Wash and clean the meat in a mixture of lime juice and water. Rinse and place it in a large pot. Cover with water, add salt, and cook until tender, about 1.5 hours. Remove the meat and strain the broth.
Joumou Soup (Haitian Soup)
- Total time - 2.5 - 3 hours
- Preparation - 30 minutes
- Cooking time - 2 - 2.5 hours
- Servings: 8
- Country: Haiti
The key to the authentic flavor of Joumou Soup is using Haitian seasoning 'Epis' and beef. If you don't have access to the specific Joumou squash, you can substitute it with butternut squash or Hokkaido pumpkin. For a vegan version, simply omit the beef and use vegetable broth.
When preparing, it is important to first cook and blend the pumpkin to make the soup creamy before adding the other ingredients.
Ingredients
Ingredients for Joumou Soup
- 1 kg beef (e.g., chuck), cut into pieces
- juice of 1 lime
- 1.5 kg Joumou squash (or butternut squash/Hokkaido pumpkin), peeled and cubed
- water or beef broth
- 2 pieces potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 2 pieces carrots, peeled and sliced
- 1 piece turnip, peeled and cubed
- 0.5 head cabbage, quartered
- 1 piece whole spicy pepper (e.g., Scotch Bonnet)
- 0.5 cups macaroni or other small pasta
- salt and black pepper
Instructions
Step 1: Preparing the Beef and Pumpkin
Step 2: Cooking and Blending the Pumpkin
In a pot, cook the cubed pumpkin in a little of the beef broth until tender. Remove it and blend it in a blender until it forms a smooth purée. Return the purée to the pot with the broth.
Step 3: Cooking the Soup
Add the cooked beef, chopped potatoes, carrots, turnip, and cabbage to the pumpkin broth. Add salt and pepper to taste and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 20-30 minutes. Add the whole spicy pepper.
Step 4: Finishing Touches
About 10 minutes before serving, add the macaroni to the soup and cook until tender. Taste, and adjust seasonings as needed. Remove the whole pepper before serving.
Krok 5: Serving
Serve the Joumou Soup hot, traditionally with slices of crusty bread or with plantains.