the test kitchen’s all-time best tips for making soup
Soup might seem easy enough to make—but it’s hard to hide mistakes in a pot (or bowl) of soup. To make sure every spoonful of soup is richly flavored, with juicy meat and tender vegetables, follow these test kitchen–tested tips.
use a sturdy pot It is worth investing in a heavy pot with a thick bottom to use for making soup. It will transfer heat evenly and prevent scorching, which can impart a burnt flavor to your soup. See our favorite Dutch oven and stockpot.
sauté the aromatics The first step in making many soups is to sauté aromatic vegetables such as onions and garlic. Sautéing not only softens their texture so that there is no unwelcome crunch in the soup, it also tames any harsh flavors and develops more complex flavors in the process. Medium heat is usually a good temperature for sautéing.
start with good stock There are some soups, like Classic Chicken Noodle Soup and Beef Barley Soup with Mushrooms and Thyme, in which the flavor of the stock takes center stage, so it’s best to use homemade. In boldly flavored soups with more going on, like Tortilla Soup and Vietnamese Beef Pho, good store-bought broth is a fine and convenient option. Differences among packaged broths are quite significant—some are pretty flavorful while others taste like salty dishwater, so shop carefully. Click these links for our recipes for homemade stocks and broths. Click here for more information about buying broth.
cut the vegetables the right size Most soups call for chunks of vegetables. Haphazardly cut vegetables will cook unevenly—some pieces will be underdone and crunchy while others may be mushy. Cutting the vegetables to the size specified in the recipe ensures that the pieces will all be perfectly cooked.
stagger the addition of vegetables When a soup contains a variety of vegetables, their addition to the pot must often be staggered to account for their varying cooking times. Hardy vegetables like potatoes and winter squash can withstand much more cooking than delicate asparagus or spinach.
simmer, don’t boil There is a fine line between simmering and boiling, and it can make a big difference in your soups. A simmer is a restrained version of a boil; fewer bubbles break the surface, and they do so with less vigor. Simmering heats food through more gently and more evenly than boiling; boiling causes vegetables such as potatoes to break apart or fray at the edges, and it can toughen meat, too.
Even though broth tastes worlds better when you make it yourself, it’s not always essential or practical to use homemade. Plus, the reality is that the majority of home cooks rely on store-bought broth for most recipes. When selecting store-bought broth, it’s important to choose wisely since what you use can have a big impact on your final result. The test kitchen has done extensive tastings on store-bought broths; here’s what we’ve learned.
chicken broth We prefer chicken broth to beef broth and vegetable broth for its stronger, cleaner flavor. While searching for the best commercial chicken broth, we discovered a few critical characteristics. First, we like broth with a lower sodium content—less than 700 milligrams per serving—because, when simmered, evaporation loss concentrates the broth’s saltiness. Also, we like broth with a short ingredient list that includes flavor-boosting vegetables like carrots, celery, and onions. Our favorite is Swanson Chicken Stock.
vegetable broth We turn to store-bought vegetable broth for vegetarian soups or for vegetable soups that might be overwhelmed by the flavor of chicken broth alone. In fact, because commercial vegetable broths tend to be sweet, we’ll often mix vegetable broth with chicken broth for the best flavor. The highest-ranked commercial broth in our taste tests was Orrington Farms Vegan Chicken Flavored Broth Base & Seasoning, a 6-ounce jar of powder that makes up to 28 cups of broth. This powdered broth is well-balanced, nicely savory, and fairly salty. Swanson Certified Organic Vegetable Broth is our runner-up. It is a ready-to-use liquid broth that comes in a 32-ounce carton and is more expensive per ounce.
clam juice When we need clam juice for seafood soups or chowders, we reach for commercially prepared juice, made by briefly steaming fresh clams in salted water and filtering the resulting broth before bottling. Our winner, Bar Harbor Clam Juice, hails from the shores of clam country in Maine and is available nationwide. It brings a bright and mineral-y flavor.
