Snesi/Chinees Tayersoep (Eddo/Taro Soup)

This is another wonderful one-pot soup so popular in Suriname. Although named for the Chinese tayer or Eddo, which is a root tuber similar to a potato in shape, this soup is more than just this one exotic ingredient. As with many Surinamese soups, the actual meat ingredients can vary each time you make it, as it is an opportunity to use whatever meat you have in the house at the time. Chicken thighs, pigs' tails, salted beef, pork rib pieces, chicken feet are favourites found in soups like Bruine Bonen Soep, Pindasoep and also Chinese Tayer soup.

Eddoes (or Taros as they are also called) are a popular plant throughout the Caribbean region and are thought to have been introduced there from China, hence the name Chinese Tayer. They resemble hairy potatoes, and when peeled have a similar look also. They take quite a bit longer to cook than potatoes however, so if you wish to mix your soup with both eddoes and potatoes you will need to add the eddoes to the pot at least 20 minutes before the potatoes.

The real star of this soup though is coconut milk! It gives such a rich yet delicate flavour to the soup and also helps to thicken the liquid. Coconut palm trees are common throughout Suriname, so there is no shortage of supply. I even planted a few coconut shoots in our yard in Suriname myself; hopefully I will be able to reap the benefits in a year of ten!!!

Ingredients

2 chicken legs, skin and fat removed

200g salted beef/zoutvlees

200g pork rib pieces, excess fat removed

1 large white onion

2 tomatoes

3 L water

4 chicken stock cubes

2 beef stock cubes

10 Allspice/Pimento berries

1 bay leaf

8 Eddoes/Chinese Tayer roots

6 potatoes

2 400ml cans Coconut milk

1 tsp Laos powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

1 Madame Jeanette/Adjuma pepper

2 celery leaf stalks

sunflower oil to fry

Method

If using salted beef, put this in a medium sized pot with enough water to cover and boil gently for about 15 to 20 minutes to release most of the salt in the beef and also to soften the meat. Remove from the salted water and discard this. Cut the salt beef into small cubes.

Chop the chicken legs into smaller pieces, about 5 pieces each depending on the size of the legs. Trim any excess fat from the chicken and also from the pork rib pieces. The pork ribs are not a rack of spare ribs that you might put on the barbecue, rather they are smaller bony pieces of pork, known as krabbetjes in Dutch.

In a large soup pot, fry the chicken, pork and salted beef in a little oil until browned all over. Drain any excess liquid from the pot.

Peel and finely chop the onion and chop the tomatoes and add these to the meat. Fry for a further 3 minutes. Add 3 litres of cold water to the pot, and the chicken and beef stock cubes, bay leaf and Pimento berries. Bring the water to the boil and cook for about 10-15 minutes.

Next, peel the eddoes/Chinese tayers, and rinse under cold water. Cut the eddoes into chunks of about 3cm. This will usually mean just cutting the eddoes in half, but larger eddoes can be cut into 3 pieces. Add these to the soup water. Season the soup with the Laos powder, salt and pepper.

Peel the potatoes and cut them into pieces the same size as the eddoes. About 20 minutes after the eddoes were added to the pot, it is time to add the potatoes. I prefer the quicker cooking varieties as, strangely enough, these, err, take less time to cook! Chop the celery leaves finely and add these as well to the soup pot. Place the whole Madame Jeanette pepper gently into the soup. This is left whole as the desired effect is to get the aroma of the pepper without the heat. Be careful that the pepper does not split, or your soup will be very hot!

Roughly 10 minutes after the potatoes have been added to the soup you can add the 2 cans of coconut milk. Make sure to shake the cans well before opening as the milk may have separated slightly in the can. Stir the coconut milk well through the soup and continue cooking on a medium high heat for another 5-10 minutes.

Serve the soup on its own, or as is more common in Suriname, with white rice.

Njang Switi! Enjoy!

DID YOU KNOW?
Coconut milk contains a high amount of coconut oil. This oil contains lauric acid, which is a saturated fat that raises blood cholesterol levels, and is found in similar levels in breast milk!

DID YOU KNOW?
Chinese tayer is a root popular vegetable among the Maroon communities in the interior of Suriname. The Maroons are descendants of runaway slaves who fled the plantations into the rainforest, where they lived off the produce of the jungle. Chinese tayer is able to grow in high water levels and can be found in swamp areas, which flood frequently during the long rain season.

A Traditional Italian Meal Structure

Picture the scene:

A beautiful Tuscan landscape, a long wooden table laden with huge jugs of red wine, smaller jugs of olive oil and dishes of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano is surrounded by several generations of one Italian family, all laughing and talking and eating together! It sounds a bit of a cliché I know, but the traditional Italian meal is not so far from this slightly idealistic picture. Traditional formal Italian meals, usually reserved for Sundays and special occasions these days, are long and elaborate affairs, with several courses and lots of wine and good conversation. Meals can often last for several hours! Contrast this to the UK style of "eat and run"; it is often difficult enough to try to get everybody to sit together at the same time to eat, let alone at a dinner table. The TV and sofa have replaced the dinner table and quality family time. OK, maybe that is also a bit of a cliché;  the truth is probably somewhere in the middle, but it remains the case that a family meal lasting several hours in the UK would be a rare thing indeed!

