Pileshka Supa
Пилешка супа·(pee-lesh-ka soo-pa)
The Tuesday Pot: Bob Chorba & Stews
You pull the dark meat thighs, you snap a handful of broken vermicelli into the six-quart Dutch oven, and you catch the herbaceous hit of lovage wafting from a pot of Pileshka Supa on a cold Tuesday night. The egg yolk whisked in a bowl makes it tangier, creamier, and infinitely more restorative, thanks to an ancient finishing trick called zastroika that turns the broth into liquid velvet. Your grandmother spent hours skimming foam for this, but you don't have hours. Start with good bone broth to finish in forty minutes. Stir the temper in off the heat, squeeze the lemon, and eat.
Before you start
Room temperature dairy.
Take your yogurt and egg out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before you start cooking. Attempting a zastroika with cold dairy is a guaranteed way to split your soup.
Ingredients
- sunflower oil2 tbsp
- yellow onion1 med
- carrots2 med
- red or green bell pepper1 med
- boneless skinless chicken thighs1 1/2 lb
- low-sodium chicken bone broth6 cup
- Yukon gold potatoes2 med
- thin vermicelli1/2 cup
- dried lovage1 tsp
- salt1 tsp
- black pepper1/2 tsp
- plain whole milk yogurt3/4 cup
- egg1 large
- all-purpose flour1 tbsp
- fresh lemon juice1 tbsp
- fresh flat-leaf parsley1/2 bunch
Method
- 01
Build the aromatic foundation.
Heat the sunflower oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat, then add the onion, carrots, and bell pepper. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes until softened; we finely dice them here so they melt seamlessly into the broth.
- 02
Poach the chicken thighs.
Pour in the bone broth and bring to a gentle simmer. Drop in the whole chicken thighs, letting them poach for 15 to 20 minutes until cooked through, skimming off any foam that rises to the surface to keep the broth clean.
- 03
Shred the meat.
Use tongs to transfer the cooked chicken to a cutting board. Shred it into bite-sized pieces with two forks, then immediately return the meat to the pot.
- 04
Boil the potatoes and noodles.
Add the diced potatoes and cook for 10 minutes until they just begin to yield. Stir in the vermicelli, dried lovage, salt, and pepper, and simmer for 5 more minutes until the noodles are soft.
- 05
Rest the soup off the heat.
This is entirely non-negotiable. Turn off the burner and pull the pot completely off the heat, letting it sit for 3 to 5 minutes so it is no longer at a rolling boil before you attempt to temper the dairy.
- 06
Whisk the zastroika.
In a medium bowl, vigorously whisk together the room-temperature yogurt, egg, flour, and lemon juice until entirely smooth. The flour is your grandmother's insurance policy—it prevents the egg proteins from splitting when you reheat the leftovers tomorrow.
- 07
Temper the yogurt mixture.
While whisking the yogurt rapidly, slowly drizzle in a ladle of the hot broth. Repeat this with two or three more ladles of broth until the yogurt mixture in the bowl is warm to the touch.
- 08
Execute the final merge.
Slowly pour the tempered zastroika back into the main pot in a thin, continuous stream while stirring gently in one direction. The broth will instantly transform into opaque, golden velvet. Stir in the parsley and serve immediately.
Notes
Sourcing the lovage.
Devesil (lovage) is the absolute soul of this soup. It tastes like celery's deeper, muskier cousin. Order dried lovage online. If you are desperate, substitute with finely minced inner celery leaves, but you'll be missing the real magic.
The right yogurt.
Do not use thick, strained Greek yogurt unless you thin it out with a little water first. A standard whole milk European-style yogurt is closest to the delicate texture of Bulgarian kiselo mlyako.