beef broth Historically we’ve found beef broths to be short on beefy flavor, but with a few flavor additives, beef broth can pull off a deeply flavored beef soup. We tasted different beef broths, stocks, and bases to find out which one would suitably stand in for homemade. Generally, you should note the ingredients on the label; we found that the best broths had flavor-amplifying ingredients, such as yeast extract and tomato paste, near the top of the list and included concentrated beef stock. Our winner is Better Than Bouillon Beef Base. This paste is economical, stores easily, and dissolves quickly in hot water.
defatting soup Defatting a broth or soup is important if you don’t want your final dish to look and taste greasy. There are four different ways to defat a liquid; the method you choose depends on the dish you are making and the equipment you have on hand. For the first three methods, it is important to let the liquid settle for 5 to 10 minutes before defatting; this allows all of the fat to separate out and float to the top.
skim with a ladle or wide, shallow spoon This is the simplest way to defat a liquid. Let the liquid settle in the pot for 5 to 10 minutes, then skim away the fat with a wide spoon or ladle. The advantage of this method is that it’s very easy and it doesn’t dirty any extra dishes; however, some fat will remain in the broth.
use a tall, narrow container If you are using a large pot or have a large quantity of fat to skim, pour the broth into a tall, narrow container before defatting. This will create a deeper layer of fat that is easier to skim and remove. After letting the broth settle for 5 to 10 minutes, skim with a wide spoon or ladle. (Although some fat will remain behind, there will be less than if you simply defat the broth right in the pot.) This method works with all kinds of broths and soups.
use a fat separator This technique works best with broths that don’t have much in the way of vegetables taking up space in the pot and requires a fat separator (click here for our recommendation). To use, simply pour the liquid into the fat separator and let it settle for 5 to 10 minutes. Then pour it back into the pot through the spout, leaving the fat behind.
refrigerate overnight If you have time, you can refrigerate your broth overnight without defatting—the fat will collect and solidify on the top as it chills. Upon removing it from the refrigerator, you can simply scrape the large solid pieces of fat right off the top before reheating and using.
pureeing soup A pureed soup’s texture should be as smooth and creamy as possible. With this in mind, we tried pureeing several soups with a food processor, a handheld immersion blender, and a regular countertop blender. We found that a standard blender turns out the smoothest soups. A food processor does a decent job of pureeing, but some small bits of vegetables can get trapped under the blade and remain unchopped. The immersion blender has appeal because it is brought to the pot, but we found that this kind of blender can leave unblended bits of food behind.
The blade on a standard blender does an excellent job with soups because it pulls ingredients down from the top of the container so no stray bits go untouched by the blade. And as long as plenty of headroom is left at the top of the blender, there is no leakage. Blending hot soup can be dangerous. To prevent a mess, blend the soup in batches and make sure the blender is filled only two-thirds full (or less). Hold the lid securely in place with a dish towel and pulse several times before blending continuously.
Many soups make a generous number of servings, making it convenient to stock your freezer with the leftovers so you can pull them out and reheat them whenever you like. In general, we recommend refrigerating delicate soups, including vegetable or brothy soups, for no more than two days. We recommend freezing broths or soups for no longer than one month. Here’s the information you need to properly cool, store, and thaw your soups so they heat up just as flavorful as freshly made.
cooling and storing For safety reasons, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends cooling liquids to 70 degrees within the first 2 hours after cooking and 41 degrees within 4 hours after that. As tempting as it might seem, avoid transferring hot soup straight to the refrigerator. You may speed up the cooling process, but you’ll also increase the fridge’s internal temperature to unsafe levels, which is dangerous for all the other food stored there. We found that letting the soup cool on the countertop for an hour helps it drop to about 85 degrees; the soup can then be transferred to the fridge and it will come down to 41 degrees in about 4 hours and 30 minutes (well within the FDA’s recommended range). If you don’t have an hour to cool your soup, you can divide the hot soup into a number of storage containers to cool more quickly or you can cool down the whole pot with our tip at right.
