A very basic and simple soup, starts with a stewed smoked pork hock and made with chicken stock, potatoes, turnips, carrots, onion, cabbage and tomatoes.
Dolly's Stone Soup
There are many stories of the origins of the folk tale of Stone Soup, and it seems to cross many cultures as well, but essentially it centers around the tale of a hungry traveler who arrives in a village where the residents don't seem to want to share their food.
The traveler goes to a stream, fills a pot with water and drops a stone into the water - promising the stone will result in a very special soup.
As the traveler offers a bowl of soup to the many villagers who show up, in exchange of some ingredient the villagers might supply that will add to the flavor of the soup, the soup is soon full of all kinds of goodness - spices and seasonings, vegetables and even meat!
In the end, the villagers enjoy a delicious bowl of soup while being taught the value of working together as a community and of sharing with one another.
It's an interesting story, though I didn't exactly grow up with that tale!
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This recipe, based on one that Dolly Parton's family shared, passed by one day on my browser start page a few times, from when she was on the Hallmark channel's Home and Family show. I do love me some Hallmark channel y'all!
Even though I didn't grow up with any kind of stone soup in my family, since I've been blogging recipes some 17 years now, I've certainly heard of it. Once I started looking into it, one thing I did notice is there is a pretty wide variation in the stone soup ingredients, as well as the stories related to the stone in the pot.
Although root vegetables and cabbage seem to be pretty universal among them, other vegetables such as peas, corn and beans are sometimes added. Occasionally there's some kind of meat but more often than not, it's mostly vegetable-based. Some folks use a chicken broth base while others prefer beef.
I've also noticed that most recipes, while they do include a story, rarely add in the stone now. I can completely relate to that, since I live surrounded by bayous and the creatures that inhabit them, and nowhere near close to a clear running, river stream, I'm opting to leave the stone out myself.
Dolly's Stone Soup story was that because she grew up with 11 siblings, her mother used the stone as a way to recognize when one of the children was having a difficult day. She would have them all to go out and hunt down the best stones that they could find and honoring that child by picking their stone to elevate their day.
I think that's very sweet!
Here's what you'll need to make this version of of Stone Soup, based on Dolly Parton's Stone Soup - but minus the stone:
- 1 medium meaty smoked pork hock
- 5 cups water
- 1 washed, rinsed and dried smooth river stone, optional
- 1-quart unsalted chicken stock or broth
- 1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and diced
- 1/2-pound turnips or rutabaga, peeled and diced
- 1 large carrot, scraped and diced
- 1 cup chopped sweet or yellow onion
- 1 rib celery, chopped
- 6 cups coarsely chopped cabbage
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can stewed or diced tomatoes
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic, or to taste
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper, or to taste
- Mixed dried herbs, to taste
Here's how to make it!
We're starting with a nice, big and meaty smoked pork hock.
Add pork hock to soup pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and let simmer for 1 hour.
Add the stock, along with stone, if using.
Add the potatoes, turnips or rutabaga, carrot, onion and celery.
Add cabbage.
Add the stewed or diced tomatoes along with the garlic.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to medium low and slow simmer, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are fork-tender, about 1-1/2 hours longer.
Dig in!
For more of my favorite soup recipes, check out this collection on my Pinterest page!
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