Advise with making soup

KelCanDoThis

Advice sorry!!

Hi all. Believe it or not I've never made soup. I've got lots of chunky veg. Whats the best/easiest way to make thick soup?? 

Kelly

helenoftroy1

boil it, blend it, stick in a stock cube and away you go!

I just made lentil soup and I literally poured in a load of water, and lentils, boiled down so it was mush and then added a stock cube and put some chorizo in. I blended it, tasted it and ate it.

ThePunkHippie

boil it, blend it, stick in a stock cube and away you go!

I just made lentil soup and I literally poured in a load of water, and lentils, boiled down so it was mush and then added a stock cube and put some chorizo in. I blended it, tasted it and ate it.

Suggestion - roast vegetables instead of boiling. The depth of flavour will be worth the extra time

ThePunkHippie

Learn to make broth from scratch - bouillon cubes are garbage & full of things like MSG (unless you buy the expensive ones)

& broth is so easy to make - I have a bag in the freezer that I throw veggie peelings/ends - good veggies to use are celery, carrots, onions (or anything in the onion family, like shallots or leeks), & tomatoes
Bad veggies to use are cabbage (or anything in the cabbage family, like cauliflower) because it's an overpowering flavour, & potato because it'll make your broth starchy
Also keep any bones & fat from meat that isn't covered in a sauce

Throw it all in a big pot, cover it with water, & cook until it's reduced by at least half. Voila, you now have homemade broth

celticmuse

Learn to make broth from scratch - bouillon cubes are garbage & full of things like MSG (unless you buy the expensive ones)

& broth is so easy to make - I have a bag in the freezer that I throw veggie peelings/ends - good veggies to use are celery, carrots, onions (or anything in the onion family, like shallots or leeks), & tomatoes
Bad veggies to use are cabbage (or anything in the cabbage family, like cauliflower) because it's an overpowering flavour, & potato because it'll make your broth starchy
Also keep any bones & fat from meat that isn't covered in a sauce

Throw it all in a big pot, cover it with water, & cook until it's reduced by at least half. Voila, you now have homemade broth

^^^^ This. The key to great soup is homemade stock. I buy a rotisserie chicken at the supermarket, use most of the chicken for salads, then use the carcass to make soup and put the rest of the chicken in the soup. Very economical and healthy.

peace_pigeon

Ohhhhhh, soup is awesome!! Love the suggestions of roasting the veggies (or at least brown them a bit in the pan before adding liquids) and making your own stock. Soup is a great way to get extra veggies! I made a yummy one last week with celery root, carrots, onion, garlic- pureed it with a bit of unsweetend almond milk and stock and it was delish- creamy and filling but only about 50 cals a serving. Another favorite is curried coconut pumpkin soup. It is a bit more calorie dense but it tastes amazing- coconut milk (you can use light), stock, pureed pumpkin, a couple of shallots, curry powder, and top it with a little plain greek yogurt and roasted pumpkin seeds... OK, gotta go cook now...

RAF_Guy

This is my current fav soup

Apple, cider and onion soup

Ingredients

75g/2½oz low fat margerine

1kg/2¼lb onions, sliced

2 large leeks, washed and sliced

2 eating apples, peeled, core removed, sliced

2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped

150ml/5fl oz cider

1 litre/1¾ pint hot vegetable stock

3 bay leaves

1 sprig thyme

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation method
1. Melt the margerine in a large, heavy based casserole over a medium heat. When the butter is foaming, add the onions, leeks and apples and fry for 10-15 minutes, stirring regularly, until they have softened.

2. Add the potatoes and cider, and bring the mixture to the boil. Continue to cook for 2-3 minutes, until the volume of liquid has reduced slightly.

3. Add the stock, bay leaves and thyme and season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the casserole with a lid and cook for 25-30 minutes, or until all of the vegetables are cooked through. Remove the thyme and bay leaf with a slotted spoon and discard.

4. Blend half of the soup in a food processor until smooth. Return the blended soup to the chunky soup mixture and stir well over a gentle heat until heated through. If you want a slightly thinner soup, add a bit more hot vegetable stock until the soup has the desired consistency.