Ciorbă de miel de Paște (Romanian Easter lamb soup)

Name: Ciorbă de miel de Paște (Romanian Easter lamb soup)
Ingredients: 2500 ml water; 1 kg bone-in lamb (head feet and ribs); 2 bunches green onions (200 g); 2 medium carrots (200 g); 1 parsley root (100 g); 1/2 celeriac (200 g); 100 g sorrel (1 bunch); 1 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper; 15 g lovage (1 bunch)

Soups - Ciorbă de miel de Paște (Romanian Easter lamb soup) by Arina K. - Recipia

Ciorbă de miel de Paște, a Romanian Easter lamb soup, starts with bone-in pieces simmered until the meat comes away easily. The root vegetables and sorrel simmer in the strained broth, and the soup stays tart, with the meat taken off the bones and lovage added at the end. I serve it hot, with bread on the side. Prep: 25 minutes. Cook time: 100 minutes. Total time: 125 minutes. Servings: 6. Approximately 180 kcal and 17 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

2500 ml water
1 kg bone-in lamb (head feet and ribs)
2 bunches green onions (200 g)
2 medium carrots (200 g)
1 parsley root (100 g)
1/2 celeriac (200 g)
100 g sorrel (1 bunch)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
15 g lovage (1 bunch)

Preparation

1. Finely chop the green onions, sorrel and lovage leaves. Peel the carrots, parsley root and celeriac, then cut them into pieces. 2. Pour the cold water into a pot and bring it to a boil. Add the lamb pieces, then simmer over low heat for 75 minutes, skimming off the foam as it forms. The meat should come away from the bones easily. 3. Strain the broth into another pot, leaving the bones in the strainer, and remove the meat from the bones. Return the broth to the pot, add the green onions, carrots, parsley root and celeriac, then simmer for 20 minutes, until the root vegetables are tender. 4. Add the boneless meat and sorrel to the broth. Add the salt and pepper and simmer for another 5 minutes, until the sorrel softens. 5. Turn off the heat and add the lovage leaves.

Notes

For a version without sorrel, use 150 g spinach and 1 tablespoon lemon juice; the soup will be less tart. I serve it with bread. Keep it in a covered container in the refrigerator for no more than 3 days. The head and feet have more connective tissue than the ribs, so large pieces may need more time; the meat should come away from the bones easily. Choose sorrel with firm leaves and no yellow spots, as older leaves can be tougher. I take my time skimming: remove the foam a little at a time as it gathers on the surface. Fresh lovage has soft leaves, and you can remove the thick stems. If you use meat from just one cut, the ribs usually soften faster than the head or feet, so check them before continuing to simmer.