Beet Consommé
From the kitchen of CarlyA jewel-bright soup built on deep beet flavor, enriched with smoked turkey and aromatics. The result is clarified and elegant, silky on the tongue with earthy sweetness and subtle smoke. Finish with fresh dill and diced beets for color and textural contrast.
- Prep
- n/a
- Cook
- n/a
- Total
- n/a
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- medium
Ingredients
4 servings
- 13 lb medium beets without greens (8 medium; about 4 lb with greens), scrubbed well and trimmed, leaving 1 inch of stems attached
- 14 qt water
- 11 1/4 to 1 1/2 lb smoked turkey legs or wings
- 12 carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 12 celery ribs, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 11 large onion, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 11 garlic clove, smashed
- 14 sprigs fresh dill plus 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- 11 Turkish or 1/2 California bay leaf
- 11 teaspoon salt
- 11/4 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 12 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 12 teaspoons sugar
- 1Accompaniment: liver and mushroom pirozhki LINK
- 1heavy-duty (sometimes labeled "fine") cheesecloth
Instructions
Boil beets, covered, in water (4 quarts) in a 6- to 8-quart pot over moderate heat until tender, about 40 minutes. Transfer beets with a slotted spoon to a plate to cool slightly, reserving cooking water. When beets are cool enough to handle, slip off skins. Cut 1 beet into 1/4-inch dice and reserve for garnish. Cut remaining beets into 1/2-inch pieces and return to cooking liquid in pot. Add turkey, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, dill sprigs, bay leaf, salt, and peppercorns and simmer, partially covered, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Pour soup through a dampened cheesecloth-lined sieve set into a 3-quart heavy saucepan, discarding solids. Measure soup: If there is more than 6 cups, boil in cleaned pot until reduced; if there is less, add enough water to total 6 cups.
Skim fat from consommé, then add lemon juice and sugar and heat until hot.
Divide diced beet and chopped dill among 8 shallow soup plates and ladle consomm on top.