Stracciatella Soup

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A recipe for Italian-style egg drop soup. Stracciatella comes from the Italian word for "torn apart," referring to the little shreds of cooked egg in the broth.

Ingredients:

Homemade broth:

• 3 pounds beef with bones (brisket, flank or chuck steak)
• 1 large onion, peeled
• 1 leek
• 3 large stalks celery, cut in half and then pressed with a knife
• 3 carrots, quartered
• 2 tomatoes
• Salt

* If you prefer to make a chicken broth, simply substitute one whole chicken for the beef, and cook for approximately 1 1/2 hours. As soon as the chicken begins to fall apart, remove it from the pot.)

Stracciatella

• 6 cups beef or chicken stock
• 4 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons DeLallo Plain Breadcrumbs
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 4 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 tablespoon nutmeg, freshly grated
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

Homemade Broth:

Rinse the bones in water, then place them at the bottom of a large soup pot. Add the meat, leek leaves, onion, carrots, celery and tomatoes. Add enough cold water, so that the contents are covered by 3 inches. Cover the pot and bring to a full boil.

Once boiling, lower heat and simmer uncovered, skimming the fat from the top. A broth should never be stirred. Add salt. Continue to skim the surface using the bottom of the ladle in a circular movement on the surface of the broth which will move the fat to the sides of the pot so that you can easily remove it with a spoon.

Cook for at least 2 to 3 hours, but if you see that some parts of the meat are breaking apart, remove them at once. Discard the bones and, if you can, part of the vegetables. Turn off the flame and let the broth sit for an hour or so.

Remove the meat now (if it has remained intact) and put it aside. Strain the stock once or twice through a sieve into a large bowl. Remove whatever impurities and fat from the top that may still remain. Set the broth aside to cool, then keep the stock in the fridge; you may want to freeze part of it for later use.

Note: This type of broth also yields a large quantity of boiled, healthy and very tasty meat. When you put the meat aside, add a couple of ladles of the strained broth to the container. The bollito or lesso (boiled meat, as it's called in Italian, can be reheated. You'll have plenty of tender meat on hand to make delicious grilled sandwiches-just add cheese, and sautéed or raw vegetables if you like; or eat the lesso with salsa verde or in a salad with mayonnaise. In Italy, lesso—served warm or room temperature with oive oil, lemon and salt—is considered a real delicacy.

Stracciatella

Separate 1 cup of the stock and chill (if it hasn't already been refrigerated). Heat the remaining 5 cups in a large saucepan until the broth boils.

Meanwhile, combine the cold broth, eggs, breadcrumbs, cheese, parsley and nutmeg in a mixing bowl and whisk until well blended. Whisk the egg mixture into the boiling broth, stirring often. Turn the heat to low and cook for 2 or so minutes; continue to whisk constantly.

Turn off the flame and add most of the Parmigiano, whisking the broth a couple more times. At the last "whisking," add some butter. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve in warmed bowls topped with more grated Parmigiano and parsley, if desired.

Serves 6 Send to friend Printer-friendly version