← Nouns Cooking · French

Ingredients

• 200 g smoked bacon or petit salé, diced
• 1 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 1 Onion, chopped
• 2 Carrot, sliced
• 1 Leek, sliced
• 2 cloves Garlic, chopped
• 1 small Savoy or green cabbage (about 800 g), cored and shredded
• 3 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1.5 l chicken stock or water
• 2 sprigs Thyme
• 1 Bay leaves
• 1 smoked sausage (Morteau or Montbéliard), sliced (optional)
• Salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat and fry the bacon for 5 min until it releases its fat. Add the onion, carrots, leek and garlic and cook for 8 min until soft.
2. Meanwhile, blanch the shredded cabbage in boiling water for 3 min and drain; this keeps it mild.
3. Add the cabbage, potatoes, stock, thyme and bay to the pot. Bring to the boil, then simmer gently for 40 min, adding the sausage for the last 20 min.
4. Crush some of the potatoes against the side of the pot to thicken the broth. Remove the herbs and season, going easy on the salt because of the bacon.
5. Serve very hot with slices of country bread, toasted and rubbed with garlic if you like.

Tips

• A spoonful of grated Cantal or Comté in each bowl is a lovely finish.
• Check your sausage and stock if you need it gluten-free.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

French Cooking Academy BBC Good Food