Homemade Soup- Do's n Don'ts (1 Viewer)

[Ferox13]

Brocolli and Chees is one of the faves I make.

 

[Wheels]

Any blended soups (lentil, broccoli etc benefit immensely from having a small handful of almond flakes chucked in.

 

[Wobbler]

Lentil soups are good. Read the instructions at the back on any lentil packet.

 

[Mormon Nailer]

The secret to delicious tomato soup is the addition of the smallest amount of finely
grated orange rind, stirred in .

and season with some sugar.

 

[thairock]

and season with some sugar.

yep , or a little honey .

 

[Wobbler]

yep , or a little honey .

And tomatos.

 

[thairock]

...and onion and garlic and basil and a little olive oil and that's all you need .

 

[thairock]

Well , maybe some nice oven warmed crusty bread for dippin' and I recommend slicing a whole onion into thickish rounds and then pop them out into a frying pan with some low heated oil and cook slowly till they are almost burned and crispy ,(seasoned with salt and pepper ) then pop a handful on top of the bowl of soup . Chow down.

 

[shower another shower]

Two day old brothy, chicken soup.
Oinion, celery, carrots.
Loads of broth.
Chix breast.
Salt.

Matzah balls.

Happy Chanukah!

 

[shower another shower]

...

 

[ann post]

Two day old brothy, chicken soup.
Oinion, celery, carrots.
Loads of broth.
Chix breast.
Salt.

Matzah balls.

Happy Chanukah!

big daddy's broth.

 

[Umfufu]

I recently invested in tupperware so I can make a large batch of soup at the weekend & freeze it.
It's very handy to have when you've nothing in the house for lunch.

Also, homemade soda bread is incredibly quick & easy to make & is yum with soup.

 

[sweetoblivion]

A hand blender is a must like wobbler said!
Sweating the veg in a little oil/butter (do the onions first) before you add the stock is also a must. Add some herbs too to really get them all tasty!
The M&S vegetarian bible has a lovely tomato, cabbage (I'd use kale) & bean soup I'm dying to make, no blender needed.

 

[Froog]

how do you "thicken" up a soup?

 

[sweetoblivion]

flour, cornstarch, gram (chickpea) flour (if it's a spicy soup) I'd say...
cream if you want dairy in it
coconut milk's great too

 

[Ferox13]

I made the 'Roasted' version of this - it was very tastey but quite rich:

Butternut Squash Soup.​

Ingredients:

• 2 large butternut squash (about 4 1/2 lbs.) or 4 lbs. peeled and cubed butternut squash
• 2 medium onions
• 3 cloves garlic (optional)
• 3 Tbsp. butter or vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp. salt plus more to taste
• 8 cups chicken or vegetable broth

Preparation:

1. Halve, seed, peel, and cube butternut squash. Set aside.
2. Halve, peel, and chop the onion. Mince garlic, if you like.
3. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat. Add butter or oil and onion. Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp. salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft, about 3 minutes.
4. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
5. Add squash and broth. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook until squash is very tender, about 20 minutes.
6. Transfer small batches to a blender. Hold a kitchen towel over the top (to prevent burns) and whirl until completely and utterly smooth, 2 to 3 minutes per batch.
7. Return soup to pot and add salt to taste.

Makes 4 to 6 servings Perfect Butternut Squash Soup.

Garnishes & Variations
Classic garnishes for Butternut Squash Soup include a dollop of sour cream, plain yogurt, or creme fraiche. A sprinkle of minced cilantro or thyme is also tasty.

• Creamy Add 1/3 to 1/2 cup heavy cream after blending and gently heat until warmed through.
• Spicy Add 1 chopped jalapeno chile and 1/4 tsp. cayenne with the garlic. Stir in up to 1/4 cup brown sugar at the end. If you like, cream is also a nice addition to this version.
• Roasted Roasting concentrates the flavor of the vegetables. You can use this method with any of the other flavor combinations you like. Put halved and seeded squash cut-side-down in a large pan. Arrange halved, peeled onions and garlic around squash. Pour in 1 cup broth and roast in a 375 oven until very tender, about 30 minutes. Let cool slightly. Scoop out squash flesh and put in blender, along with onions and garlic and remaining broth.
• Gingery Add 1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger and 1 tsp. ground ginger along with the garlic. Make it even gingery-er by melting 4 Tbsp. butter in a small frying pan. Cook until it turns light brown and add 1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger. Swirl the ginger butter on top of each serving.
• Warm Spices Add a combination of 1/4 tsp. each ground cloves, cardamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, cinnamon, and/or black pepper along with the garlic.

