The Only Veggie Soup Recipe You Will Ever Need

My zucchini patch is still going gangbusters. We’ve done Zuni pickles, roasted, raw in salads, the works.⁣
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Zucchs aside, this is a damn good (and very simple) recipe you can adapt to other veg you might have lying around. Things like carrots, potatoes, fennel, celeriac and pumpkin are PERFECT for it, so feel free to sub out the zucchini for any combo of these, and take veggie soup from alright, to ALRIGHT!!
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Ingredients⁣⁣
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3 tablespoons vegetable oil ⁣⁣
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3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped⁣⁣
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2 brown onions, peeled and coarsely chopped⁣⁣
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1 teaspoon sea salt ⁣⁣
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1 teaspoon ground white pepper ⁣⁣
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2 tablespoons white miso paste⁣⁣
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4 large zucchini, cut into chunks⁣⁣
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Enough rich chicken or vegetable stock to cover solids (about 1.5L)⁣⁣
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50g butter (substitute with olive oil to make this vegan)⁣⁣
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2 tablespoons good quality EVO (I love @altoolives)⁣⁣
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Method⁣⁣
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In a large saucepan, heat the 3 tablespoons of oil over low heat. Add the garlic, onion, salt, pepper, and, stir to combine and bring the heat up to medium. Sauté until the onions are translucent, but haven't taken on colour. Add the zucchini and cook for a further 5 minutes. ⁣⁣
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Add in the miso paste and then pour in enough stock to cover the vegetables. Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook until the vegetables collapse under the pressure of a spoon. ⁣⁣
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Carefully remove the pot from the stove, add the butter and then and using a stick blender, blitz until smooth. ⁣⁣
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Taste to season and serve (this one’s with a drizzle of green herb oil, yoghurt, dried zucchini flowers and dehydrated olive).

Carrot and Miso Soup

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A super easy, turbo-charged veggie soup to add to your repertoire. Simply switch out the chicken stock for vegetable stock and the butter for olive oil for a hearty, healthy, vegan staple.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons vegetable oil 

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

2 brown onions, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 teaspoon sea salt 

1 teaspoon ground white pepper 

2 tablespoons white miso paste

10 carrots, peeled, topped, tailed and cut into chunks

Enough rich chicken or vegetable stock to cover solids (about 1.5L)

50g butter (substitute with olive oil to make this vegan)

2 tablespoons good quality EVO (I love Alto Olives)

Method

In a large saucepan, heat the 3 tablespoons of oil over low heat. Add the garlic, onion, salt, pepper, and, stir to combine and bring the heat up to medium. Sauté until the onions are translucent, but haven't taken on colour. Add the carrots and cook for a further 5 minutes. Add in the miso paste and then pour in enough stock to cover the vegetables. Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook until the vegetables collapse under the pressure of a spoon. Carefully remove the pot from the stove, add the butter and then and using a stick blender, blitz until smooth. Taste to season and serve with a drizzle of green herb oil, yoghurt and fried garlic crumbs.

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Ù Tridd: The Pasta From Puglia You Need To Know

I feel like...

• #BringBackTheClassics 2
• Apple crumble 1
• As Seen On TV 5
• Asian Food 3
• Aussie Classics 2
• Avocado 1
• Bacon 2
• Baking 8
• Beans 1
• Beef 2
• Beef Rendang 2
• Berries 1
• Butterbeans 1
• Cabbage 1
• Cake 6
• Carrot 2
• Cashew 1
• Caviar 1
• Chai 1
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• Chicken 2
• Chickpea 1
• Chilli 2
• Chilli Oil 2
• Chinese 11
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• Egg 1
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My mother Vincenza is a bit of a legend. She cooks food that seems so simple, yet is layered and nuanced and cooked with so much soul. This is a recipe from her mother Rose, it’s called ù tridd. It’s essentially a hand torn southern style pasta, laced with fresh parsley; similar to stracci (which literally translates into ‘rags’ or ‘tatters’).

