Jamaican Pumpkin Soup

This soup takes me back to my childhood. It’s the first dish I made for my college friends and it was an absolute hit. This is one of the staple dishes that my mom taught me how to make before I left for college. Traditionally, pigs tail, chayote squash, and boniato are used, but it was hard to find these specific ingredients where I went to school. So, I modified to it be small town friendly, where you can find the ingredients in common grocery stores with no need to go to specialty stores.

Ingredients:

• 1 small pumpkin or 1 small Japanese (kambocha) squash

• 1 bag of Yukon gold potatoes

• 1 bag of carrots

• 1 scotch bonnet or habanero pepper

• Thyme

• Scallions

• 1 package of stew beef chunks (I used chuck roast chunks)

• 1 package of Lipton yellow chicken noodle soup (the box comes with 2 packages)

• 1 package of Grace Cock Flavored Soup mix (found in international aisle)

• 1 package of Grace Pumpkin Flavored Soup mix (found in international aisle)

• 3 chicken boullion cubes (I used Knorr’s)

• 3 cups of all-purpose flour

• salt

• black pepper

• garlic powder

• onion power

• vegetable oil

• oyster sauce

• soy sauce

Instructions for soup:

On high heat, in a large stock pot, add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and the package of stew beef chunks. Season the stew beef chunks with 1 tablespoon of salt, 1/2 a tablespoon of black pepper, 1/2 a tablespoon of garlic powder, and 1/2 a tablespoon of onion powder until browned on the outside. Next, add 10 cups of water over the stew beef chunks and stir. Then, add 7 sprigs of thyme, all parts of 3 stalks of scallion, and 3 chicken bullion cubes. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to medium. In the meantime, remove the skin of the pumpkin or kombocha squash and cut into 4 inch wedges. Wash and peel the potatoes and cut into 2 inch cubes. Wash and peel the carrots and cut into 2 inch pieces. Then, add the pumpkin, potatoes, carrots, and a quarter of the scotch bonnet or habanero pepper to the pot and stir. Continue to simmer for 1.5 hours. Next, make the dumplings (see below). Once the dumplings are made, add to the pot and stir, cook for another half an hour, while stirring occasionally to prevent the dumplings from sticking to the bottom. Add Grace Cock Flavored Soup mix, Grace Pumpkin Flavored Soup mix, and 1 package of Lipton yellow chicken noodle soup and continue to stir to ensure that nothing settles at the bottom.

Taste test and adjust seasoning. If it seems to be missing flavor, add salt to you liking. If it seems to be too seasoned, add some water.

Instructions for dumplings:

Combine 3 cups of flour and 1 tablespoon of salt with 1.5 cups of water and mix with hands. Add more flour or more water until a stiff dough forms. Roll the dough into segments and add directly to soup.

Instructions for sauce:

Combine equal parts oyster sauce and soy sauce with a quarter of scotch bonnet or habanero pepper and mix well.