Gnomish Chicken & Eggplant Soup
Hearty Gnomish soup with herbs and veggies that are in season at the same time - eggplants, red bell peppers, parsley, and oregano. Like many Gnomish inventions, this has a lot of parts, and it all comes together with perfect balance.
Equipment
- 1 medium bowl
- 1 large soup pot or dutch oven
- 1 baking sheet
- 1 whisk
Ingredients
- 1 to 1-1/2 lbs eggplant peeled and diced (½-inch cubes)
- ¼ cup plus 1 Tbsp avocado oil or olive oil divided
- 1 ½ tsp table salt divided
- ¼ tsp ground pepper
- 1 medium white onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 medium red bell pepper diced
- 2 Tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 ½ Tbsp chopped fresh oregano
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- 7 cups chicken broth or veggie broth
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs trimmed, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 large eggs
- 6 tsp all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup lemon juice fresh squeezed if available; about 1 lemon
Optional ideas for serving:
- Crusty bread
- Cooked white rice to pour soup over
- Lemon wedges
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Prep all ingredients (wash and cut up). This is important so the veggies do not burn later.
- Toss eggplant in a medium bowl with 1/4 cup oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Spread in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet. Roast for 10 minutes. Turn the eggplant over and roast until very soft, 8 to 10 minutes more. *NOTE: This part can be done up to one day in advance; just keep the roasted eggplant in the fridge until soup time.
- Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Stir in bell pepper and garlic and cook, uncovered, for 2 minutes more.
- Sprinkle paprika and cayenne over the vegetables and stir until well coated.
- Stir in the eggplant, parsley, oregano, turmeric and ginger until well mixed.
- Add broth and chicken. Bring to a boil over high heat.
- Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Whisk half-and-half, egg yolks, and cornstarch in a medium bowl. Stir in 1 cup of the hot broth until combined. Gradually stir this mixture back into the pot, taking care that it does not boil, which will scramble the eggs.
- Whisk in lemon juice and season with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.
Notes
If you are new to eggplant, it is easy to prepare! Just slice the top off with a sharp knife (the stem with the green part), peel the thin skin off with a vegetable peeler, and dice like you would a zucchini or other squash.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!