Leeks and potato soup

 Leeks!!

I have never cook leeks before. I don't think I have ever eaten leeks before. Leeks and potato have a rhyme to it like they should go together like cookie and milk or chicken and rice.

When you think of leek, think of giant spring onion/scallion. I think they belong to the same family. I followed Alton Brown's recipe loosely and bought some leeks at the grocery store. I have no idea how to cook it so I watched a couple youtube videos for instructions.

Ingredients

4 large potatos
8 skinless chicken drumsticks (you can use chicken stock too instead of making your own stock)
4 large leeks
1 large onion

Fragrance

1 piece of dried bay leaf
A sprinkle of dried basil
A sprinkle of dried rosemary
A sprinkle of dried thyme
Chicken bouillon (optional)
Salt and Pepper.

Instructions

1. Boil a medium pot of water.
2. Cook the chicken drumsticks for about 10 minutes.
3. Add the "Fragrance" ingredients to the soup.
4. At the same time, chop the potato into small pieces and add to the soup.

While the soup is cooking, start preparing and cooking the leeks.

5. Cut the roots and the leafy parts of the of leeks. You want the white-ish part.
6. Cut the leeks down the middle to slice it half.
7. Wash the leeks very carefully to remove all the dirt, especially near the root end.
8. Chop the leeks into small pieces.
9. Brown the onions in a pan with oil.
10. Add the leeks in to the pan and saute it in high heat for about 1-2 minutes. (the leeks are still hard at this point, but that's okay, further cooking in the chicken soup with break it down).
6. Transfer the leeks into the chicken soup pot.
7. Cook everything for 40 minutes in medium heat.
8. Remove the chicken thighs if you are using it.
9. Add 1/2 cup of heavy cream
10. Add 1 tablespoon of butter
11. Season with salt and pepper.
12. Use a handheld blender to blend everything in the soup until it becomes smooth. (Becareful of splashes when doing this. I advice doing it in the sink)

The soup is done!! I can't distinguish the taste of leek from the soup. I figured it is infused and blended in with everything else. I think the essence of the soup is the humble potato. There are many other soup combinations that you can try such as cauliflower potato or asparagus potato






I thought it will be a good idea to sprinkle some chopped spring onion since spring onion and leeks are families and families should embrace each other, right?  I also sprinkle some paprika for no reason but for color. Well, every family has something spicy, just like paprika.