Mock Turtles Food

MOCK TURTLE SOUP

Steps:

• Heat a 4 quart soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat (dry - no oil in the pan). Add the beef and brown thoroughly, chopping up the clumps as you go (a potato masher works great for this). The meat should be fine, not clumpy.
• While the meat browns, place the ginger snaps in a heat-proof bowl and pour 2 cups of very hot water over them. Set aside to soak.
• When the meat has cooked, examine the pot and decide if you need to drain the fat. Depending on the cut you use, you might not have to. If there's a pool of orange fat in the pot, I would skim at least some of it off. It's up to you, though.**
• Add the onions. If grating, you can grate the onions directly into the pot. Stir to mix with the beef.
• Pour in the ketchup and Worcestershire sauce. Season with the black pepper. Pour in the ginger snaps with their liquids and stir well. The mixture should be thick at this point, and look like sloppy joe sauce.
• Add water, one cup at a time, until the soup has thinned, which will take 4 to 6 cups of water. It should not be watery, but also more soup-like than sloppy-joe-like, keeping in mind that some of the liquid will cook off. I used 5 cups for the batch in the photos that accompany this recipe.
• Bring the soup to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to low-medium to maintain a tame simmer. Give one more stir to let everything settle.
• Lay the lemon slices over the top of the soup.
• Partially cover with a lid, and let simmer for 1 to 2 hours. Stir every 20 minutes or so to prevent scorching.
• Remove and discard the lemon slices.
• Stir in the sherry and hard boiled eggs.
• Taste, and adjust salt and pepper. If the flavor needs brightening - if it's too sweet from the ginger snaps - add a teaspoon or two of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice.

EASY MOCK TURTLE SOUP

Steps:

• Brown ground beef; add all ingredients to the ground beef in a large pot; cook 1 to 1.5 hours.
• Keep lid on for first 1/2 hour.
• Add browned flour gradually, stirring constantly.
• Add 2 chopped hard-boiled eggs; cook another 1/2 hour.
• Browned flour: Brown 10 tablespoons flour in a skillet, stirring constantly. Add a little water to make a thick paste.

MOCK TURTLE SOUP

Steps:

• Put all ingredients in a large stock pot, except for the hard boiled eggs.
• Cook over medium heat until boiling.
• Cover pot and simmer for 3 hours.
• Add hard boiled eggs, chopped at 2 hour 45 minutes.

MOCK TURTLE SOUP

Steps:

• Brown onion in the butter and oil, add the oxtails and brown slightly. Add the spices and herbs, then stir in the flour until it bubbles, adding more butter and oil as needed. Pour in the hot water and stock and bring to a boil. Add the remaining ingredients, except the egg and sherry. Simmer for 2 hours. Remove the oxtail, cut the meat and marrow away--add back to the soup and discard the bones.
• When ready to serve, chop the eggs coarsely and stir into the soup. Ladle into bowls, stir in a teaspoon of sherry to each, top with parsley -- and put a cruet of sherry on the table, for atmosphere if nothing else.

MOCK TURTLE SOUP

Steps:

• Brown the clarified butter and flour in a small saucepan, stirring constantly to avoid scorching.
• Reserve.
• In a soup pot, add oil and sweat the onions, peppers and celery until tender.
• Add the ground beef and cook until not pink.
• Add garlic, tomatoes, chicken broth and ground round.
• Bring to a simmer for 15 minutes.
• Add grated eggs, lemon juice, seasonings and vinegar.
• Continue to simmer.
• Place small amounts of roux into soup while simmering to flavor and to adjust thickness.
• Once desired thickness is achieved, remove bay leaves and serve in pre-heated bowls, with a dollup of dry sherry.

TREME (MOCK) TURTLE SOUP

Steps:

• On the stovetop, sauté the sirloin, celery, garlic, and onion in butter until meat is brown and veggies are translucent. Add to the slow cooker.
• Add tomato puree, chicken broth, beef broth, flour mixture, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, hot sauce, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper to the slow cooker. Stir.
• Cook on low heat for 4 hours.
• Add lemon juice, parsley, and eggs 30 minutes before serving.
• Immediately before serving, remove bay leaves, add sherry to taste, and garnish with lemon slices.