i love soup. i’ve said it before, but i really do.
people also love rick bayless & i was looking forward to jumping on that bandwagon & cooking with dried beans & fennel & one of his recipes for the first time. all the other ingredients are winners, and i even had enough time to let the soup simmer for the 2 hours it called for.
well, file this one under quasi fail, not for the flavor, but because somewhere in that 2 hour simmer time, i sat down on the couch. sitting led to slouching, slouching to laying, and as it always happens when i make contact with the couch, i fell asleep. tom came home to find me sleeping & the stove timer beeping.
he finished the soup. i’m pretty sure that waaaay too much liquid simmer off, while i napped, because our soup wasn’t really so soupy. it was delicious, but not soupy.
it didn’t loosen up when reheated either, so i spread it between some tortillas, added cheese & had fabulous quesadillas with the leftovers. call me resourceful.
we”ll try this one again & i will be sure to stay away from the couch.
from serious eats (adapted from the best soups in the world) (serves 4)
3/4 lb dried black beans, picked through
12 cups water (yes, twelve)
6 oz mexican style chorizo, casings removed & crumbled
1 stalk fennel, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 chipotles in adobo, chopped
salt & pepper
12 medium shrimp, peeled & deveined
tortilla chips and mexican cheese for topping
1. in a large pot, or dutch oven, add the beans and cover with 6 cups of water. bring to a boil over high heat. turn off and let the beans sit for 1 hour. drain.
2. put the beans back in the pot and cover with the remaining 6 cups of water. crank the heat up to high, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer & stir in the chorizo, fennel, onion, and chipotle chiles in adobo. use the lid to cover the pot partially & simmer until beans are tender, about 2 hours. DO. NOT. SIT. DOWN.
3. use an immersion blender to blend the soup into a smooth puree, or puree in batches in the blender if you don’t have one. turn the heat back up to medium, add salt & pepper to taste & let heat until hot. add the shrimp to the mix & heat until cooked through. spoon into bowls & top with cheese & tortilla chips.
I love Rick Bayless! So funny that you fell asleep, that is totally something I would do!