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Fresh and Simple

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Top tips for quick and easy soups

Prepare the flavour base
Almost all soups, whether Eastern or Western, are started off by frying a few key ingredients
like onions, garlic and spices until they soften. These vegetables are chosen for their
aromatic qualities, and frying them off helps to awaken the flavours which adds a depth and
deliciousness to the overall dish.

Classic soups rooted in 'European' cooking methods almost always start off with frying a
mire poix of onions, carrots and celery. Garlic is also often added, but only towards the end.
This is because if it’s left to cook for too long on a high heat, it can develop an unpleasant
bitter flavour. For Asian-style soups, the flavour base can include curry paste, ginger, garlic
and other aromatic spices.

Choose oil, butter or a little of each
A combination of butter and olive oil works well for frying off the base ingredients as the
butter adds delicious flavour, and the olive oil prevents it from burning. You can also just
use olive oil though, as we’ve done in the video tutorial. Allow the oil to heat up before

adding the base ingredients. This is important as adding raw ingredients to cold oil can
cause the ingredients to absorb the oil rather than cook in it.

Build your soup
Other vegetables are then typically added, and the ingredients are covered with stock,

which helps to ‘deglaze’ or lift any caramelised bits from the base of the pot, adding hugely
to the flavour. It’s important to bring the stock to a simmer and then let it be for a while. The
vegetables need time to cook through and the flavours will strengthen and mingle with

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