Kabocha Squash, Oxtail and Ox Cheek Soup

This is one of those really comforting recipes. A really cheap but wonderful autumnal soup that you can leave on the stove for a few hours whilst you get on with your day. It combines the sweetness of Kabocha squash with an umami-rich stock made from oxtail and root vegetables. But that's not all! This dish also has pieces of stewed ox cheek in it and is finished with a zesty garlic and lemon panko pangrattato. This dish was in fact not made by me, so credit must go to my brother for this! We ate this a week or so ago when everyone in our family was ill and we needed something comforting to eat. This definitely helped. Sorry I don't have a pic of the final dish. My camera failed me on this occasion!



















Ingredients
1 kabocha squash
1 echaliom shallot
1 medium onion
2 carrots
1 swede
1 parsnip
1 leek
2 bay leaves
6 cloves of garlic
1/2 kilo ox tail
1/2 kilo ox cheek
1 litre chicken stock
10 peppercorns
5 teaspoons of panko
half a lemon zested and juiced
a glug of olive oil



















Method
Brown the meat in batches in a large pot and set aside. Dice the shallot and onion and fry until translucent. Crush four of the garlic gloves, add to the onions and fry off for half a minute. Cut the rest of the vegetables roughly and add to the pot. Add the meat once again and then cover with the chicken stock. Add the peppercorns and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Turn to a low heat and simmer for two to three hours. The soup is done when the stock is thick and the meat is tender to the touch and falling off the bone (in the case of the oxtail). 10 minutes before serving the soup you can make the pangrattato. You need to fry off 2 cloves of crushed garlic in a little olive oil for half a minute. Add the panko breadcrumbs, the lemon zest, a little seasoning and a squirt of lemon juice. Sprinkle on top of the soup before serving.

Also, before I forget, I'm sorry about my irregular posting. I'm currently reworking the site and new things should start to appear in the near future. It'll be worth it. I promise!