Wild Mushroom, Bacon and Barley Broth

Name: Wild Mushroom, Bacon and Barley Broth
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: 200g bacon lardons or rashers bacon, cut into small pieces; 4 medium carrots; 3 celery sticks; 2 onions; 2 garlic cloves, crushed; 1 sprig each rosemary and thyme; 30g pack dried porcini or dried mixed wild mushrooms; 1 glass white wine; 4 pints chicken stock; 1 small head spring greens or chunk of Savoy cabbage; to serve Parmesan or any strong hard cheese, grated

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Prep: 15 mins

Cook: 60 mins

Serves: 6

British Soup

Ingredients

200g bacon lardons or rashers bacon, cut into small pieces
4 medium carrots
3 celery sticks
2 onions
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 sprig each rosemary and thyme
30g pack dried porcini or dried mixed wild mushrooms
1 glass white wine
4 pints chicken stock
1 small head spring greens or chunk of Savoy cabbage
to serve Parmesan or any strong hard cheese, grated

Accompaniment

Description

Dried porcini mushrooms give this soup a rich flavour, which the barley and veg soak up. Try it with a sprinkling of cheese - it lifts a bowl of soup into a meal in itself.

Method

1
Put a large saucepan over a medium heat. Sizzle the lardons or bacon for ten minutes until golden, stirring now and then.
While they cook, chop onions, carrots and celery into smallish pieces. When the bacon is ready, stir in the veg, garlic and herbs, cover and gently cook for ten minutes.
Meanwhile, put the mushrooms into a measuring jug, fill up to the 600ml mark with boiling water. Leave to soak for ten minutes.
Lift the mushrooms out of their juice with a slotted spoon and roughly chop. Turn up the heat under the pan, add the mushrooms, fry for one minute, then pour in the wine.
Let it evaporate right down, then pour the liquid from the mushroom jug into the pan, avoiding the last drops, as they can be gritty. Add the stock and barley. Simmer for 40 minutes until the barley is tender. Lift out the thyme and rosemary stalks.
When ready to serve, finely shred the greens and simmer in the soup for five minutes until tender. Season to taste, then serve with cheese sprinkled over the top, crusty bread and butter.
The soup can be made up to two days ahead or frozen for up to one month. (If you make ahead, the soup will need loosening with a little more stock as the barley will thicken it over time.)