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Ciorbă rădăuțeană
Sour chicken soup with garlic
Ciorbă rădăuțeană: Bukovina sour chicken soup with garlic, sour cream and egg yolk
Rădăuți, a small town in Bukovina, gave its name to this soup in the 1970s, when a local restaurant cook began treating chicken the way Romanians treat tripe: a clear broth, soured with vinegar and thickened at the end with egg yolks, sour cream and plenty of garlic. The result is pale gold, velvety and tangy, with tender shreds of chicken; many prefer it to the tripe original, and it is a firm favourite at Suceava wedding lunches and the morning after. Serve it with a fresh hot pepper, extra garlic paste and warm bread. The mistake almost everyone makes once is letting the soup boil after the yolks go in, so they scramble; temper them, then keep the pot hot but below a simmer. Chef's tip: add the vinegar a spoon at a time at the very end; it should taste clearly sour but never vinegary.
- Total time
- 90 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the broth
- 2 ¼ lb bone-in chicken thighsskin removed
- 10 ½ cups cold water
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 onionpeeled, left whole
- 2 carrotscut into batons
- 1 parsley root or parsnipcut into batons
- 3 ½ oz celeriaccut into batons
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
For the liaison
- 9 oz sour cream (20% fat)
- 6 cloves garliccrushed to a paste with a pinch of salt
- 3 tbsp white wine vinegar
To serve
- ⅓ oz flat-leaf parsley (optional)chopped
- 6 fresh hot pepper (optional)
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Put the 2 ¼ lb bone-in chicken thighs in a large pot with the 10 ½ cups cold water and 2 tsp salt and bring slowly to the boil over a medium heat. Skim off the grey foam as it rises for 5 minutes, until the surface is clear.
15 minStep 2: Add the 1 onion, 2 carrots, 1 parsley root or parsnip, 3 ½ oz celeriac and 1 tsp black peppercorns, lower the heat and simmer very gently, uncovered, for 45 minutes, until the chicken is falling from the bone and reads 165°F at the thickest part.
45 minStep 3: Lift out the chicken and the onion. Discard the onion, strip the meat from the bones in bite-sized shreds and return it to the pot with the vegetables.
8 minStep 4: In a large bowl whisk the 3 egg yolks with the 9 oz sour cream (20% fat) and 6 cloves garlic until smooth.
2 minStep 5: Temper the mixture: whisk in a ladle of hot broth, then another and another, about 5 ladles in all, until the bowl feels hot to the touch.
3 minStep 6: Turn the heat under the pot to low so the soup is no longer bubbling. Pour in the tempered mixture in a thin stream, stirring all the time.
2 minStep 7: Heat gently for 4–5 minutes, stirring, until the soup is steaming, slightly thickened and silky, around 176°F. Keep it below a boil from now on or it will curdle.
5 minStep 8: Stir in the 3 tbsp white wine vinegar a spoon at a time, tasting as you go, until pleasantly sour. Serve straight away, scattered with ⅓ oz flat-leaf parsley, with a 6 fresh hot pepper on the side. Reheat leftovers gently, without boiling.
2 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 30 g
- Carbs
- 9 g
- Fat
- 19 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does ciorbă rădăuțeană take?
- About 90 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 70 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of carrots?
- Parsnip or sweet potato, same weight.
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