How to make good soup: 10 of our most popular soup recipes ever

Warm, comforting and delicious: soup season is officially here

Ready in under an hour, a pot of soup is always welcome when the weather turns cooler. Photo: Bríd O'Donovan.

This article was originally published on September 15, 2022.

Love your veg soup

recipe by:Erica Drum

This soup uses any leftover vegetables you have and transforms it into a delicious soup

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 45 mins

Total Time

 50 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 1kg mixed vegetables – carrots, courgette, parsnips, potatoes, bruised tomatoes, peppers, leeks, squash, pumpkin, peas

• 1 large white onion

• 4 garlic cloves

• Leftover fried breakfast bits – bacon, sausage or pudding (optional)

• 1l vegetable stock

• Slices stale bread

• Olive oil

• Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Chop up your raw vegetables into even size pieces. Toss with two tablespoons of olive oil, a pinch of salt and pepper. Place on a baking tray and cook for 20 minutes at 180°C.

2. In the meantime, dice your onions. Pour one tablespoon of olive oil in a large saucepot over a medium heat and begin to fry your onions. Leave these to sauté for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Finely chop your garlic and add this to the onions.

3. If you have leftover bacon or breakfast bits, chop them up nice and fine. Add the breakfast bits to the onions and garlic and stir on a low heat for a minute.

4. Place the cooked veg from the oven into your saucepot and pour over the stock. Bring this to the boil and reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes.

5. While this is simmering, cube up your stale bread, drizzle with olive oil season with salt and pepper and toast in the oven for a few minutes on each side.

6. Place the soup mixture in a food processor or blitz with a soup gun. Add more water and seasoning where needed to reach your desired texture and taste. Serve with some homemade croutons and a drizzle of olive oil.
   
   Picture: Yvonne Keane

French onion soup with Gruyére toasts

recipe by:Darina Allen

This delicate and enduring classic soup is bursting with flavour and delicious served with crusty slices of fresh baguette

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 20 mins

Cooking Time

 60 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 20 mins

Course

 Side

Cuisine

 French

Ingredients

• 1.35kg onions

• 50g butter

• 1.7 l stock

• salt

• pepper

• 6 slices of baguette, 1cm thick toasted

• 75g grated Gruyére cheese

Method

1. Peel the onions and slice thinly. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the onion and cook on a low heat for about 40-60 minutes with the lid off, stirring frequently – the onions should be dark and well caramelised but not burnt.

2. Add the stock, season with salt and pepper, bring to the boil and cook for a further 10 minutes. Taste and correct seasoning.

3. Ladle into deep soup bowls, put a piece of toasted baguette covered with grated cheese on top of each one.  Pop under the grill until the cheese melts and turns golden.

4. Serve immediately but beware – it will be very hot.

5. Note: Hold your nerve, the onions must be very well caramelised otherwise the soup will be too weak and sweet.

Creamy tomato soup

recipe by:Darina Allen

Deliciously easy, this soup can be made with good quality tinned tomatoes

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 30 mins

Course

 Side

Ingredients

• For the béchamel sauce:

• 110 g butter

• 110 g flour

• 1 pint milk

• Few slices of carrot

• Few slices of onion

• 3 peppercorns

• Small sprig of thyme

• Small sprig of parsley

• Salt and freshly ground pepper

• 750 ml homemade tomato purée
  or 2 x  tins of tomatoes, liquidized and sieved

• 1 small onion, finely chopped

• 15 g butter

• 250 ml homemade chicken stock or vegetable stock

• 2 tablespoons freshly chopped basil

• Salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar

• 120 ml cream

Method

1. Melt the butter and cook the flour in it for 2 minutes on a low heat, stirring occasionally. Use as required. Roux can be stored in a cool place and used as required or it can be made up on the spot if preferred. It will keep at least a fortnight in a refrigerator. 

2. Put the cold milk into a saucepan with the carrot, onion, peppercorns, thyme and parsley. Bring to the boil, simmer for 4-5 minutes, remove from the heat and leave to infuse for 10 minutes. Strain out the vegetables, bring the milk back to the boil and thicken to a light coating consistency by whisking in 45g of roux. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper, taste and correct seasoning if necessary.

3. Sweat the onion in the butter on a gentle heat until soft but not coloured. Add the tomato purée (or chopped tinned tomatoes plus juice), Béchamel sauce and homemade chicken stock. Add the chopped basil, season with salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar. Bring to the boil and simmer for a few minutes.

4. Liquidize, taste and dilute further if necessary. Bring back to the boil, correct seasoning and serve with the addition of a little cream if necessary. Garnish with a tiny blob of whipped cream and some basil.
   
   Note: 
   Tinned tomatoes need a surprising amount of sugar to counteract the acidity.
   Fresh milk cannot be added to the soup – the acidity in the tomatoes will cause it to curdle
   This soup needs to be tasted carefully as the final result depends on the quality of the homemade purée, stock etc.