[FONT=&quot]Many Squash![/FONT][FONT=&quot] Switch out up to 2 lbs. of the butternut squash with sugar pumpkin or acorn squash[/FONT]

 

[Wobbler]

Made this today, subsituting squash for pumpkin. Think it was the nicest soup I've ever made.

Spiced pumpkin soup with bacon
As festive as you can get. A soup that smells and tastes like Christmas.
serves 4, generously
1 medium onion
50g butter
2 plump cloves of garlic
900g pumpkin
1 tbs coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seed
2 small dried chillies
1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
4 rashers smoked bacon
up to 100ml single cream
Peel and roughly chop the onion. Melt the butter in a large, heavy-based saucepan and cook the onion and the garlic, peeled and sliced, until soft and translucent. Meanwhile, peel the pumpkin, remove the stringy bits and seeds and discard them. Chop into rough cubes and add to the onions. Cook until the pumpkin is golden brown at the edges.
Toast the coriander seeds and cumin in a small pan over a low heat until they start to smell warm and nutty - about two minutes. Grind the roasted spices in a coffee mill or using a pestle and mortar, keeping the pan to one side for later. Add the spices and the chillies to the onions and pumpkin. Cook for a minute or so then add the stock. Leave to simmer for 20 minutes or so until the pumpkin is tender.
Fry the bacon in the pan in which you toasted the spices. It should be crisp. Cool a little then cut up with scissors into small pieces. Whizz the soup in a blender or food processor till smooth. Pour in the cream and taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as necessary. Return to the pan, bring almost to the boil and then serve, piping hot, with the bacon bits scattered on top.

Thanks again, Nigel.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2004/dec/05/shopping.foodanddrink

 

[jonah]

big daddy's broth.

I won't lie, I laughed.

 

[Wobbler]

Made it two Nigel Slater pumpkin soups in one week, with this little ride of a recipe.

Dhal and pumpkin soup

You can use any golden-fleshed squash for this soup, though the firmer ones such as butternut will add more body. If you eat the soup the next day, it is best to make a fresh batch of spiced onions and chopped coriander. Makes 4 good sized bowls.

a small onion

2 cloves garlic

225g split red lentils

1 tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp ground chilli

250g pumpkin

a small bunch of coriander

for the onion topping:

2 medium onions

2 tbsp groundnut oil

2 small hot chillies

2 cloves garlic

Peel the onion and roughly chop it. Peel and crush the garlic and put it with the onions into a medium- sized, heavy-based saucepan. Add the lentils and pour in 1.5 litres of water. Bring to the boil then turn the heat down to an enthusiastic simmer. Stir in the turmeric and chilli, season with salt and leave to simmer, covered with a lid, for 20 minutes.

While the soup is cooking, bring a medium-sized pan of water to the boil. Peel the pumpkin, scoop out the seeds and fibre, then cut the flesh into fat chunks. Boil the pumpkin pieces for 10 minutes, until tender enough to take a skewer without much pressure. Drain them and set them aside.

To make the onion topping, peel onions and cut into thin rings. Cook it in the oil in a shallow pan until it starts to colour. Cut the chillies in half, scrape out the seeds and slice the flesh finely. Peel and finely slice the garlic and add it with the chillies to the onion. Cook until the onion is golden brown. Set aside.

Remove the lid from the lentils, turn up the heat and boil hard for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat then add the drained pumpkin. Put the soup, a little at a time, through the blender until smooth, then pour into a bowl and stir in the roughly chopped coriander; check the seasoning. This soup likes a generous amount of salt. Serve in deep bowls with a spoonful of spiced onions on top.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2005/jan/16/foodanddrink.shopping

 

[ernesto]

Do: eat soup

Don't: not eat soup