Cock-A-Leekie

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 4 chicken legs, or 1 chicken
• 1 bunch of soup vegetables
• 1 onion(s)
• 1 leek(s)
• 1 bunch of flat-leaf parsley
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 thick carrots
• e.g. thyme, fresh or dried
• 16 prunes
• whiskey
• n. B. Salt
• n. B. Pfeffer
• 1 ½ liters of broth

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Rest time approx. 6 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 2 hours 30 minutes; Total time approx. 9 hours 30 minutes

Scottish chicken and leek soup with prunes

Wash the prunes, cover them with whiskey in a bowl, and let them soak for several hours, stirring occasionally. Wash the vegetables and roughly dice them with the onion and fry them. Wash the meat and fry it with the onion. Pour in the broth until the meat is well coated. Season with pepper, a good grind of thyme, a little salt, and a bay leaf. Let it simmer for one hour, stirring occasionally and skimming off any foaming egg whites with a ladle. While the soup is cooking, wash the leeks thoroughly and cut them into thin strips with the carrots. Wash and chop the parsley. Then remove the meat, remove the bones, and set aside. Strain the soup through a sieve, reserving the broth and discarding the cooked vegetables. Now put the broth back on and simmer with the meat, the chopped vegetables, and the halved prunes—without the whiskey—for about 1.5 hours. The soup is ready when the prunes are thoroughly cooked. The soup tastes especially good the next day. Those who’ve only ever had regular chicken soup might hesitate because of the prunes, but they add an interesting, slightly sweet flavor.