co*ck-a-Leekie Soup (Scottish Chicken and Leek Soup) Recipe (2024)

I grew up in Scotland and we never really used celery. When we came to Canada I was surprised how omnipresent it was in soup and then when visiting the US it seemed to be in everything. So, I never have it in my co*ck a Leekie soup which I usually make with rice although I have made it with Scottish porridge oats. But much as I love co*ck a Leekie I would refer you to the greatest Scottish soup: Cullen Skink made with finnan haddie.

If I wanted to substitute steel cut Scottish oats for barley to feed someone with gluten issues would I use the same cooking interval as specified in this (40 - 50 min) for the pearl barley?

I cook with oats often and usually use groats, whole oats if you can find them. For groats the cooking interval would be the same as barley which I also love but for steel cut oats it would be a little less time. Barley and Oats, let’s hear it for two great Northern European grains!

A family member with celiac swears by sorghum berries as a barley substitutes. And I think the cooking times are similar.

I made this with pearl couscous, turned out great!

I added a diced yellow onion to the leek/butter sauté. Also cooked barley in separate pot w/ chicken broth then mixed barley and soup in individual service bowls to avoid the absorption of the made broth. Topped / served w/ garlic butter rye croutons. Pretty good. Would recommend very small dicing the prunes to make the flavor and texture more consistent.

Fantastic! We used low sodium/no salt bone broth instead of water. Eight chicken legs required our large LeCruset Dutch Oven to hold almost 10 cups of liquid plus the other ingredients. The flavor was rich and robust! We also used Couscous as the other person suggested and it was wonderful (although note to use a little less Couscous because it is like sponge and sucks up the liquid if there is too much…perhaps just half a cup of couscous max). Otherwise no changes needed.

I was tempted to intensify the flavor of the broth with my homemade chicken stock but, since was my first attempt, I decided to follow the recipe precisely. So glad I did. The broth, I decided, as four of us devoured the dish, had to be a light, to support all those leeks amd carrots. The star anise was a delightful addition, a wonderful aromatic.

I made this but adapted the recipe to do parts of it in the instant pot - lowering the cook time from 2.5 hours to 1.75 hours. I followed the recipe for steps 1-3. I cut up the veg etc. while that stuff was cooking. I sautéed the leeks in butter in the instant pot and set them aside. I added barley and veg to instant pot. When the chicken was done, I strained the broth into the instant pot and cooked that for 30 minutes on high. Manual release, then add chicken, etc. & let sit for 5 minutes.

I made this as written and it was delicious, the next day the barley had soaked up all of the broth and it was quite solid. When I make it again I will cook the barley separately in some chicken stock and add it to the individual serving bowl. As for Cullen Skink. It is my dream soup, I make it with smoked salmon heresy I know but available.

Here in Germany, we never use celery, but always the bulb, celeriac. It gives an intense and slightly sweet note to the broth. Try it!

Two things: I saw Mary Berry making this and then the next morning it was featured in the Times, which is basically God telling you to make it. Mary gives a great tip: she says to cook the chicken until it is just done - 165 degrees - because it is more delightful when the chicken is very tender. I agree. And this is my own tip- mince the prunes - like 20 pieces from one prune - because they grow in the broth as they are rehydrated and are a little slimey. But tiny they are delightful.

Reducing the liquid by a third is really important to deepening the flavor of this great dish. Don't skip the step.

Yes. The instant pot also minimizes the coagulated proteins which render the soups cloudy and ugly. Of course, the protein remains in a dissolved state. Moreover, if you pressure cook a little longer than "normal", you get all the bone broth constituents, too.

Delicious dish, mainly because of the flavors of anise, prunes, garlic, pepper and thyme. But too many steps, too many dirty dishes involved in its creation! I'll make it again, but will simplify it by using just one pot, and boneless, skinless chicken thighs. I'll skip saving some leeks for the top, as well as using ready-made chicken broth, without using vegetable peelings. The flavors are what count here.

Everything about this recipe was exactly perfect. My only suggestion is to sub-head it, “cozy sleep tight soup.” I subbed dates for prunes and bulgar for barley cos that’s what I had and it was so so good. Like the inside of a chicken pot-pie but with a little less guilt.

I added a step 8.5 - toss the skin and bones back into the pot and simmer for another 30-60 mins. Makes an extra rich broth. Strain again before proceeding to step 9. I used brown rice instead of barley. Also added raisins in the initial simmer rather than traditional prunes because it's what I had on hand. Absolutely delicious on this ice cold winter night.

I had frozen turkey and bones left from Thanksgiving begging to get used up so I made bone broth in the instant pot, then added that to the veggies to simmer after sautéing them all together. I had TJ’s parboiled farro on hand, so the soup cooked much more quickly. I added chopped leftover turkey and subbed dried apricots for the prunes. Tossed in some dried parsley at the end for color.Is it the traditional version? Absolutely not, but this use-what-you-have version was super tasty!

This is the best fast version of chicken soup I've ever had. The prunes are a lovely innovation that you don't notice unless you've made it yourself. Everyone at my cozy Xmas skating party loved it.

This is wonderful soup. Make with black barley.

Can raisins be substituted for prunes?

If you don’t have barley sub in a mini pasta or mini potatoes.. it’s just to be more hearty. This is Jewish penicillin at its finest

This recipe has over 1000mg sodium per serving. Has anyone made a reduced salt version, and is it ok?

I made this according to the recipe and probably won’t make it again. The chicken thighs make a very greasy soup, and while you would think all that fat would make it flavorful, it was in fact a very bland soup. The leeks and prunes really provide the only flavor in it. I just don’t think this was worth the time spent, or the bad gas that I had for days afterwards due to the chicken fat.

Great recipe- love them leeks! Discard the chicken skin??? No way- it's a gift to the cook!

I made this as written with brown rice. It is a new favorite and will be in our rotation going forward.

I love this recipe—I’ve made a few times and it’s always excellent. Do cook the barley separately.

I just made this last week to get over a cold. The soup is delicious, in spite of the fact that I forgot the head of garlic so had to add garlic powder after. Next time I'll streamline the ingredient prep: set out everything 'mise en place', cut off leek greens and soak in kettle of water to remove dirt, add boiling water for faster soup boil, use slotted spoon to remove broth vegetables. Double the prunes. We do low salt; I added a little cayenne instead. Wonderful!

This soup is killer. Prune flavor wears off in a couple of days, but first night’s as good as if not better than most. Slice those carrots thick, and use barley.