Channeling My Inner Jackie: April 2015

My latest Sunday afternoon cooking adventure included trying my hand at a beef and vegetable soup from Paula Deen. I have been trying hard to clear out my freezer and pantry to make room for 'freezer meals' that my mom will be making shortly after Beck arrives. I had a bag of lima beans, peas, and okra - so the soup just seemed like a great idea! I found the recipe on foodnetwork.com, but I didn't exactly follow it step by step (no surprise there). Since I didn't really follow the recipe terribly close, I can't give you my exact measurements, but I can say, that I did most of it by taste (which I think is what matters anyway). I used almost all of the same ingredients except I only used one starch (macaroni, but not along with potato). Instead of green beans, I did peas. One tip I would give - try to tirm off the fat from the short ribs - if you use ribs instead of chuck roast. I found the soup to be really really fatty, and I had to spend a lot of time using a fat separator (for gravy) to skim it. The lettuce leaf trick that Paula recommends in the recipe does work some, but the separator really did the job. I am not sure if I just happened to have particularly fatty short ribs or if it this was normal, but the layer of fat on top was pretty intense. If you're not planning on eating right away, you could always chill the soup and then just spoon the congealed fat off of the top (gross, I know, but a fact of life I suppose...)

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil (if using chuck roast)

2 1/2 to 3 pounds beef short ribs or 2 1/2 to 3 pounds boneless chuck roast*

4 quarts cold water

1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 1/2 cups chopped onion

3 tablespoons dried parsley

2 tablespoons beef bouillon granules

1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning

1 tablespoon House Seasoning, recipe follows

1 tablespoon seasoned salt, plus extra for seasoning

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon celery salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus extra for seasoning

2 bay leaves

1 cup thinly sliced carrots

1 cup diced celery

1 cup sliced green beans, fresh or canned

1 cup frozen black-eyed peas

1 cup frozen butter beans

1 cup cut okra, fresh or frozen

1 cup corn kernels, fresh or canned

1 cup diced potatoes

1/2 cup uncooked elbow macaroni

Chopped fresh parsley leaves

House Seasoning:

1 cup salt

1/4 cup black pepper

1/4 cup garlic powder

Directions

If using chuck roast, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Place the roast in the skillet and cook until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Remove the roast from the skillet and cut it into 1 1/2 to 2-inch cubes; discard the fat. Place the beef cubes in a large stockpot. (If using short ribs, you can put them right in the pot with no preparation).

Add the water, tomatoes, onions, dried parsley, beef bouillon, dried Italian seasoning, House Seasoning, seasoned salt, Worcestershire sauce, celery salt, garlic powder, black pepper and bay leaves. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover the pot; reduce the heat so that the liquid simmers, and cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the meat is very tender. If using short ribs, remove them from the pot and cut the meat from the bones, discard the bones and fat, and return the meat to the pot. Add the remaining vegetables and the macaroni and return the soup to a boil, stirring to distribute the ingredients. Reduce the heat and simmer for 45 minutes. Just before serving, season with salt and pepper and add fresh chopped parsley. To remove excess fat from the surface of the soup, swirl a lettuce leaf around the surface—it will pick up a lot of the fat.

*The chuck roast will yield more meat, but the bones from the short ribs give the soup an incredible flavor.

House Seasoning:

Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

I seared the short ribs in heated vegetable oil, to start.

After removing all of the cooked ribs from the soup, add vegetables. On the side, start stripping/shredding the beef and adding it back into the soup. This can get a little messy, but if you have dogs, they will be absolutely enthralled with the entire process. I managed to save a little bag of 'treats' for the week for them!

Once everything is added back in, I started the skimming process. I used an OXO Gravy Fat Separator, and it worked perfectly. Using the strainer attachment, simply ladle some soup into the top. The strainer will stop the veggies and noodles from entering - only broth goes through. The fat and broth will separate, and then all you ahve to do is remove the stopper, and pour the broth back into the pot, being careful to stop pouring when you reach teh 'fat line'. Simply discard the fat, and start over until you find that there is virtually no fat showing up in the separator.