Cooking on the Ridge: Three Sisters Soup
by James Coulter
A couple weeks ago was Indigenous Peoples’ Day (formerly known as Christopher Columbus Day). To commemorate the occasion, I decided to try a traditional indigenous dish: Three Sisters Soup.
This traditional recipe originates from the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) people, though it is also enjoyed by the Cherokee and Chickasaw. The soup is so named because it contains the three sister crops–beans, corn, and squash–which grow together.
This recipe originally contained only vegetables. However, I decided to add some meat to it to give it a little more–well–meat. I decided to use ground turkey to keep with the indigenous theme. My other option would have been venison, but—well—you can’t exactly buy that at the grocery store.
Also, the original recipe used stovetop instructions. However, I opted to use my trusty slow cooker instead. Because who doesn’tlove making meals with a crockpot? You dump all the ingredients in at the start of the day, then set it and forget it until dinner rolls around. Convenient.
Overall, this soup was very hearty. The ground turkey gave it a chili consistency, and with it having been cooked in beef broth, I almost forgot it was ground turkey. It was really beefy—only leaner.
As for the rest of the soup, it certainly tasted good, especially on a cool Virginia autumn day. Again, it was almost like a chili. However, some of the other people I ate with claimed it was slightly “fruity.” I’m not sure about that. The spices certainly added a much-needed “kick.”
(The following recipe was taken and modified from Palatable Pastime):
Ingredients
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. chopped garlic
1 large onion, chopped
2 medium zucchinis, diced
15.5 oz. canned corn kernels
14.5 oz. canned diced tomatoes
4 cups beef broth
15.5 oz. canned kidney beans
2 tsp. ground cumin
1.5 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. chili powder
4 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp. chopped cilantro
Instructions
1) Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil in a large saucepan or soup pan.
2) Add remaining ingredients and simmer gently for about 30 minutes. (Or place in slow-cooker and set on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours or more).