We like to refrigerate or freeze soup in airtight plastic storage containers (Snapware Airtight are our favorite); remember to leave a little room at the top of the container(s) to prevent the lid(s) from popping off.
freezing soups with dairy or pasta Creamy soups and soups that have a pasta component simply don’t freeze very well. The dairy curdles as it freezes and the pasta turns bloated and mushy. Instead, make and freeze the soup without the dairy or pasta component included. After you have thawed the soup and it has been heated through, either stir in the uncooked pasta and simmer until just tender or stir in the dairy and continue to heat gently until hot (do not let it boil).
thawing For safety reasons, we recommend thawing frozen soups and stews in the refrigerator, never at room temperature, for 24 to 48 hours. (That said, if you’ve forgotten to plan ahead, you can heat frozen soups directly on the stovetop or in the microwave, but the texture of meat and vegetables will suffer a bit.)
reheating We prefer to reheat large amounts of soup in a heavy pot on the stovetop. Bring the soup to a rolling boil and make sure to stir often to ensure the entire pot reaches the boiling point. If you use the microwave, avoid reheating in the same container used to refrigerate or freeze the soup. Instead, we recommend that you transfer the food to a microwave-safe dish that’s somewhat larger than the storage container. Just be sure to cover the dish to prevent a mess. Make sure to stop and stir several times to ensure that the soup reheats evenly.
stocking your kitchen
You don’t need any specialized equipment to make good soups and broths at home. A sturdy, heavy-bottomed Dutch oven and a chef’s knife go a long way. Here are the useful items we reach for again and again when making broth and soup in the test kitchen.
A blender is the only tool that can blend all manner of liquid-y foods (whether hot or cold) to a smooth texture so it is the best for making pureed soups. A blender’s design pulls ingredients down to the blade, so it yields a finer, smoother puree than you get from either a food processor or an immersion blender. Our winning blender is the Vitamix 5200 and our best buy is the Breville Hemisphere Control.
Built for both stovetop and oven use, a Dutch oven is generally wider and shallower than a conventional stockpot. A good-quality heavy-bottomed Dutch oven conducts heat steadily and evenly. Use a pot that has a capacity of at least 6 quarts. Our favorite is the Le Creuset 7¼-Quart Round French Oven.
A fine-mesh strainer separates solids from liquid. A diameter of at least 6 inches and a deep, fine-mesh bowl are good qualities to look for as are sturdy construction and a stable bowl rest so you can really press down on the solids. We like the CIA Masters Collection Fine-Mesh Strainer.
A ladle is indispensable for serving soups. We prefer one with a 9- to 10-inch handle so it doesn’t slide into the pot. The handle should be slightly offset—this allows for clean pouring. You can also use a ladle to defat stock. Our favorite is the Rösle Hook Ladle with Pouring Rim.
A spoon with a thin, shallow, stainless-steel bowl makes it easy to skim the fat or scum off the surface of broth and soup. The best spoons have a handle of at least 9 inches like our favorite, the Rösle Basting Spoon with Hook Handle.
wooden spoon
A wooden spoon is simple yet perfect for scraping up fond off the bottom of the pot and for stirring hot mixtures. It is also good for pressing on solids in a strainer to extract liquid. Our winner is the SCI Bamboo Wood Cooking Spoon.
Homemade broth often contains a fair amount of fat. A fat separator makes defatting hot broth simple: Just pour the broth in the top, let it settle, and pour the defatted broth out of the spout, leaving the fat behind. Choose a fat separator with a large capacity (ideally 4 cups), an integrated strainer, and a wide mouth that makes for easy filling. Our favorite is the Cuisipro Fat Separator.
This heavy 12-quart pot is useful for handling a variety of big jobs, from making a double batch of chicken broth to steaming lobsters for bisque. Our winning pot is made by All-Clad and our best buy is the Cuisinart Chef’s Classic Stainless 12-Quart Stock Pot.
An all-purpose whisk is useful for mixing ingredients together and smoothing out any lumps. An 11-inch whisk can reach into deep pots and bowls and the tines should be sturdy and flexible but should not twist. We like the OXO Good Grips 11-inch Balloon Whisk.
