Chestnut Soup

It's time for a warming autumn soup. The first recipe for chestnut soup that I can remember reading was by the always reliable Alastair Little around 30 years ago. This simple recipe owes a lot to that original.

Mr Little was a significant influence on many professional and amateur cooks in this country with his dedication to purist Italian food. I always thought of him as unapologetically old school and some of the dogmatic things that he wrote, I have to admit, I found more amusing than useful. For instance, he wrote that pasta “should always be eaten as a first course. If you have pasta as a main course you will be hungry again within 2 hours." But, if I want a dependable, classic Italian recipe, then his books are one of the first places I look. Sadly, he passed away in 2022.

I'm definitely not a purist and this recipe has certainly departed from the original, but, in my defence, it's really quick and easy and remains suitably tasty. You can, of course, gather your own chestnuts and cook and peel them in the time-honoured way. That's more time than I can spare. So I make this with prepared, cooked chestnuts in packs from the supermarket. I've used 180g of chestnuts here, because that's the size of the packs I've bought lately. You can save even more time by using a soffritto mix from the supermarket (well, why not?). 

Adding the mushroom ketchup near the end of this recipe isn't essential, but if you happen to have some around, then it really does help to bring out the flavours. This amount will make a very decent lunch portion for 2, but could also make 3 or 4 more delicate, starter portions.

180g unsweetened, cooked chestnuts

40g pancetta, finely chopped

A generous ½ cup of soffritto mix (finely diced onion, carrot and celery)

½ - 1 chilli (not a really hot one), deseeded and finely chopped

1 garlic clove, chopped

½ - 1 tsp finely chopped rosemary leaves

1 tbsp tomato purée

400ml - 500ml chicken (or vegetable, if you prefer) stock

1 tsp (or more, if you fancy) mushroom ketchup (optional)

A squeeze or two of lemon and/or ½ tsp balsamic vinegar 

Croutons and crème fraîche to serve

Place a pan (something like a 20cm - 24cm sauté pan with a lid would be about right) on a medium heat and add a little olive oil. Add the pancetta and stir for a minute or two. Add the soffritto mix, reduce the heat a little and fry gently for about10 minutes. Add the chilli and garlic and keep frying gently for further 5 minutes, being careful not to burn the mixture.

Add the rosemary, tomato purée and chestnuts together with a little salt and pepper. Add 400ml of the stock, bring to the boil, turn down the heat, partially cover the pan and allow the mixture to simmer gently. Continue to simmer until the chestnuts are tender. It's not easy to say exactly how long that will take: for pre-cooked packs it will probably be around 20 - 30 minutes at most, but some do take longer.

Liquidise the soup, adding the reserved stock and/or enough water to give you the thickness that you’d like. Mix in the mushroom ketchup (if using), adjust the seasoning and add lemon juice and/or balsamic vinegar to suit your taste.

To serve, reheat the soup and add a little dollop of thick crème fraîche and some croutons to each bowl.