Six Soup Making Tips and Tricks

I love making soup. I might even love making soup more than I love eating it. Savory, spicy, sweet and squashy, chunky or creamy, brothy or beany… it’s all so good! Over the years, I’ve heard a few people say that making soup is a lot of work. I wholeheartedly disagree; all you have to do is throw stuff in a pot and let it simmer. It’s also a great way the use up the stuff in your fridge before it ends up as garbage. Here are a few tips that I’ve learned over the years that have helped me further simplify my process:

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

1) Frozen chopped veggies
Sometimes when I buy veggies, I don’t quite finish them before they’ve hit their prime. This mainly happens with celery, but sometimes it happens with onions and carrots, too. When I notice that they’re nearing that point, I like to take a few minutes, chop them up, and stick them in the freezer. These three veggies (celery, onion, and carrots) are almost always in a pot of soup, and I may not have them around when the urge to cook strikes, so this is a great way to save a few cents and some time down the line, as well as to keep food scraps out of the garbage. Or, if you’re feeling so inspired, you can throw them in a crock pot with some salt and make your own broth.

2) Bouillon cubes
Ya know those big boxes of stock that they use on cooking shows? Yeah, you don’t need those. They take up a ton of space in your pantry, use a boatload of packaging, and cost way more than necessary. You can buy bouillon in jars or boxes for a fraction of the price and they serve the same purpose — just add water! Also, bouillon is largely salt and veggies — like the the frozen ones you’ve used to start your soup! So….

3) Just add salt!
If you started your soup with celery, onions, and carrots, you can cut the amount of broth used and just add some salt. This allows you to have more control over the sodium content of your soup and the veggies offer fiber, too!

And while you don’t want to oversalt, don’t avoid using it either. I have so many friends that are afraid of oversalting so they end up with really bland food. In the case of soup, salt’s absolutely necessary, so just keep tasting  and simmering until you’ve reached your desired flavor.

4) Always make extra
Soup is so hearty and nutritious. It’s perfect for a day when you know you’ll have to eat lunch at the office, when you just don’t know what else to make for dinner, or for an impromptu lunch date with a good friend. Besides, while I don’t think that making soup is a lot of work, if you can make some extra to have on hand and easily store it for another day, then why not?

5) Have an immersion blender!
Carrot ginger soup, roasted vegetable soup, creamy potato soup — all these are cooked to smithereens and tossed in a blender to make them smooth and creamy. But putting these ingredients in a blender is messy and, depending on the blender, it may or may not be super-effective. This is where an immersion blender comes in handy. You can blend the soup right in the pot and easily control how creamy your soup gets. Bonus: It’s also a lot easier to clean than a standard blender. I have one like this.

6) Just keep cooking (except for noodles)
Simmering is so important in soup making! You don’t want crunchy carrots or potatoes or undercooked beans, so if you’re making soup, just keep it simmering. Be wary of grains, however, as rice and noodles will get mushy, so make sure you time it right so these items maintain their integrity.

I hope that these tips help you learn to love soup making as much as I do. If they do, I also hope that you have enough freezer space to store it all to get you through the winter! Happy simmering!

— Funky Crunchy Mama