Friday, June 15, 2012

Speaking of Cocks


Do you ever wonder what characters would cook if they got into the kitchen? I sometimes do, because often I find I’ve written an entire book, or read an entire book, and the characters have been too busy doing…um…other stuff to actually make an entire meal. Strange, really, in the case of my own writing since I’m a devote foodie! With that in mind, Foodie Friday was born.

Sometimes it’ll just be a recipe I particularly like, or maybe some strange food fact I’ve come across. On occasion you’ll find a short story involving a character from my or other author’s books getting crazy in the kitchen. Foodie Friday is about the love of food, in all its forms, so come back often for a little taste!

I was on Twitter the other day when someone posted a link to this Amazon page http://www.amazon.com/Grace-Cock-Flavored-Soup-Mix/dp/B002Q46EH6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1339373016&sr=8-2&keywords=Grace+Cock+Soup with a rather cheeky comment.

Okay, I know what a lot of you are thinking—WTF? But hear me out, and remember what sound EEEEWWW to one person is *shrug* to someone else.

I’m Jamaican, and Grace is a large manufacturing company on the island. They specialize in what Jamaicans use on a daily basis in their kitchens…stuff people from the rest of the world might never have heard of but are considered essentials to us. One of those products is Cock Soup.

Before I get into what we do with this soup, and what it tastes like and all those good things, let me explain one thing…it is NOT penis soup. A look at the actual package should make that pretty clear, but I thought I’d reiterate it. In Jamaica, traditionally, a ‘cock’ is a rooster, coming straight from our colonial, English roots. Now, if someone were to offer you “hood soup” or “buddy soup” (words denoting penis in our vernacular), I suggest you politely decline. There is one soup, cow cod, that’s made from the intimate bits of a bull, so if that kind of thing makes you queasy, that the one to watch for. Otherwise, if offered cock soup on vacation in Jamaica, I say go for it!

So, the packaged Cock Soup is like any other dry chicken noodle soup mix, except it’s spicier, with a more intense flavor. I use it as a base for making a large pot of chicken soup, add it sometimes to chicken stew and it makes a delicious broth for boiling chicken. (Use skinless chicken breasts, bone in or out, as you prefer. Chop into approximately 2” chunks. Get rid of the noodles from the soup by emptying the package into a strainer and shaking out the flavor base into a bowl. Discard the noodles, because they get flabby and gummy if boiled too long. Put the flavor base into boiling water and add the chicken, cooking just until done. Serve with soya sauce.)

I’ve actually also used the above method to boil shrimps for shrimp cocktail, because it gives them just enough of an oomph without overpowering the shrimp flavor! Of course, if you just want a nice bowl of soup to eat with your crackers, and plain out chicken noodle isn’t cutting it, Cock Soup may be right up your alley.

So, that’s the low-down on Cock Soup, a great Jamaican tradition! Thinking about it, this is probably the tamest blog I’ve ever written with the word “cock” in it… *shakes head*

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