Avgolemono

Ingredients

• 1.4 litres good chicken stock
• 300 g cooked chicken, shredded
• 120 g orzo
• 3 eggs
• juice of 2 lemons
• a handful of dill, chopped
• black pepper

Method

1. The stock is the dish

   Bring the stock to a simmer. With four ingredients and no fat, avgolemono is entirely as good as the stock — a cube will taste exactly like a cube.

2. Cook the orzo in it

   Add the orzo and simmer until just tender, about 8 minutes. Its starch helps stabilise the egg later.

   8 min

3. Whisk eggs and lemon

   Whisk the eggs hard with the lemon juice until pale and frothy. The acid is what keeps the proteins from setting the moment they meet heat.

4. Temper, slowly

   Take the pan off the heat. Ladle hot stock into the egg mixture one spoonful at a time, whisking constantly, until you have added at least four ladles and the bowl feels warm. This is the whole recipe — rush it and you have lemony egg-drop soup.

5. Return and do not boil

   Pour the tempered mixture back into the pan, add the chicken, and warm over the lowest heat, stirring, until it thickens enough to coat a spoon. It must never simmer again or it will curdle.

6. Serve at once

   Finish with dill and plenty of black pepper. It thickens as it stands and does not reheat well, so make it to eat.