A cleaver comes in handy for difficult tasks such as chopping up bones for broth, cutting up lobster for bisque, or halving butternut squash. The best meat cleavers feature thick, heavy, razor-sharp blades and a perfectly balanced design. We recommend the Global 6-inch Meat Cleaver and the LamsonSharp 7-inch Meat Cleaver.
With a good chef’s knife in hand you can prep vegetables for soups and cut up chicken for broth. Our favorite is the Victorinox Swiss Army Fibrox Pro 8-Inch Chef’s Knife, which is lightweight, has a blade that’s just the right length, and has a comfortable grip and nonslip handle.
The test kitchen uses some key ingredients over and over again in our soup recipes. Here are some of our favorite ways to impart flavor to a pot of soup and repurpose leftovers in the process.
parmesan cheese In the test kitchen we save Parmesan rinds to add depth to soups like Hearty Minestrone and Sicilian Chickpea and Escarole Soup. The rind is particularly good for seasoning because it’s the part of the cheese where most of the bacteria and mold grow and, thus, is the source of strong aroma and flavor compounds. If you don’t have a Parmesan rind, the rinds from Pecorino-Romano and Gruyère add comparable savory flavor. When you can no longer grate any cheese off the rind, store the rind in a zipper-lock bag in the freezer; cheese rinds will keep indefinitely (no need to thaw them before using).
bacon Uncooked bacon adds smoky flavor to many soups such as Split Pea and Ham Soup. Cooked bacon pulls double duty providing rendered fat in which to cook aromatics for another layer of flavor, as in Farmhouse Chicken Chowder; the crisp bacon bits are then used to garnish the finished soup. If you have a partial package of bacon left over you can freeze slices for later use. They can be frozen and thawed with virtually no noticeable change in quality. Coil up each slice individually (to prevent sticking and to minimize freezer burn), freeze on a plate, and then transfer to a zipper-lock freezer bag.
fresh herbs In the test kitchen, we use fresh herbs more often than dried. We use chopped herbs such as parsley, cilantro, chives, mint, fennel fronds, or dill to deliver a big hit of fresh flavor to soup whether stirred into the pot at the end of cooking or sprinkled over a bowlful to serve. You can save leftover fresh herbs by freezing them; freezing alters their texture but their flavors remain remarkably intact. Chop parsley, basil, tarragon, or cilantro; transfer by the spoonful to ice cube trays, top with water, and freeze. Once frozen, transfer the cubes to a zipper-lock bag. You can add frozen cubes directly to soups.
bay leaf Bay leaves are a key seasoning in many soups. We prefer dried bay leaves to fresh; they work just as well in long-cooked recipes, are cheaper, and will keep for three months in an airtight container in the freezer. We prefer Turkish bay leaves to those from California. The California bay leaf has a medicinal and potent eucalyptus-like flavor, but the Turkish bay leaf has a mild, green, and slightly clove-like flavor.
chicken fat The fat you skim off of chicken broth can be put in a clean container and saved for another use. The flavorful fat makes a great substitute for butter or oil in a number of savory applications, such as sautéing aromatics, roasting root vegetables, and frying eggs. Store the fat in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one month or in the freezer for up to six months, adding more fat as desired.
Today soup is more likely to be ladled straight from the pot, since serving soup from a tureen or as a first course seems to have fallen out of favor. Nonetheless all kinds of bowls are called into service for serving soup—smaller 6-ounce bowls or cups for rich soups like white gazpacho or shrimp bisque; large, shallow bowls to showcase the seafood in fish soup or for hearty main-dish fare; broiler-safe crocks for French onion soup; or casual mugs for a cup of creamy tomato soup or clam chowder.
cold soups Serve cold soups such as Classic Gazpacho in chilled bowls. You can put the soup in a large pitcher and use it to pour out to serve.
