Come Dine With Me recipes Nonna's chicken minestra recipe

Wayne Allen's menu

Date Published:

19/12/2007

Wayne Allen rustled up this homemade chicken broth using free range chicken and Italian minestra pasta in Come Dine With Me Teesside

1. Pour 1.2 litres of water into a very large saucepan and add the chicken stock cube. Stir over a medium heat until the stock dissolves. Skin the chicken and remove the breasts to save for another meal. Split the chicken carcass in half with a large heavy knife. Put the chicken carcass gently into the stock pot and bring to the boil.

2. Drain the tomatoes in a sieve and put on a board. Cut into dice and tip into the pan along with the onion, garlic, peppers, celery, potato and rosemary. Add plenty of salt and ground black pepper.

3. Once the liquid has come to the boil, reduce the heat slightly and leave to simmer gently for 1 hour. Check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper if required.

4. Remove the pan from the heat and lift out the chicken carcass with tongs. Drain on a plate until cooled, then cover and chill. Use for another meal. Strain the vegetables through a fine sieve and reserve the stock. (If you prefer your soup with vegetables, don’t bother to strain.) Discard the rosemary.

5. When ready to serve, bring the stock to a boil. Tip the pasta into a bowl of lukewarm water and stir until all the pasta dust dissolves and the balls separate. Drain in a sieve then add the pasta to the stock and cook for about 10 minutes until tender. Stir occasionally so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan and burn.

6. When the pasta is tender, ladle the soup into warmed bowls and serve with homemade bread, plus olive oil and good quality balsamic vinegar to dip.

Please note this recipe is the contestant's own and has not been tested professionally. Like the Come Dine With Me contestants, you could be creating a culinary delight or dining disaster, so switch on your ovens and be bold.

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