Let me tell you the story of my relationship with TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA. It’s a whale of a tale, I tell you, lads (kudos to anyone who gets that movie reference 😉).
When I was in my early twenties, I bought a copy of TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES because I’d never read a Jules Verne book, and his most famous work seemed like a good place to start.
Reader, I hated it. It was dry, boring, and dragged during what should have been the most exciting scenes. Disappointed, I DNFed it. Several years later, I mentioned my experience to a friend, who pointed out that the English translation could have been the problem, since Verne wrote in French. I did a quick google and couldn’t believe what I learned.
Some of you may already know this, but for those who don’t: the early English translations of Verne’s books are notorious for being utterly horrendous. Whole pages were dropped, paragraphs of description were added, and some parts were just plain mistranslated. The first translation of TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES—by Lewis Page Mercier—is largely agreed to be the worst. I checked my copy of the book, and sure enough, Mercier was the translator. I learned that one of the best translators of TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES is considered to be F.P. Walter. So I tracked down a copy of his translation and gave the book another try.
It was AMAZING. It was exciting, the characters were memorable, and the level of detail Verne put into the technology was incredible. For the first time, I understood why so many people love this book. Of course, it didn’t escape my notice that the book also mentions LOTS of food, and I was intrigued by Captain Nemo’s commitment to only get his food from the sea. Which leads us to today’s delicious soup recipe.
Turtle soup is enjoyed by Professor Aronnax in TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES during his time aboard the Nautilus. We’re making mock turtle soup today since cooking turtle is largely illegal the U.S., but interestingly enough, the mock version has always been more common in the States. I won’t go into the full history of turtle soup here, but I WILL say this soup has a rich, fascinating history that involves Alexander Hamilton, Campbell’s Soup, and even ALICE IN WONDERLAND! If you want to learn more, I highly recommend this Atlas Obscura article by Natasha Frost.
Turtle soup (mock or otherwise) is something I’d never made before, so I used a recipe from Taste of the South Magazine with a few minor changes to suit what I had on hand. I kept tasting it throughout the cooking process and was intrigued by how the flavors evolved. The final soup is unlike anything I’ve ever tasted, though there’s a definite Louisiana quality to it. It’s tomato-y but doesn’t taste like a tomato based soup. The lemon adds some zing, yet the soup somehow reminds me of French onion soup, I think because of the sherry. The Worcestershire and beef ground the soup, giving the sherry and lemon a rich base through which to disperse. I can see why Professor Aronnax loved it!
I gotta tell you, the most exciting thing about this whole experience was discovering a new author to love. I can’t wait to read more Jules Verne. I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship. 😉
A
Mock Turtle Soup
“As for me, I repaired to my stateroom. There I found dinner ready for me. It consisted of turtle soup made from the daintiest hawksbill, a red mullet with white, slightly flaky flesh . . . plus loin of imperial angelfish, whose flavor struck me as even better than salmon. I spent the evening in reading, writing, and thinking. Then drowsiness overtook me, I stretched out on my eelgrass mattress, and I fell into a deep slumber, while the Nautilus glided through the swiftly flowing Black Current.”
— Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
- 3/4 cup butter
- 1 1/2 cups chopped celery
- 1 cup diced onion
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup cold water
- 1/2 cup flour
- 4 cups beef broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 cup tomato paste
- 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 tsp fresh thyme
- 1 tsp hot sauce, optional
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 cup cooking sherry
- chopped hardboiled eggs, sliced lemons, and parsley (for garnish)
Makes 6-8 servings
INSTRUCTIONS:
- In a large skillet, cook and drain the ground beef. Set aside.
- Melt butter on medium-high heat in a large Dutch oven. Add the celery, onion, garlic, and ground beef. Cook for 5 minutes or until onions are translucent, stirring regularly. Whisk the flour into the cold water and stir it into the pot. Add the beef broth, bay leaves, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour, stirring regularly to prevent it sticking to the bottom.
- Stir in lemon juice and cook 30 minutes more. Stir in the sherry and top with chopped hardboiled eggs, lemon slices, and parsley as desired.
- Serve to your new friends/captives (because when you’re captain of the Nautilus, there isn’t much of a difference!).
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