Of course, you can swap out the water for stock or add garlic and more herbs to add another dimension of flavour, but then again, why mess with an OG Italian Nonna recipe? The origins of this recipe are from the Tatolli family’s town of Molfetta, which is part of the Puglia region of Southern Italy. As such, this recipe is rooted in humble ingredients; you won’t find rich butter, cream, truffles or other luxury ingredients here. Clean and simple, this is a case study in soul food.

Ingredients

The pasta

3 cups fine semolina

3 cups Tipo 00 pasta flour (plain flour will suffice if needed)

4 eggs

1 handful continental parsley leaves, finely chopped

1 - 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water (as needed)

Extra flour to roll out

The broth

2 veal shins (you can also use lamb shanks or beef ossobuco)

2 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

2 celery stalks, peeled and roughly chopped

1 large brown onion, peeled and quartered

1 few sprigs of fresh parsley

500ml tomato sugo

Salt and pepper to taste

Finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano, to serve

Method

For the pasta, in the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, add the semolina, flour and eggs and turn the mixer on a low setting. When combined, add the parsley and continue to mix until combined. Gradually add water until the dough comes together. Continue mixing until the dough is no longer sticky and has become soft and pliable. Turn the dough out onto a clean, lightly floured surface and roll the dough into a log roughly 50cm long and 20cm wide. Cut sections around 3cm and pass them through a pasta roller several times so that the dough is smooth and uniform in thickness (around setting 3-4). Set aside to dry for at least 2 hours on wooden dowels… a clothes drying rack will also suffice! Once dry, tear the pasta sheets unto small pieces around the size of your pinky thumbprint. The beauty of this dish is that you don’t have to be too careful, just make sure the pieces are roughly the same size. Set aside to continue to dry out until ready to use. This pasta can be completely dried out and stored for later use.

For the broth, bring a heavy based saucepan or pot to a medium high heat and add a good slug of olive oil. When the pan is hot, sear the shanks until lightly browned on all sides. Throw in the carrots, celery and onion and parsley and stir to combine. Cook for about 3-4 minutes until the onion starts to go translucent. Pour in the sugo and then top with enough water to cover the shanks. Bring to the boil, season liberally with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then reduce to a low heat, cover and simmer for 90 minutes. Skim any fat if necessary. Season again to taste at the end. When the shanks are falling apart, strain the liquid from the solids. Reserve the meat, lightly shred, then set aside.

To serve, bring a pot of salted water to the boil. Once boiling, throw in a good handful of the pasta per person and cook for 4-5 minutes or until tender. Strain and refresh in cold water. In a separate pot, bring the deliciously meaty tomato broth to the boil. Add the cooked pasta and the shredded meat. Season to taste, then serve immediately, topped with finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano, or any sharp, hard Italian cheese, some freshly cracked black pepper and chopped parsley, if desired.

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Simple Spiced Carrot & Pumpkin Soup

I feel like...

• #BringBackTheClassics 2
• Apple crumble 1
• As Seen On TV 5
• Asian Food 3
• Aussie Classics 2
• Avocado 1
• Bacon 2
• Baking 8
• Beans 1
• Beef 2
• Beef Rendang 2
• Berries 1
• Butterbeans 1
• Cabbage 1
• Cake 6
• Carrot 2
• Cashew 1
• Caviar 1
• Chai 1
• Cheap 1
• Chez Dre 1
• Chicken 2
• Chickpea 1
• Chilli 2
• Chilli Oil 2
• Chinese 11
• Chocolate 3
• Coconut Crack Bars 1
• Comfort Food 4
• Coriander 1
• Curry 1
• Custard 1
• Dairy Free 1
• Dan Dan Noodles 1
• Dessert 3
• Dim Sum 1
• Dressing 1
• Drinks 1
• Dumplings 1
• Eas 1
• Easy Recipes 4
• Eat Your Weeds 1
• Egg 1
• Eggs 2
• Eggwhite 2
• Everyday Gourmet 1
• Floss 1
• Garlic 1
• Ginger 1
• Gluten Free 2

In life, quick and easy rarely equates to good, but in this case, that rule doesn't apply. As the weather mercifully cools, it's time to add to your soup arsenal...and this warming and aromatic spiced carrot and pumpkin soup is a great one to add to your hit list. 

