Sage and Kumara Soup

I was about 12 or 13 when I had my first taste of pumpkin soup. Up until then, the only pumpkin flavoured food I had was in the form of dessert (pumpkin and red bean anyone?) and the idea of a savoury pumpkin sounded absolutely absurd. And herbs? My Chinese palate had yet to discover those!

I remember being quite excited about pumpkin soup, thinking how lucky my friends were to be able to have what is essentially a dessert for a meal. I can proudly tell you that I was ever so polite and finished my meal but I was thoroughly confused. 

I went home and shared this revelation with my mother who, incidentally, had experienced the same thing just a few months prior -with Kumara soup. At home, our idea of kumara soup is to boil large chunks of kumara in hot water. That's it. It doesn't sound terribly exciting but I can assure you it is tasty.

We bonded over crazy western foods that night.

Since then, my palate has developed considerably and there is not a lot I won't eat. While pureed soup is not my ultimate favourite food, it is up there on my list of winter warmers because it is so easy to make but packed full of goodness. 

If you have find yourself a little short of time after work this week, give this Sage and Kumara Soup a try. Everything cooks in one pot so clean up is also a breeze!

Sage and Kumara Soup
(Serves 4, adapted from Mindfood, June 2015 issue)

Ingredients:

1 Tbs olive oil
4 rashers streaky bacon, chopped into small pieces
2 onions, roughly sliced
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1.2 kg golden kumara, peeled and chopped
1 Tbs sage, roughly torn
1.5 L chicken or vegetable stock

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add bacon and fry until crispy. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside. Keep the oil and bacon fat in the pan.
2. Add onions and 1/3 cup of stock. Use a wooden spoon to uplift any bacon bits that have stuck to the pan. Cook until onion is soft and translucent and the stock is mostly evaporated.
3. Add garlic and stir until fragrant.
4. Add kumara, sage and remaining stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes or until the kumara is soft.
5. Use a stick blender to puree the kumara until smooth and season with salt and pepper.
6. Sprinkle bacon bits on top and serve with warm bread.

Quick Lamb Stew with Even Quicker Kumara Mash

The sun was still shining bright when I arrived home the other day, so I decided to go out for a nice walk. I had made it less than 10 minutes away before the skies opened up and started pouring down. I ran home and vowed that I wouldn't step outside again for the rest of the week.

Although we are more than a week into October, you would be forgiven for thinking that it is still winter. This suits me just fine though, because it means it is still appropriate for warming stew. The only problem is that stew is something that requires a lot of time and I don't really fancy waiting 3 hours after work to eat.

This is where a pressure cooker comes in handy. My mother gifted this to me when we moved into our new home, no doubt because she knows the value of time. With this nifty tool, the cooking time is more than halved! 

This stew can be eaten on its own but the sweetness of the Kumara compliments this savoury dish. It only takes 15 minutes to make and really adds a lift.

Quick Lamb Stew with Even Quicker Kumara Mash
A Lucyeats original

Ingredients:

Stew:

300g diced stewing lamb, cut into 2cm x 2cm cubes
1 Tbs flour
1 onion
2 carrots
3 stalks of celery
1 250g can of crushed tomatoes
4 cloves of garlic
4 bay leaves
4 sprigs of thyme
350ml vegetable stock
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Kumara Mash:

1 large Kumara
1 Tbs butter
2 Tbs milk
salt

Method:

1. Roughly chop the onion, carrots and celery
2. Lightly dust the lamb with flour and season with salt and pepper. Shake off excess
3. Put the pressure cooker (lid off, of course) on medium heat 
4. Add 2 Tbs oil and brown the lamb 
5. Add the garlic and chopped vegetables and fry for about 5 minutes
6. Add the canned tomatoes, thyme, bay leaves and vegetable stock
7. Stir everything together to mix well and bring to a boil
8. Cover and lock the lid on the pressure cooker
9. When pressure is reached, turn the heat down to low and continue cooking for 20 minutes
10. Wait for the pressure to release naturally before carefully opening the lid
11. While waiting for the pressure to release, peel and roughly dice the Kumara. Place pieces in a microwave proof bowl with a pinch of salt and cover with water
12. Place in microwave on high for 10 minutes on high or until Kumara pieces are soft enough to mash
13. Drain them and mash. Mix the butter and milk through with a wooden spoon
14. To serve, ladle the stew into bowls and sit a scoop of mashed Kumara on top