CLASSES OF SOUPS DENOTING QUALITY

When attention is given to the quality of soup, this food divides itself into several varieties, namely, broth, cream soup, bisque, chowder and puree.

BROTHS have for their foundation a clear stock.

CREAM SOUPS are highly nutritious and are of great variety. They have for their foundation a thin cream sauce.

BISQUES are thick, rich soups made from game fish or shellfish, particularly crabs, shrimp etc.

CHOWDERS are soups that have sea food for their basis. Vegetables and crackers are generally added for thickening and to impart flavor.

PUREES are soups made thick partly or entirely by the addition of some material obtained by boiling an article of food and then straining it to form a pulp. To be right, a puree should be nearly as smooth as thick cream and of the same consistency.

STOCK FOR SOUP AND ITS USES

Soup-stock may be regarded as a liquid containing the juices and soluble parts of meat, bone or vegetables which have been extracted by long, slow cooking and that is stored away for future use.

VARIETIES OF STOCK

Several kinds of stock are utilized in the making of soup, and the kind to employ depends on the soup desired.

FIRST STOCK is made from meat and bones and then clarified and used for well-flavored, clear soups.

SECOND STOCK is made from the meat and the bones that remain after the first stock is strained off. More water is added to the remaining material and this is then cooked with vegetables, which supply the needed flavor.

MORE STOCK

WHITE STOCK is used in the preparation of white soups and is made by boiling six pounds of a knuckle of veal cut up in small pieces and poultry trimmings.

HOUSEHOLD STOCK is made by cooking meat and bones, either fresh or cooked, with vegetables or other material that will impart flavor and add nutritive value.

BONE STOCK is made from meat bones to which vegetables are added for flavor.

VEGETABLE STOCK is made from either dried or fresh vegetables or both.

GAME STOCK is made from the bones and trimmings of game to which vegetables are added for flavor.

FISH STOCK is made from fish or fish trimmings to which vegetables are added for flavor. Shellfish make especially good stock of this kind.

ADDITIONAL USES OF STOCK

Stock is used principally as a foundation for certain varieties of soup. This material, however, may be utilized in many other ways. The convenience of a supply of stock will be apparent when it is realized that gravy or sauce for almost any purpose can be made from the contents of the stockpot.

SOUP EXTRACTS

There are a number of concentrated meat and vegetable extracts on the market for making soups quickly. Think beef, chicken and vegetable bouillon cubes. These extracts may be used for sauces and gravies, as well as for soups. However, they are not highly nutritious and are valuable merely for flavoring.

THE STOCK POT - NATURE, USE, AND CARE OF STOCK POT

Among the utensils used for cooking there is probably none more convenient and useful than the stockpot. It is nothing more or less than a covered crock or pot, into which materials that will make a well-flavored stock are put from time to time.

The stockpot should be made of either enamel or earthenware, since a metal pot of any kind is liable to impart flavor to the food. No stockpot should ever be allowed to stand from day to day without being emptied, thoroughly washed, and then exposed to the air for a while to dry.

FLAVORING STOCK

It is the flavoring of stock that indicates real skill in soup making. The large numbers of ingredients found in soup recipes are, as a rule, the various flavorings which give the distinctive flavor and individuality to a soup.

The flavorings used most for soup include cloves, peppercorns, red, black and white pepper, paprika, bay leaf, sage, marjoram, thyme, summer savory, tarragon, celery seed, fennel, mint and rosemary. A small amount of lemon peel often improves soup. A family of vegetables that lend themselves admirably to soup flavoring includes leeks, shallots, chives, garlic and onion.

In the use of any of the flavorings mentioned or the strongly flavored vegetables, care should be taken not to allow any one particular flavor to predominate. Salt should be added in the proportion of 1 teaspoonful to each quart of liquid.

MAKING OF SOUP

Always use soft water for making soup and be careful to proportion the quantity of water to that of the meat. Somewhat less than a quart of water to a pound of meat, is a good rule for common soups. Rich soups may have a still smaller allowance of water.

PRINCIPAL INGREDIENTS

The making of the stock that is used in soup is the most important of the soup making processes. Before the actual soup making processes are taken up, the nature of the ingredients required should be well understood; for this reason, suitable meats and vegetables, which are the principal ingredients in soups, are first discussed.