Ingredients

3 tablespoons vegetable oil 

2 tablespoons coriander seed

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

2 brown onions, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 teaspoon sea salt 

1 teaspoon ground white pepper 

1 tablespoon brown sugar 

1 teaspoon five spice powder

10 carrots, unpeeled, tops removed, cut into chunks

1/2 Jap pumpkin, skin and seeds removed, cut into chunks

Enough rich chicken or vegetable stock to cover solids (about 1.5L)

50g butter 

2 tablespoons good quality EVO (I love Alto Olives)

Method

In a large saucepan, heat the 3 tablespoons of oil over low heat, then add the coriander seeds and toast until aromatic. Add the garlic, onion, salt, pepper, sugar and five spice, stir to combine and bring the heat up to medium. Sauté until the onions are translucent, but haven't taken on colour. Add the carrot and pumpkin, and cook for a further 5 minutes. Pour in enough stock to cover the vegetables and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook until the vegetables collapse under the pressure of a spoon. Carefully remove the pot from the stove and using a stick blender, blitz until smooth. Taste to season and serve with a drizzle of olive oil. 

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Stinging Nettle Soup

Green things are making an appearance in vegetable town...spring has mercifully rolled around and what a glorious thing that is for the litany of new season vegetables to have at your cooking disposal. Over the weekend, a friend dropped off a box of incredible spring vegetables from a Victorian producer that supplies his restaurant, and among the emerald harvest, a huge bunch of stinging nettles. 

I love a produce box challenge, because it really lays out the gauntlet for testing your cooking skills...or failing that, your research ability. Stinging nettles are one of those ingredients that make a miraculous transformation from shitty weed to verdant edible without too much trouble or expense. Have some latex gloves handy to avoid the burn, but here's a classic nettle soup recipe you can test out...whether yours are found at the farmer's market...or your next nature walk (just be sure to wash thoroughly and go slightly off the track if there are dogs around!).

Ingredients

50g butter

1 brown onion, peeled and chopped

1/2 leek, thoroughly washed and chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

4-5 medium potatoes, washed, peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes

1 bunch spinach or kale leaves (optional)

1 bunch stinging nettles, washed and any woody stems removed

2-3 cups chicken or vegetable stock

Salt and pepper

Method

In a large pot on a medium heat, add the butter and once melted, add the onion, leek, carrot and potato. Sauté for 2-3 minutes or until the vegetables have softened but haven't taken on any colour. Add in 1/2 each of the greens and nettle leaves and sauté until slightly wilted. Add stock and season with salt, then simmer for 15-20minutes or until the potato is is cooked through. Add in the remaining greens and nettles (reserving some greens till the end will ensure a more vibrant green soup). Carefully remove the soup from heat and using a stick blender, blitz until smooth. 

Return the soup to the heat and reduce to your desired consistency and season to taste. Serve with a dollop of Greek yoghurt or creme fraiche. 

Pozole Verde

Every now and again, I become obsessed with a certain dish I'm introduced to. Case in point, Melbourne restaurant Mamasita's hugely underrated menu item, pozole. For the uninitiated, it's essentially a spicy Mexican soupy stew, usually made with maize grits (hominy), meat (chicken or pork) and flavoured with jalapeños, garlic, coriander and served, poured over shredded lettuce, avocado and radishes - so it's kind of like a soup and a salad in one bowl.

