I love soup. I don’t drink enough water and I’m always trying to eat my daily ration of vegetables. The types of soups I’m going to talk about are one way of doing both. Also when it’s cold, soup warms you up.
I was visiting friends in Sonoma when one night when we were hungry and had no plans I rummaged in their fridge and made minestrone. Since then, my hostess made the soup a couple times and was not satisfied that it was like mine. This is my attempt to talk her through my process.
I should start by saying that I’m a chaotic cook. You will hear me say this more than once. I don’t strive for perfection and I have a congenital difficulty following recipes, even my own. Perhaps it’s because when I cook it’s more about a meandering road to an approximate destination with no reservations, instead of a straight road to a luxury suite paid in advance for points. This does not mean I don’t have a flavor profile in mind. We’re talking Italian soups now. I know what I like (lightness and freshness) and what I don’t like (tomato sauce laden soups that use a lot of dried herbs that blot out all the flavors of the vegetables). My versions of Italian vegetable soups are often more minestra (soup) than minestrone (big soup). You can always add more but having the discipline to add less teaches you structure. Again these are not tomato soups. If using tomato I only add enough sauce or paste to barely tint the soup and add a touch of acidity and tomato flavor.
Last week I made soup three times. They all develop out of what is in the fridge. Plus good extra virgin olive oil and garlic. Those are not negotiable. The oil is a flavor ingredient in soups not just a medium for sautéing the veg, so it’s especially important to use the best extra virgin oil you can afford. Yes, I always use extra virgin. The garlic adds flavor (duh) and a roundness to the soups which are all made with water not broth. Water you say? Yes, water. Angeli was open for 27 years. Everyday we made soup and we never used broth in all those years. The vegetables create the broth as they cook and the result is lighter than if you used a broth and unintentionally vegan. I admit to adding a piece of parmesan rind if I have them and I remember. I keep them in the freezer for this use. Do I ever use broths? Yes, if I’m making Chicken Soup or Beef Borscht or Egg-Lemon Soup. Yes, if I’m making pastina. Can you use a vegetable or chicken broth. Of course! But try it without just to taste the difference.
Evan’s Basic Minestrone
I nearly always start with chopped onion, celery and carrot. ½ a large onion, 1 to 2 celery stalks depending on how much of that green salt flavor I want, and 2 carrots. I love carrots. I throw that in the pot with enough oil to completely film the pan add salt and allow the veg to soften a bit as the salt aids in releasing the juices. Then I add the rest. This time it was half a large cauliflower, core removed and sliced, florets separated into smallish pieces and a small yellow potato unpeeled cut up. How big? If you make a small dice the potatoes will break down and add thicken the broth. If you leave them chunky they will be great to nibble on. I usually split the difference.
I then add a bit more salt and freshly ground black pepper and cover with water by a maximum of 2-3 inches depending on if I’m in the mood for lots of broth or a slightly more stew-like soup. Always add an additional tablespoon or two of extra virgin olive oil at this point. It will add flavor and enhance texture. If I have parsley in the house I’ll chop a bit up, not too fine and add it to the pot. After the cauliflower was nearly tender I added a can of white beans, about a quarter cup of tomato sauce I had open in the fridge (you can add a tablespoon of tomato paste dissolved in half a cup of water) and adjusted for salt. As the vegetables cook in the water they give up their flavor and nutrients to the broth. That’s why I don’t drown them in water. If the water level falls as evaporation occurs during cooking and the pot threatens to be full of a vegetable stew instead of a soup I will add a little more water, but again no more than just a couple of inches above the line of the vegetables. This is the soup I make most often. Here is a recipe-ish.
Italian Broccoli Soup with Pastina
The next soup I made was broccoli with pastina. I started just like I do for making broccoli pasta. I remove the broccoli stem, peel it and cut it in half then crosswise into slices. I roughly chop the broccoli crown up. There is no need to separate it into florets because the object here is for the broccoli to completely fall apart. I start the pot off with a healthy glug of olive oil in the pan with three or four garlic cloves cut into slices and a whole dried red chile. I’ve been using the Diaspora Guntur Sannam chiles because I like their flavor and mild heat. They happen to be on sale now because they’re discontinuing the whole chiles in favor of powdered. If you only have chile flakes then wait until the garlic is golden before you add them so the flakes don’t burn. I then turn off the heat so the garlic doesn’t burn while I add the broccoli. Add the broccoli and water so the broccoli is covered by 2-3 inches. Add salt. Cover and bring to a boil. Taste for salt and adjust and add a tablespoon or two more olive oil and a couple more peeled garlic cloves if you like. Turn the heat down to a simmer and let cook covered until the broccoli and garlic are so soft you can mush it up with the back of a spoon. When the broccoli is cooked add 1/2-3/4 cup of orzo. Stir occasionally as it cooks until done. Add a bit of water if necessary. Serve with grated Parmigiano Reggiano or pecorino. Of course I have no photos of this soup, but I found an image and recipe remarkably similar to mine that you can see here.
Bean soup is the best. Have you tried adding Morocco preserved lemon to a bean soup? I recommend it! (My go to food!!)
I’m a chaotic cook too and never follow a recipe when it comes to soup, though it always starts with onion, celery and carrots also. Soup is a constant on our menu, but especially welcome when the wind and rain are howling at the door. My soups often include legumes and grains, sometimes together. I particularly love using dried beans, though you have to plan for that, but the liquid they make is gold. Thanks for so many good ideas!