Cannellini bean and pasta soup

This classically rich, thick soup is filled with delicious flavour and is the perfect filling starter dish or lunch with crusty Italian bread

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 25 mins

Course

 Starter

Cuisine

 Italian

Ingredients

• 1 large garlic clove 

• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 2 tins cannellini beans, drained

• salt

• freshly ground black pepper

• 3-4 springs flat-leaf Italian parsley

• 1 large beef bouillon cube

• 280g ounces dried egg noodles, such as tagliatelle or pappardelle

Method

1. Peel the garlic and finely chop it. Put it with the olive oil in a four- to six- quart soup pot and place over medium-high heat. After the garlic begins to sizzle, add the cannellini beans and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about five minutes.

2. While the beans are cooking, finely chop enough parsley to measure one tablespoon. After the beans have cooked for five minutes, add two cups of water and the bouillon cube and cover the pot.

3. Once the soup has come to a boil, break the egg noodles into approximately one-inch pieces and add them to the soup. Lower the heat to medium, add the parsley, and cook, covered, until the pasta is al dente. Serve hot.
   This recipe is from Giuliano Hazan’s Thirty Minute Pasta, published by Stewart, Tabori & Chang

Minestrone soup

Nothing hits the spot quite like a hearty bowl of thick, chunky vegetable soup

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 30 mins

Total Time

 40 mins

Course

 Starter

Cuisine

 Italian

Ingredients

• olive oil

• 100g bacon, chopped (optional)

• 2 onions, sliced

• 3 garlic cloves, crushed

• 2 potatoes, cubed

• ½ cauliflower in florets

• ¼ drumhead or hard cabbage, sliced

• 2 tbsp tomato purée

• 2 courgettes, sliced into sticks

• 2 carrots, sliced

• 1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped

• 2 tins of chopped tomatoes

• 3 celery sticks, peeled to remove stringy bits and cut into batons

• 400g tin white beans (cannellini)

• basil, to garnish

• Parmesan, to garnish

• 2l chicken or vegetable stock

Method

1. Put the oil in a deep saucepan and warm up over a moderate heat.

2. Cook bacon, if using, then add onions and garlic until softened.

3. Next add the cabbage, cauliflower, celery, carrots and potatoes. Cook for 5 minutes, add the tomato purèe and cook for 2-3 minutes.

4. Now add the tomatoes, the beans and stock. Simmer for about 20-25 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

5. Add the peas, green beans and cooked pasta. Warm them through. Put a portion into a deep bowl and sprinkle with chopped basil. Serve with a side of parmesan.
   This recipe is from Nick Price, author of The Accidental Chef, published by Booklink
   

Spinach and rosemary soup

recipe by:Darina Allen

For a simple spinach soup, rosemary and a little freshly grated nutmeg add a depth of flavour with heart shaped croutons

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 25 mins

Course

 Starter

Ingredients

• 50g butter

• 110g onion, chopped

• 150g potatoes, chopped

• 225-350g spinach, destalked and chopped

• 600ml homemade chicken stock, vegetable stock or water

• 425-600ml creamy milk (¼ cream and ¾ milk)

• salt

• freshly ground pepper

• 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped

• For the garnish:

• 2 tbsp whipped cream (optional)

• sprig of rosemary or rosemary flowers

• For the heart shaped croutons:

• 1 slice of slightly stale pan bread, 5mm thick

• sunflower or olive oil

Method

1. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. When it foams add the onions and potatoes and turn them until well coated. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper. Cover and sweat on a gentle heat for 10 minutes. Add the boiling stock and milk, bring back to the boil and simmer until the potatoes and onions are fully cooked.

2. Add the spinach and boil with the lid off for about 3-5 minutes, until the spinach is tender. Do not overcook or the soup will lose its fresh green colour. Add the chopped rosemary. Liquidise and taste.

3. Serve in warm bowls garnished with a blob of whipped cream and a sprig of rosemary. If you have a pretty rosemary bush in bloom, sprinkle a few flowers over the top for extra pizzazz or use your heart shaped croutons.

4. Make the croutons with the help of a heart-shaped pastry cutter, stamp out your shapes neatly. Heat the sunflower or olive oil in a frying pan, it should be at least 2cm (¾ inch) deep and quite hot. Add the croutons to the hot oil. They will colour almost immediately, so turn quickly to achieve a golden colour on both sides. Immediately remove from the pan, drain on kitchen paper and keep warm. Allow the oil to cool, strain and save for another use later.
   Note: Croutons may be made several hours ahead or even a day. The oil may be flavoured with sprigs of rosemary, thyme or onion.

