Callaloo Soup

Adapted from The Soul of a New Cuisine, by Marcus Samuelsson

A few weeks before I taught a class on hearty greens with Kyle, I had acquired and been reading The Soul of a New Cuisine– a book about the foods of Africa. I noticed this recipe in part because it uses one of my favorite spice combos- cumin and coriander. While I was shopping for my greens class at my multi-ethnic grocery store I happened across a green that was actually called “callaloo.”  Figuring this was more than coincidental, I bought some and used it to make this soup.

It turns out that the leaves I bought were actually a variety of Amaranth leaf often used to make this dish.  Callaloo is a bit like Babootie:  it is fun to say, has its origins in Africa, and is a classic dish with many, many variations (like Chili to Americans).    With such a healthy profile, I just couldn’t bring myself to add the cup of heavy cream called for in Marcus’ recipe.  However, it needed some body.  So I made some quinoa and pureed it into the soup.  Perfect.  You could probably do the same thing with brown rice.

The odds are low that you are going to come across anything like callaloo/amaranth/cassava leaves in your local grocery.  Kale, mature spinach (none of that bagged baby stuff, please), or chard would all be perfectly acceptable substitutes.  The only hearty green I’d avoid for this would be collards- too tough.

Ingredients

Aromatics
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 serrano (hot) or jalapeno (milder) chiles, minced
1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
1 ½ teaspoons ground coriander

Broth Liquid
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups coconut milk
1 cup bottled clam juice

To finish
6 cups trimmed and roughly torn greens, or 2 10-ounce boxes frozen chopped spinach
3/4 cup quinoa, uncooked
Juice of 3 limes

Instructions

Cook quinoa according to package directions (2/1 ratio water to quinoa).

Saute the aromatics

1. Heat the oil in a medium stockpot over medium-high heat.  Add the onion, garlic and chiles and sauté until the onion is translucent- about 5 minutes.
2. Add the cumin and coriander and sauté until the spices become fragrant- about another minute.

Add the liquid ingredients

1. Add the liquid ingredients and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes to develop the flavor.

Finish the soup

1. 1. Add the greens and cook until they turn bright green and tender.  Take care not to overcook them or you will lose their glorious color.
2. 2. Puree the soup in a blender in batches until smooth.  A stick blender will not work for this soup.  The little blade will choke up on the fibrous leaves.
3. Add the quinoa to the blender.  Cover with pureed soup and blend again until smooth.  Add this mixture to the rest of the pureed soup and stir to combine.
4. Add the limejuice and serve.

Off Script…

Some recipes call for crabmeat instead of the clam juice.  Some add pork in all forms.  Many add okra- another highly nutritious food which also adds body to the soup.  Google “callaloo” and play with the myriad recipes you find.  Its fun!