Traditional And Regional Soups: How To Thicken A Soup

Soups are a great way to warm up and fill up on a cold day or when you need your spirits lifted, but those canned varieties on the supermarket shelf can be full of added salt and preservatives that most people could do without. Making soup at home in your online short course is simple and rewarding, not to mention you can create flavor combinations that you don’t find in a can, like curry pumpkin soup or green chile pork stew. But if you are not looking to make a clear, broth-based soup like minestrone or chicken noodle, you may want a fuller body than how your soup turned out. In that case, you can easily thicken a soup or make it creamier by incorporating a few additions.

To make a soup creamier you can puree a few cups of your soup to add a little more texture without adding calories or compromising the flavor. If that still isn’t quite enough, you can always puree some cooked rice to add in as well. If it is a pureed soup, this method obviously won’t work so you will need turn to another helper like a burre manie. This butter and flour mixture is similar to a roux and can be whisked into the soup until it completely dissolves. Starches will thicken soup, but cornstarch can compromise the flavor of the soup so it is best to use this method with full-flavored meat soups where the flavor won’t be easily masked. While adding in thickening ingredients, be sure to add the mixture into the soup slowly while combining the two to get an even texture.

Adding stale bread is another way to give soup a little extra body – and you won’t have to waste that loaf you didn’t finish from two nights ago. You can puree the bread into a cup or two of the soup, then add the combination back into the soup. If the flavor combination matches, you can even use ground nuts. While there are many ways to make your soup a little sturdier, there is no shame in preferring a brothy soup. If the flavor is there, you may not want to mess with it unless the texture throws the dish completely off.

If you like this post, please be sure to check out the following!

How To Make Minestrone Soup
How To Make Vegetable Soup
Free Cooking Course – World Flavors: Salt, Spices, & Herbs