Rory O'Connell's Moroccan harira soup

recipe by:Darina Allen

In Marrakesh steaming bowls of Haria are ladled into large bowls every evening in Djemaa el-Fna, a soup that is bursting with chickpeas and spice

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 20 mins

Cooking Time

 2 hours 0 mins

Total Time

 2 hours 20 mins

Course

 Starter

Ingredients

• 110g dried chickpeas, soaked overnight and drained

• 110g Puy lentils

• 450g leg or shoulder of lamb, diced into 7mm cubes

• 175g onion, chopped

• 1 tsp turmeric

• ½ tsp ground cinnamon

• ¼ tsp each ground ginger, saffron strands and paprika

• salt 

• pepper

• 50g butter

• 110g long grain rice

• 4 large ripe tomatoes, skinned, seeded and chopped

• 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

• 4 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley

• lemon quarters, to serve

Method

1. Tip the chickpeas and lentils into a large saucepan. Add the lamb, onion, turmeric, cinnamon, ginger, saffron strands and paprika, then pour in 1.5 litres water. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.

2. Bring to the boil, skimming all the froth from the surface as the water begins to bubble, then stir in half the butter. Turn down the heat and simmer the soup, covered, for 1 ½-2 hours until the chickpeas are tender, adding a little more water from time to time as necessary – it can take up to 900ml more water or stock, it should be soupy in texture.

3. Towards the end of the cooking time, prepare the rice. Bring 850ml (scant 1 1/2 pints) water to the boil in a saucepan, sprinkle in the rice, the rest of the butter and salt to taste. Cook until the rice is tender. Drain, reserving 3 tablespoons of the liquid.

4. To finish, cook the chopped tomato in the reserved rice cooking water, seasoning it with salt, pepper and sugar. It should take about 5 minutes or until the tomato is “melted”. Add this and the drained rice to the pot and simmer for a further 5 minutes to allow the flavours to mix.

5. Correct seasoning with salt and pepper and perhaps a pinch of salt. Add the chopped herbs, stir once or twice and serve accompanied by lemon quarters.

Carrot and cheddar soup

recipe by:Currabinny Cooks

The particular salty, piquant flavour you get from cheddar enhances the natural earthy sweetness of carrots - enjoy this punchy soup with crusty bread

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 30 mins

Course

 Starter

Ingredients

• 2 medium onions, finely diced

• 2 large carrots, peeled and finely diced 

• 1 stick of celery, finely diced 

• 50g butter 

• 400ml milk 

• 40g flour 

• 600ml veg stock 

• 1 tsp mustard 

• 400g strong mature cheddar, grated 

• a good handful of parsley, chopped 

• sea salt

• black pepper 

• a little olive oil 

• a little cream or crème fraiche to serve 

Method

1. In a large saucepan over a medium high heat, melt the butter along with a little olive oil and add the diced onion, cooking till soft. Add the carrot and celery to the pan and cook for a further 10 minutes.

2. Stir the flour into the buttery vegetables.

3. Warm the milk and add to the pan, stirring well to form a thick sauce. Pour in the vegetable stock and bring the whole soup to a boil before lowering the heat and leaving the mixture to simmer for a couple of minutes. Stir in the mixture and check the seasoning, adding sea salt and black pepper if needed. Blitz well with a hand blitzer until relatively smooth and velvety.

4. Stir in the cheddar to the simmering soup. Be extremely mindful not to let the soup get close to boiling or bubbling. Take off the heat, add the parsley and a little cream or dollop of crème fraîche.

5. Serve with lots of buttered white crusty bread.

Sweet potato, coconut and coriander soup

recipe by:Darina Allen

This silky smooth vegetarian soup is packed with nutrition and a hint of chilli to create the perfect comforting lunch with crusty brown bread

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 15 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 35 mins

Course

 Side

Cuisine

 Thai

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp sunflower oil

• 2 onions, finely diced

• 2 stalks celery, finely diced

• 1 leek, white part only, finely diced

• 3 garlic cloves, finely diced

• 1 level tbsp ginger, finely chopped

• 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

• 600g sweet potato, peeled and diced

• salt

• pepper

• 1l vegetable stock

• 250ml coconut milk

• 1 tbsp coriander, chopped

Method

1. Heat the sunflower oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan.

2. Add the onion, celery, leek, garlic, ginger and chilli. Cook slowly, until soft but not coloured.

3. Add the sweet potato and season. Cook for a further 3 minutes.

4. Add the vegetable stock and cook until the sweet potato is soft, about 15 minutes.

5. Liquidise and add the coconut milk.

6. Reheat, check seasoning and add the chopped coriander before serving.

Vegetable soup

recipe by:Darina Allen

Following the Ballymaloe soup formula (1:1:3:5), this versatile soup is smooth, hearty and bursting with flavour

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 30 mins

Course

 Starter

Ingredients

• 50g butter

• 150g potatoes, peeled and diced

• 110g onions, peeled and diced

• 340g chopped vegetables of your choice, diced

• 1.2l stock or 1l stock and 150ml creamy milk

• seasoning

Method

1. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan.

2. When it foams, add potatoes and onions and turn them until well coated. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper. Cover with a butter wrapper or paper lid and the lid of the saucepan.

3. Sweat on a gentle heat for 10 minutes. Add the vegetables and stock, bring it back to the boil and continue to cook until soft, and liquidise. Do not overcook or the vegetables will lose their flavour. Adjust seasoning.