Ingredients

1. Olive oil or butter – 3 tbsp
2. Onion (chopped) – 100 gms
3. Potato – 200 gms (1, big)
4. Watercress – 100 gms
5. Chicken stock – 3 cups
6. Cumin seeds – 1/4 tsp
7. Dry Bay leaf (small) – 2
8. Garlic (chopped) – 3
9. Double cream – 1/4 cup
10. Water – 1/4 to 1/2 cup
11. Additional watercress – 45 gms or more

For chicken stock

12. Chicken skin, few bones and wings - 700 gms
13. Onion - 100 gms or 1
14. Ginger - small piece or 10 gms
15. Black pepper corns - 1 tsp
16. Garlic cloves (crushed) - 5
17. Water - 4 cups

Method

Chicken stock

1. Add all the ingredients with 4cups of water, give 2 to 3min boil, then simmer the flame for 45 to 1hr, by closing the lid.
2. Strain and keep it aside to cool.

Watercress soup

3. Cook the onion and garlic in the butter or olive oil, until softened.
4. Add the potato, sauté for 1 to 2min, add stock boil for 3 to 4min.
5. Drop in watercress, cook in simmer for 20 to 25min.
6. Blend it with a hand blender after removing the bay leaf or transfer to a blender and blend until smooth.
7. Pour the soup back in the pan and stir in the chopped watercress (roughly), pepper powder (freshly grounded), double cream, salt and boil on simmer by closing the lid for 10 to 15min.
8. Serve hot, watercress soup in a bowl with few sprig of watercress into the centre.

Notes

1. You can use single cream instead of double cream and sometimes creamed milk.
2. As soon as double cream is added it is switched off after slow simmering for 2min, but I allow it to simmer for 10 to 15, so that cream is well blended with the soup.
3. You can add croutons and your favourite grated cheese as garnishing in the soup.
4. Instead of home made chicken stock , you can use chicken stock cube or ready made chicken stock or vegetable stock also.
5. The remaining stock I always freeze it and use whenever required.