by deethelurker » Sat Feb 02, 2008 12:30 pm
I think I make an excellent corn chowder. One thing I strive for while making it is making it with *good* bacon. The cheap stuff just ruins the whole thing. Another thing I think I kick butt at is making beef stew, but here's the thing: I actually prefer using kinda expensive meat there. Like, that package of four big steaks you get at Sam's Club for roughly $13 -- I'll get one of those, divide the package in two, freeze half, then use the other half in my beef stew. And naturally it turns out really, really well. And then later if I want to make beef stew again, I can take out the other half, defrost it, and make more. And then there's my "dump soup", which I make with leftover roasted chicken. I'll sautee the diced chicken and some onions and dump all kinds of cans in the soup -- (not drained) canned corn, (not drained) canned green beans, canned chicken broth -- along with a few seasonings and let it all simmer for awhile.
What I'd love to learn to make: Italian soups. I love Italian cuisine and would love to be able to master the art of the perfect minestrone or that soup with the bread in it. (Sorry, I'm very obv not Italian so I don't know precise terminology here.) Or indeed any other kind of Italian soup.