Onion soup is a signature dish of French cuisine. His recipes there are many, especially popular first courses of this product, with a creamy consistency. Leek soup is especially tender, served not only hot, but also cold. There are vegetarian options for this dish.
Cooking Features
It is a mistake to believe that since onion soups are often found in the menu of French restaurants, it is necessary to have the qualification of a chef to make such a dish. In fact, leek cream soup is very easy to prepare, and even an inexperienced hostess can cook it every day. Knowing a few points will help with this.
- Often, not all leeks are used to make soup, but only the lower (white) part of it. The product itself is not cheap, so you should not throw away the top (green) part left after cooking the soup. A good idea would be to use leftovers for cooking salad.
- Potatoes give the creamy consistency of the soup, but it can also be thickened with flour, starch. The use of cheese also makes the consistency of the dish a little more dense.
- If the soup seemed too thick to you, you can dilute it by adding milk, cream or broth. After that, the dish must be boiled again.
- After grinding the products, the soup must be boiled or at least brought to a boil - this is necessary for its disinfection. Otherwise the dish will spoil quickly.
- The soup is more tasty if you pre-fry the onions. More often for this purpose use butter, but it is allowed to replace it with vegetable.
- Cream, cheese and butter give the dish a creamy touch, making it taste softer and more refined.
- If you don't have a blender, you can grind the vegetables through a sieve. This work is more laborious, but in this case the soup will have a smoother texture.
- When chopping the soup with an immersion blender, take precautions not to burn yourself with flying splashes. At the moment of lowering and taking out the soup, the blender should be turned off. The capacity in which is whipped dish should be deep enough.
Served leek soup with greens or croutons, it is permissible to combine both of these options. If you fill the soup with sour cream, the taste of it will not spoil.
Leek Soup with Lard
Composition:
- leek - 100 g;
- onions - 100 g;
- bacon or bacon - 60 g;
- olive oil - 10 ml;
- water - 0, 25 l;
- cream - 0, 2 l;
- hard cheese - 50 g;
- wheat bread - 100 g;
- salt, pepper - to taste.
Method of preparation:
- Leek wash, cut into thin circles. It is desirable to use the light part of it.
- Peel and cut the onion into thin half-rings, mix it with leeks.
- Smear the bottom of the pan with vegetable oil.
- Put chopped bacon or bacon into it, melt it.
- Add the onion, fry it over low heat until half cooked.
- Fill with water and simmer until the onions are completely soft.
- Grind onion mass to a state of mashed potatoes using a blender or rub through a sieve.
- Dilute cream by adding pepper and salt.
- Bring to a boil.
- Pour in finely grated cheese. Boil until cheese is dissolved.
- Remove the pan from the heat.
- Cut the bread into small cubes and dry in the oven.
When serving soup to the table, place croutons on the plates. You should not do this in advance, as bread is quickly soaked. Homemade croutons can be replaced with wheat crackers purchased in the store. Choose better with original or cheese flavor. Also croutons with green onion flavor will do.
Cold leek soup (vishisuaz)
Composition:
- leek (only the white part) - 0, 2 kg;
- potatoes - 0, 4 kg;
- chicken or vegetable broth - 0, 7 l;
- drinking cream or full-fat milk - 0, 25 l;
- whipped cream - to taste;
- butter - 40 g;
- nutmeg - a pinch;
- salt, pepper - to taste.
Method of preparation:
- Peel the potatoes, cut into small cubes.
- Wash, dry with a napkin, cut leek into rings.
- At the bottom of the pan, in which the soup will boil, melt the butter.
- Put onions. Cook over low heat until soft.
- Add the potatoes, fry them with the onions for 2-3 minutes.
- Pour broth. Bring to a boil and simmer until soft.
- Grind the contents of the pan using an immersion blender.
- If necessary, add salt, pepper, add nutmeg and low-fat cream. Stir.
- Bring the soup to a boil over low heat, stirring it at the same time so that it does not stick.
- When the soup has cooled to room temperature, put it in the fridge.
Soup made according to this recipe is served cold. Before serving, it is decorated with whipped cream. The recipe was invented by a French chef who worked in a restaurant in New York. Dish he gave the name in honor of the famous resort. Later it became popular all over the world, including the author’s homeland.
Vegetable leek cream soup
Composition:
- leek - 0, 2 kg;
- potatoes - 0.5 kg;
- carrots - 0, 2 kg;
- onions - 100 g;
- celery stalks - 100 g;
- cream or milk - 0, 2 l;
- water - 1, 5 l;
- garlic - 2 cloves;
- olive oil - 60 ml;
- hard cheese - 30 g;
- wheat croutons or crackers - to taste;
- salt, pepper - to taste.
Method of preparation:
- Wash, chop celery stalks.
- Peel the carrots. Cut one carrot into small cubes, leave the other whole.
- Clean onions from the husk, cut into two parts.
- Kiss the carrots, celery pieces and half of the bulbs into a pan, put on the fire. Cook for 20-30 minutes after boiling. Strain. You will get fragrant vegetable broth.
- Put the sliced carrot into it.
- Peel the potatoes, cut them into small cubes, put them in broth.
- Bring it to a boil.
- Heat vegetable oil in a pan.
- Cut leek into circles, fry until soft, put in boiling broth.
- Cook the vegetables until they are completely soft.
- Crush vegetables with a dip blender.
- Add salt, spices and cream to the soup.
- Bring to a boil and remove the pan from the heat.
When serving soup to the table, sprinkle it with finely grated cheese, serve the wheat croutons separately, so that everyone can add them to their taste.
Leek Cream Soup with Mushrooms
Composition:
- leek - 0, 2 kg;
- potatoes - 0, 2 kg;
- fresh champignons - 0, 2 kg;
- processed cheese (optional) - 70 g;
- olive oil - 40 ml;
- water - as needed;
- salt, pepper - to taste.
Method of preparation:
- Wash the mushrooms, dry with a napkin, cut into plates.
- Wash, cut the leek into small pieces.
- Peel the potatoes, cut into 1-1, 5 cm cubes.
- If you plan to add cheese to the soup, put it in the freezer for a while - frozen it is easier to grind.
- Pour oil on the bottom of the pan, heat it up.
- Put onion, fry for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the mushrooms. Roast them for 5 minutes.
- Add potatoes. Continue frying for 3-4 minutes.
- Fill it with water, bring it to a boil. Boil for 20 minutes.
- Using an immersion blender, turn the contents of the pan into a homogeneous mass.
- Bring, while stirring, to a boil.
- Grind grated cheese, add to soup.
- Boil until cheese is completely dissolved. If cheese is not used, it’s enough to boil the soup for 2 minutes.
When serving, soup will not prevent generously sprinkle with finely chopped greens.
Leek soup has a delicate texture and a mild flavor. It can be found in the menu of expensive French restaurants, but the technology of cooking is so simple that even an inexperienced cook will cope with the task.
