Pumpkin Soup pairs with which wine?
I asked Mum growing up if it is okay to dream and Mum replied, “always.”
I brought one of my dreams to life woohoo - a cooking session in the vineyard with you in mind.
This has been in the making for over a year. I was hoping Clarissa Feildel who cooked satay and laksa for us, would be able to cook for us again but the “Nigella Lawson of Asia” is tied up now with Better Homes and Gardens. We tried to find another chef to no avail. So it dawned on me that I am a trained Cordon Bleu chef having done the Grande Diplôme after my degree decades ago. So I decided to cook a recipe I learnt from Aunty Penny back during university days - a pumpkin soup recipe for halloween and I have been cooking this pretty much every year since and have tuned it up with some spice. It is such an approchable recipe that you can literally whip up. I hope you enjoy it.
Colin our vineyard guru joins me with this fun adventure and we taste through six wines I had mentally shortlisted and see which pairs best. Col had been harvesting all night but thrilled we had time to cook with some thyme! A video of us cooking and pairing to see which wine matches follows below. Santé and bon appetite.
Ingredients:
50g brown onion diced (one medium onion)
Three or so drizzles of olive oil
Splash (about 20ml) of UMAMU wine
500-600g cubed pumpkin
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 litre chicken stock, enough to cover the pumpkin in the pot. Option to replace with vegetarian stock.
Couple sprigs of thyme.
Salt pepper to taste.
Method:
Pour yourself a glass of UMAMU before you start cooking. Add diced onions into a pot. I like cast iron otherwise any thicker pot is good (I find that cooking is gentler). Drizzle olive oil over the onions, heat gently, stir and listen for the sizzle. Once the onions are translucent and smelling delicious, add the cumin and stir through. Then add a splash of wine, stir and let the wine evaporate. Next add the pumpkin and stir through. Add chicken broth and thyme leaves. Season. Simmer for 30-45 mins. Ready when the pumpkin breaks up easily. Use a masher a few times to even the look. Check seasoning and there you have it. Bon appetite.
Chicken stock recipe:
One chicken carcass
Bouquet garnet (an inch of leek, sprig of parsley, thyme, one bay leaf)
One brown onion
Salt and pepper
Bring to the boil and simmer for a minimum of 3 hours.
Store bought is also fine if needed, I would just suggest the least and cleanest ingredients the better.
Serves 2-3 depending on your appetite and serving.
Pumpkin Soup pairs best with Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Cab Franc, Shiraz and Sparkling MacAnn from the UMAMU Range.