Mamasita's pozole sits there on the menu, largely overlooked in preference for more sexy and conspicuously Mexican dishes such as their delightful tacos de lengua (ox tongue tacos), but that's our loss. It's rich, soothing, spicy and basically the perfect warming soup for the cooler months, that maintains that bright, spicy, savoury, earthy flavour profile we love about Mexican cuisine. 

Here is an admittedly not-so-authentic (however delicious) version of pozole verde (this dish also comes in a red, or rojo version, aromatic with ancho and arbol chillies). It's at once light, bright and spicy flavours, but also rich and comforting. 

Ingredients

1 organic chicken

1 brown onion, peeled and roughly chopped

3-4 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

2 tablespoons dried oregano

1 lime

2 green capsicums

2 fresh jalapeño chillis, tops trimmed

2 long green chillis, tops trimmed

1 tablespoon of chipotle in adobo (any good Latin or gourmet grocer will stock this)

1 x 400g tin cannelini beans, washed and drained (a substitute for hominy, mainly to thicken)

2 bunches coriander, washed thoroughly

1 tbs pickled jalapeños, drained

200g  tin tomatillos (if you can't get these, just use more cooking liquid from the chicken)

1/2 a ripe avocado, sliced just before serving

1/4 head of iceberg lettuce, shredded

3 red radishes, mandolined into thin slices, set aside in a bowl of water

1-2 tbs Greek yoghurt

A handful good quality tortilla chips (or you can fry corn tortillas in a little oil). I like the ones by La Tortilleria

Sea salt

Black pepper

Olive oil

Method

Wash the chicken inside and out, pat dry and set aside. In a large, heavy based pot on a medium heat, add a tablespoon of olive oil, then the chopped onions and garlic. Cook for 1-2 minutes until the onion begins to turn translucent. Add the coriander seeds, cumin seeds and oregano and continue to cook for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant. Add the chicken and enough water to cover it. Cut the lime in half, squeeze in the juice and throw in the squeezed fruit. Cover with a lid and bring the water to the boil. Remove the lid and reduce to a simmer, skimming any scum from the surface regularly.

Meanwhile, preheat an oven to 180c and line an oven tray with baking paper. Cut the top off each green capsicum and discard, along with the seeds. Place the capsicums cut side down on the tray, along with the green chillis. Feel free to throw in any random green vegetables as well - we added peas and cavolo nero. Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil and salt and the chipotle in adobo and cook for 20-25 minutes or until the vegetables are soft but have still retained their greenness. 

While the vegetables are cooking, place the drained beans onto a baking paper-lined baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and salt, place them in the oven and cook for 20 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Remove the green vegetables from the oven and place them into a blender along with the coriander (reserving a few leaves for garnish), pickled jalapeños and tomatillos. Blitz into a smooth paste, adding a little stock from the cooking chicken to thin out the puree. Season with salt to taste, then set aside to cool. 

Turn the oven up to 200c and once the chicken joints start to feel loose when you tug at them (about 45 minutes), carefully remove the chicken from the pot and place it on a baking paper-lined tray. Season with salt (and a little chipotle in adobo if you like), and roast for 15 minutes or until the skin is golden. Sift out and discard the limes.

Remove the chicken from the oven, allow to cool for a few minutes and then carefully shred the meat. Set aside the bones to make stock (waste, not, want not). Reserve some of the shredded chicken for serving, then add the rest of the chicken meat, skin and cartilage back to the pot with the cooking liquid. Add the roasted cannelini beans, then using a stick blender, carefully blitz the stock, chicken and beans into a smooth puree. Bring to the boil and reduce, if you want a thicker soup consistency. Otherwise, add the green puree to the blended chicken soup and stir well to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

To serve, assemble the reserved shredded chicken, lettuce and sliced avocado in a soup bowl. Pour the hot pozole on top, and garnish with radishes, coriander leaves, a dollop of yoghurt and the tortilla chips. Serve immediately.