MEAT USED FOR SOUP MAKING

Almost every kind of meat including beef, veal, mutton, lamb, game and poultry, is used for soup making.

Certain cuts of meats are preferred to others in the making of soups because of the difference in their texture. The tender cuts that are the expensive ones, should not be used for soups, as they do not produce enough flavor.

The tough cuts, which come from the muscles that the animal uses constantly and that therefore grow hard and tough, are not only usually cheaper, but they are more suitable because they contain the material that makes the best soup.

If soup is to be made from fish, a white variety should be selected.

Soup should always be made entirely of fresh meat that has not been previously cooked. While some fat should be left on during the cooking, when finished every particle of fat should be carefully skimmed from the surface. Greasy soup is disgusting and unwholesome. The lean of meat is much better for soup than the fat.

Long and slow boiling is necessary to extract the strength from the meat. If boiled fast over a high heat, the meat becomes hard and tough and will not give out its juices.

HERBS AND VEGETABLES USED FOR SOUP MAKING

In soup making, a large number of vegetables can be used. Any vegetable that has a decided flavor may be used. Such as cabbage, cauliflower, asparagus, corn, onions, turnips, carrots, parsnips, tomatoes, beans, peas, lentils, salsify, potatoes, spinach, celery, mushrooms, okra and even sweet potatoes.

The cook should season the soup but very slightly with salt and pepper.

The herbs usually used in soups are parsley, common thyme, summer savory, knotted marjoram, bay leaves, tarragon, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, mace, black pepper, white pepper and red pepper etc.

The fresh vegetables that are used should be in perfect condition.

When dried vegetables are to be used for soup making, they should first be soaked well in cold water and then, before being added to the stock, either partly cooked or entirely cooked and made into a puree.

PROCESSES INVOLVED IN MAKING STOCK

Although the making of stock or soup is a simple process, it must necessarily be a rather long one. The reason for this is that all flavors cannot be drawn from the soup materials unless they are subjected to long, slow cooking at a temperature lower than the boiling point. With this point definitely understood, the actual work of soup making may be taken up.

COOKING MEAT FOR SOUP

When clear stock is to be made from fresh meat, the required quantity of meat should be cut into small pieces so as to expose as much of the surface as possible from which the flavor of the meat can be drawn.

To obtain the most flavors from meat that is properly prepared, it should be put over a slow fire and allowed to come gradually to the boiling point. Throughout the cooking, the meat should not be allowed to boil violently or to cease bubbling entirely. The meat should be allowed to cook for at least 4 hours, but longer if possible.

Although flavor is drawn from the fibers of meat by boiling it slowly for a long time, the cooking of meat for soup does not extract the nourishment from it to any extent. In reality, the meat itself largely retains its original nutritive value. This meat should never be wasted.

REMOVING GREASE FROM SOUP

A greasy soup is always unpalatable. Therefore, a very important feature of soup making is the removal of all grease. A very simple method is to allow the soup or stock to become cold, and then remove the fat, which collects on the top and hardens, by merely lifting off the cake that forms.

CLEARING SOUP

Clearing soup is rather extravagant; however, while it does not improve the taste, it does improve the appearance.

THICKENING SOUP

Besides giving consistency to soup, thickening usually improves the flavor but its chief purpose is to give nutritive value to this food.

The substance used to thicken soups may be either a starchy material or food or a puree of some food. The starchy materials generally used for this purpose are plain flour, browned flour, corn starch and arrowroot flour. The starchy foods that are used for thickening include rice, barley, oatmeal, noodles, tapioca, sago and macaroni.

Purees of beans, peas, lentils, potatoes and other vegetables are especially desirable for the thickening of soups, for they not only give consistency, but add nutritive value and flavor as well.

SERVING SOUP

Soup may be correctly served in several different ways, the method to adopt usually depending on the kind of soup. The spoon to be served with soup also depends on the kind of soup, but a larger spoon than a teaspoon is always necessary.

Many soups, especially vegetable soups, are improved in flavor by the addition of a spoonful of grated cheese, which should be sprinkled into the dish at the time of serving.

Clear soups are sometimes served cold. When a soup is intended to be hot, it should be hot when it is ready to be eaten. This can be accomplished if the soup is thoroughly heated before it is removed from the stove and the dishes in which it is to be served are warmed before the soup is put into them.