Easy Vegetable Soup

December 16, 2008

This is a simple, delicious vegetable soup recipe that I made a couple weeks ago.  As a meal by itself it probably serves four to six.

You need a couple tablespoons of oil, an onion, two celery ribs, two carrots, two cloves of garlic, five cups of chicken stock/broth or vegetable broth, two medium russet potatoes (I used two yellow waxy potatoes and it was fine), one 14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes, a cup of frozen corn, salt, and pepper. A note: the recipe calls for frozen peas, but corn was substituted with no problem, and I ended up adding some shredded chicken at the very end.

Begin by preparing your mise en place: the onion and garlic should be minced, the celery and carrot (peeled first)  diced, the potatoes scrubbed, rinsed, and chopped medium, the tomatoes drained, and the corn thawed.

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-low heat.  Add your onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and 3/4 teaspoon of salt.  Stir it together and cover the pot with a lid.  Let this mixture cook for a good 20 minutes, stirring every five, until the veggies are soft.

Next, add the broth, potatoes, and tomatoes.  You want to cook these at a simmer until the potatoes are cooked through.  The recipe recommends 15 minutes, but mine took slightly longer.  Also, you may need to raise the heat to get a good simmer going.

When your potatoes are cooked through, turn off the heat, stir in the corn, season with salt and pepper, and serve.  I garnished mine with some Parmesan, which was excellent.

Tips

• I found that waxy potatoes worked well and help their shape throughout the cooking.
• I think my homemade chicken stock helped the soup, as pepper is the only herb or spice added.
• It is a pretty hearty soup and can easily be eaten as a meal.

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 onion, minced
• 2 celery ribs, chopped fine
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped fine
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3/4 tsp. salt + more to taste
• 5 cups chicken stock/broth or vegetable broth
• 2 medium potatoes, chopped medium
• 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
• Pepper to taste

Recipe:

1. Heat the oil in a large pot of medium-low heat.  Add the onion, celery, carrot, garlic, and 3/4 tsp. of salt.  Stir and cover.  Let it cook until the vegetables are soft, about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add the stock/broth, tomatoes, and potatoes.  Raise the heat to medium or so and cook at a simmer until the potatoes are soft (15-20 minutes probably).
3. Turn off the heat, stir in the corn, season with salt and pepper to taste, and garnish with Parmesan or parsley.  Serve and enjoy.

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