The first experience I had with a traditional Italian meal structure with multiple courses was on a family holiday back when I was 16 or 17. We were in Verona and decided to eat at this road side restaurant that seemed to be full of only locals, with us being the only tourists! My Dad ordered the set meal for all of us, including my 2 sisters who were I think 5 and 8 at the time. We were first given a large plate of salad brimming with fresh vegetables. When we had finished that we had plenty of time before the next course, and there was quite a bit of strong red wine being drunk!

The next course was a large plate of pasta with a tomato sauce. By this time I had drunk maybe a bit too much wine, due to the long pauses between the first and second courses, so I was having trouble finishing this plate off! My sisters did not even get half way through their pasta before they were full and feeling tired! I was dozing off myself waiting for what I presumed would be the dessert. After what seemed like hours (probably due to the wine!) the waitress brought our next course... a huge portion of steak with vegetables on a side dish, and more salad!!! By this time we could hardly even move we were so full, and I don't think any of us ate much more than a mouthful of the steak. The locals must have been looking at us as if we were crazy! Why had these pesky tourists ordered the set meal if they were going to leave half way through!!!

Anyway, safe to say, the traditional Italian meal is a leisurely affair, with course after course being served over the space of several hours. The conversation and interaction are as important as the edible ingredients, and make the whole affair a bringing together of several generations of families for quality time spent together.

If you ever have the privilege of partaking in a traditional Italian family meal, make sure you bring your appetite, remember to pace yourself, and above all, enjoy yourself and the company!

 The formal Italian meal structure

Aperitivo

This is a drink served before the meal to act as an appetiser for the coming meal. Usually an alcoholic drink will be served such as Vermouth, Martini, Campari, dry sherry or a dry white wine. 

Antipasto

Literally meaning "before the courses", this is generally dishes of cold starters, cured meats, salads, and breads. Occasionally hot starters such as Fritto Misto (fried mixed seafood) may be served. Examples of antipasti are bruschetta, Tonno e Fagioli, prosciutto ham with melon and Insalata Caprese.

Primo

This is the "first" course (not counting the other 2!) and is usually a hot dish of pasta, risotto (especially Northern Italy) or soup. The majority of primos are served without meat, but a tomato-based meat sauce may also be served over pasta. Some examples of primos are Risotto con Funghi, Minestrone soup, Penne all'Arrabbiata and Lasagne al Forno.

Intermezzo

When a meal is comprised of several hot courses, sometimes an intermezzo or palate cleanser will be served between the Primo and Secondo (first and second hot courses) to cleanse the palate, ready for the next dish. This will often take the form of a sorbet or granita, and may or may not be alcoholic. Lemon and apple sorbet are popular examples, often spiked with Prosecco or Limocello (Italian liqueur).

Secondo

This is the main dish of the meal and will usually comprise meat, poultry or fish. This will sometimes be served in a large platter with everyone able to help themselves to the portion size they wish. Examples of a secondo are Pollo alla Cacciatore (Hunter's Chicken), Osso Buco (Braised Veal Shanks) or Cotoletta alla Milanese (similar to Wiener Schnitzel).

Contorno

This is a side dish served together with the Secondo or directly after. It is usually comprised of local seasonal vegetables, either raw or cooked, or a green salad. The contorno is always served as a side dish to the meat course, never on the same plate.

Formaggio e Fruta

This is the first of the dessert courses (!), and comprises cheese and fruit. Both the fresh fruit and the cheese will be traditionally local produce of the region.

Dolce

This is the sweet dessert course, and examples would be Tiramisu, Zuppa Inglese (literally translated as English Soup, but is really a type of trifle), Gelato (ice-cream) or Cannoli (Sicilian pastries).

Caffè

No Italian meal would be complete without coffee served after the meal. This will nearly always be in the form of espresso, served strong and hot, and drunken quickly. Cappuccinos and other milk based coffees are generally served at breakfast time with a brioche or croissant, and would be frowned upon at the end of a meal as being too filling (!)

Digestivo

This is the concluding act of the meal, and is in the form of an alcoholic drink such as Grappa, Limoncello or Amaro. While the role of the aperitivo is to stimulate the appetite, the digestivo is drunk to aid the digestion. Whereas the aperitivo will be dry, the digestivo will usually be sweet or bitter.

Italian meals may contain only a few of these courses, or all of them. Needless to say there will be wine served all the way through the meal!

Buon Appetito! Enjoy! 

Saoto Soup (Indonesian Chicken Soup)

This delicious and filling soup originates in Indonesia, and was popularised in Suriname through the contracted workers from Java who came to work the sugar plantations after the abolition of slavery in Suriname in 1863. It is a firm favourite with my kids, who ask for it almost every week!

The secret of this soup is as much in the garnishes that accompany it as in the soup itself. Rice noodles, shredded cabbage, potato sticks, fried onions, boiled egg, chopped celery leaves, bean sprouts, boiled rice - the list of possible additions to the relatively simple soup are what give it such a flavour explosion and "moreishness".