This Anatolian peasant soup with the delicate flavor of mint and saffron is magnificent. I make it when I have a roast chicken carcass or, better still, when I have two and have remembered to retain the cooking juices and melted fat.

　　

Ingredients

serves 8 or more

　　1 or 2 chicken carcasses

　　Salt and white pepper

　　1 large onion, chopped

　　2 tablespoons vegetable oil

　　2/3 cup pearl barley

　　Good pinch of saffron threads

　　2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

　　4 tablespoons chopped mint

　　2 cups plain whole-milk yogurt

　　

Step 1

Put the chicken carcasses in a large pan with about 5 1/2 pints (11 cups) water. Add salt and pepper and boil for 1 hour or longer. Strain, and put back any little bits of chicken into the stock.

　　

Step 2

In the washed and dried pan, fry the onion in the oil until soft. Add the stock and any cooking juices and melted fat left over from the original roasting of the chicken. Bring to the boil, then add the barley. Crush the saffron threads with the back of a spoon on a little plate and stir them in. Simmer over low heat for about 30 minutes, or until the barley is swollen and tender. Add the chopped parsley and mint and adjust the seasoning, but remember the yogurt will add a little needed sharpness.

　　

Step 3

Just before serving, beat the yogurt in a bowl with a few ladles of the soup. Then pour the yogurt mixture into the soup, beating vigorously, and heat to just below boiling, stirring constantly. Do not allow the soup to boil, or it will curdle.

　　Arabesque