Chunky, robust winter soups can be meals in themselves, writes Hugo Arnold
I like something extra in my soup. It might be a swirl of pesto, or some toast rubbed with olive oil and garlic. I have, on occasion, added leftovers such as a little shredded duck, or the tail-end of some salsa.
Robust winter soups are a joy. They make an indulgent lunch, or supper, with a little cheese and salad alongside. In a soup I made recently, cabbage, spiked up with chorizo and softened with creamy ratte potatoes, was the main ingredient. Tonight, a butternut squash will be coaxed into something smooth and creamy, with paprika as the base spice and caraway seeds to give it an unusual flavour.
Last week I was in emergency mode, having arrived for the weekend at a house where there was literally no food, and precious little in the local shop. We settled on split red lentils pureed with softened onion and more than a hint of garlic. My wife identified the spiced butter I added as the winning touch; the slick sitting on a soup rich with mustard seeds and cumin, fennel seeds and saffron.
Roots and tubers make a great base. Use parsnip, leek and carrot certainly, but also turnip and Jerusalem artichoke, beetroot and fennel. While all of these ingredients puree successfully, the chunky versions provide more variety. Consider fennel broth with whole fennel topped with parsley and garlic-laced ricotta; or braised turnips enriched with a salsa of roughly chopped parsley, garlic and olive oil infused with Seville orange juice. Last night we dined on a pot of mixed root veg – parsnips, artichokes and carrots – served with sourdough toast spread with tapenade.
While a lot of soups coming off my stove at this time of year focus on vegetables, there is every reason to include meat – a chicken slowly poached will yield the most wonderful broth. Some of the meat can be used for a gratin and mixed with a cheese sauce and broccoli; the rest flaked into a soup beefed up with root vegetables and served with wobbling bowls of aioli. My Irish stew comes two ways, one more soupy than the other. The chunky Italian soup ribollita, full of beans and greens, is a favourite rib-sticking supper.
Serving bowls for soup should be wide brimmed and flat. And as for spoons, one of the best pieces of advice I was given when I got married was not to bother with soup spoons. A tablespoon has far greater slurp value.