Soup Joumou

Ingredients

• 1kg beef chuck or stewing beef, cut into 4cm cubes
• 2 limes, halved, for washing the meat
• 5 tbsp epis (blended parsley, thyme, spring onion, bell pepper, garlic and shallot)
• 2 tsp salt, for the marinade
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 1.2kg giraumon or kabocha squash, peeled, deseeded and cubed
• 2.5 litres beef stock or water
• 3 tbsp neutral oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 carrots, sliced into coins
• 2 celery sticks, sliced
• 1 leek, sliced and washed well
• 400g potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 300g malanga or yam, peeled and cubed
• 1/4 white cabbage, shredded
• 1 turnip, peeled and cubed
• 150g rigatoni or vermicelli
• 1 Scotch bonnet pepper, pierced but left whole
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 3 tbsp lime juice
• 2 tbsp butter
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• To serve: crusty bread

Before you cook

• Rub the beef cubes with the cut limes, rinse under cold water, and pat completely dry.
• Marinate the beef with the epis, two teaspoons of salt, the black pepper and the ground cloves, and leave it for at least one hour.
• Peel, deseed and cube the squash.
• Peel and cube the potatoes, malanga and turnip, and slice the carrots, celery and leek.

Steps

1. Put the cubed squash into a large saucepan and cover it with one litre of the stock.
2. Bring to a boil, then simmer for twenty-five minutes, until the squash collapses at the touch of a spoon.
3. Blend the squash with its liquid until completely smooth and set the purée aside.
4. Set a large heavy pot over medium-high heat and add three tablespoons of oil.
5. Add the marinated beef in a single layer and brown it for eight minutes, turning the pieces so they colour on several sides.
6. Add the diced onion and minced garlic and cook for three minutes.
7. Pour in the remaining one and a half litres of stock and scrape the base of the pot clean.
8. Add the thyme sprigs and bring the pot to a boil.
9. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer for one hour, until the beef is tender enough to cut with a spoon.
10. Stir the squash purée into the pot until the broth turns a deep, even orange.
11. Add the carrots, celery, leek, potatoes, malanga and turnip.
12. Nestle the pierced Scotch bonnet into the soup, keeping it whole so it lends perfume rather than raw heat.
13. Simmer uncovered for twenty-five minutes, stirring occasionally so nothing sticks to the base.
14. Add the shredded cabbage and the pasta.
15. Cook for a further twelve minutes, until the pasta is tender and the root vegetables give way easily.
16. Fish out the Scotch bonnet and the thyme stalks and discard them.
17. Stir in the lime juice and the butter, which will round out the whole pot.
18. Taste and adjust the salt and black pepper, keeping in mind the soup should be well seasoned rather than delicate.
19. Thin with a little hot water if the soup has thickened past the point of ladling comfortably.
20. Ladle into deep bowls and serve with crusty bread for dipping.