Petite Marmite Soup

     Petite marmite pot au feu is a very old French recipe.  The stew and soup literally cooks for most of a day.

     A petite marmite pot au feu is started by stewing chicken and mirepoix vegetables to make the broth for cooking freshly butchered meaty veal, pork, beef or lamb bones and scrap meat later in the day.  The chicken pieces are usually removed in the afternoon and eaten as a light meal.  A small portion of the vegetables and broth are served as an afternoon soup.  The remaining broth and vegetables are used for stewing the freshly butchered meat and bones.  The second half of a petite marmite pot au feu is served as an evening meal.
     This petite marmite soup recipe is the stage of cooking the pot au feu after the chicken has been removed, when the broth and vegetables remain.  If you don't have chicken broth on hand, then you can make the broth with a couple of chicken legs, like the start of he original pot au feu recipe.  Just add the chicken legs along with the vegetables.  The chicken legs can be eaten separately.
      I posted a ful petite marmite pot au feu recipe with the butchered meat bones in this blog too.  If you have a clay cooking pot, then use it for this recipe and serve the Petite Marmite in the same pot.  If not, then cook it in a regular pot.  A clay earthenware pot is the traditional cooking vessel.
   
     Petite Marmite Soup Recipe: 
     This recipe makes enough for one large bowl of soup!  The original petite marmite pot au feu recipes involved no sauteing of the vegetables.
     Heat 2 1/2 cups of chicken over medium high heat in a sauce pot.
     Add 1 clove of chopped garlic.
     Add 1 pat of unsalted butter.
     Add 1 small handful of diced onion.
     Add 1 small handful of diced celery.
     Add 1 small handful of diced carrot.
     Add 1 large handful of diced cabbage.
     Add 1 small handful of diced turnip.
     Add 1 pinch of thyme.
     Add 1 pinch of marjoram.
     Add 1 bay leaf.
     Add sea salt and black pepper.
     Add 2 pinches of chopped fresh dill weed.
     After the soup comes to a boil, reduce the temperature to medium low heat.
     Simmer the soup, till the vegetables become tender.
     Serve the soup in the clay pot or in a soup bowl.
     Garnish with a dill weed sprig.
   
     This is a meatless petite marmite version and is well liked by French cafe diners that I have cooked for.
     Add pork short ribs, veal shanks, lamb neck bones with meat, sausages, dry cured bacon and chicken pieces to the soup, and then bake slowly in an oven, to turn this recipe into a true pot au feu.  The vegetable mixture remains the same when meats are added.
     I like the plain vegetable soup stage version when I want to serve a healthy light soup.  Petite marmite soup is savory and healthy!  ...  Shawna