in the sheet music to Midnight Cowboy (note the era), but when smelly cow Mother Superior found out she put a stop to it. So I started wagging the classes. Mum and dad finally caved in and stopped the lessons. Of course, they sold my piano! Nowadays I wish I had kept it up by teaching myself. I would love to tinker on the keyboard.

You were very fortunate to have such lovely Sisters schooling you. Mother St Arsene sounds like a gem! Keep warm. Thanks for visiting xoxo

Eha
14/7/2012 04:55:48 pm

In my younger years I was definitely not a 'soup person'. Boring, somehow thought they were all almost alike!! Living in the cold Southern Highlands, how moreish the appeal of this! Especially at the moment. No problems here with getting a 'ham hock' from the local supermarket, but I really have to try darker lentils, look for the Beluga you mention - your soup looks so rich and thick I would love to reach into the screen! Thanks!

Lizzy
14/7/2012 07:51:19 pm

Hello there.... thank you for your kind comments. I think those lentils are relatively easy to get now. Happy cooking xo

Jennifer @ Delicieux link
15/7/2012 05:39:39 pm

Mmm I love a good lentil soup, especially on cold days like today. Yours looks fantastic Lizzy.

Lizzy
15/7/2012 10:26:46 pm

Thanks Jennifer... you can do this without the meat quite successfully!

Martyna @ Wholesome Cook link
15/7/2012 09:50:53 pm

Sounds fabulous Lizzy, and guess what - we have something very similar for lunch today but our lentils were more mushy. I like your version though! Yum!

Lizzy
15/7/2012 10:27:27 pm

Thanks Marty! I bet yours was so delicious! I love the texture of the lentils when they are not mushy. Thanks for visiting.

lizzie link
17/7/2012 11:50:49 am

Love lentil soup, this looks really yum!

Beef stroganoff, was a favourite for me in winter. Though hubby loves his lentil soups more.

Lizzy
17/7/2012 12:50:46 pm

Thanks Lizzie! I love beef stroganoff too, nothing wrong with good old classics. I asked my Peter the other day if I should make a laksa in coming days and his response was that he would prefer pea and ham soup!

lizzie link
17/7/2012 07:09:12 pm

Too funny, sounds like my hubby too.

The Food Sage link
17/7/2012 01:51:49 pm

That's it. I'm hunting down a big fat ham hock this weekend. Love lentil soup, but never cooked it with hock. Where have i been? Thanks for the inspiration, Lizzy.

Lizzy
18/7/2012 10:54:39 pm

Thanks Rachel! Enjoy xox

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella link
17/7/2012 04:33:59 pm

We never grew up eating lentils but I remember the first time my parents tried them was in a dish like this only a couple of years ago. They loved them! :D

Lizzy
18/7/2012 10:55:01 pm

Delicious! Thanks Lorraine.

Laura (Tutti Dolci) link
17/7/2012 06:48:21 pm

What a perfect soup for a rainy day! I'd love to curl up with a steaming bowl and a good book (and some nice warm bread too!) :)

Lizzy
18/7/2012 10:55:14 pm

Absolutely ; )

Moya link
17/7/2012 10:28:28 pm

I was taught by nuns also and I know where you are coming from! I did have private piano lessons and yes I got a rap on the knuckles with a pencil every time a mistake was made! Beluga lentils are so lovely and your soup looks wonderful... real comfort in a bowl! Bread and butter pudding would be our winter comfort. :)

Lizzy
18/7/2012 10:55:44 pm

Oh, bread and butter pudding is the perfect accompaniment. Yummy!


Comments are closed.

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    Photo of Liz Posmyk, Food Writer, Cook and Traveller

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Good Things is written and published by Liz Posmyk © 2011-2020.   All rights reserved.
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