garnish it! Many soups lend themselves to a final topping that offers complementary flavor, texture, and color. For some soups, such as Tortilla Soup, the garnishes are an essential finishing step. Simple pureed soups, which are also monochromatic, really benefit from a colorful garnish or two. They can be everything from chopped vegetables to flavor enhancers such as cilantro cream, a splash of hot sauce, or a spoonful of bright pesto. You can add one or two garnishes to each bowl of soup before serving, or you can offer them separately so that diners can garnish their bowls to taste.
extra-virgin olive oil A simple drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil adds a final layer of rich flavor to many soups such as Provençal Fish Soup and also makes a beautiful presentation. Balsamic vinegar does the same for Tuscan White Bean Soup.
vegetables Diced avocado, chopped tomato or cucumber, sliced radishes, fresh chiles, and sliced scallions all add color and freshness as garnishes.
yogurt and sour cream A dollop of plain yogurt or sour cream adds a tangy and cooling counterpart to flavorful soups like Curried Red Lentil Soup and Black Bean Soup. Sometimes we dress up sour cream with fresh herbs, as in our Beet and Wheat Berry Soup with Dill Cream.
citrus Lemon or lime juice or wedges always add a final bright note to bean soups and spicy soups like Thai-Style Chicken Soup.
crumbled cheese Goat or blue cheese, cheddar, queso fresco, and Cotija all make for quick and savory toppings. We like crumbled blue cheese on our 11th-Hour Harvest Pumpkin Soup.
toasted nuts or seeds Chopped nuts such as walnuts or almonds along with sesame seeds add a complementary crunchy topping to creamy and Asian-style soups. Toasting the nuts and seeds brings out their full flavor.
croutons See our recipes for homemade croutons.
easiest-ever breads and homemade croutons
Bread has long been a trusty sidekick to soup, whether it’s in the form of croutons or oyster crackers scattered over the top of chowder or a warm roll or piece of bread to go alongside it. Here are a few quick and easy bread recipes (thanks to pizza dough) that help turn your bowl of soup into a meal.
easy dinner rolls Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut 8 ounces pizza dough into 4 even pieces and roll into balls. Arrange on well-oiled baking sheet, brush lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Let cool on wire rack and serve warm. Makes 4. (This recipe can be doubled.)
easy garlic rolls Heat oven to 375 degrees. Mix ¼ cup olive oil, 1 large minced garlic clove, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper in bowl. Cut 2 pounds pizza dough into 10 pieces, roll loosely into balls, and arrange on parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush rolls with 1 beaten egg and bake until golden, 30 to 35 minutes, brushing rolls with garlic oil halfway through baking time. Let cool on wire rack and serve warm. Makes 10.
soft and cheesy breadsticks Heat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out 1 pound pizza dough on lightly floured counter into 12 by 6-inch rectangle. Cut dough crosswise into 1-inch-wide strips and lay on well-oiled rimmed baking sheet. Brush with 1½ tablespoons olive oil, sprinkle with ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese, and season with salt and pepper. Bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Let cool on wire rack and serve warm. Makes 12.
rosemary-olive focaccia Heat oven to 400 degrees. Press 1 pound pizza dough into well-oiled 13 by 9-inch baking dish or 10-inch pie plate and dimple surface with your fingers. Brush dough liberally with extra-virgin olive oil and sprinkle with ¼ cup chopped olives, ½ teaspoon minced fresh rosemary, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Let cool on wire rack and serve warm. Serves 6.
makes 3 cups
Either fresh or stale bread can be used in this recipe, although stale bread is easier to cut and crisps more quickly in the oven.
6 slices hearty white sandwich bread, crusts removed, cut into ½-inch cubes (3 cups)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, or extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Toss bread with melted butter, season with salt and pepper, and spread onto rimmed baking sheet. Bake until golden brown and crisp, 20 to 25 minutes, stirring halfway through baking. Let cool and serve. (Croutons can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.)
variations
garlic croutons
Whisk 1 minced garlic clove into melted butter before tossing with bread.
These croutons pair best with sweet soups like Creamy Butternut Squash Soup.
Toss buttered bread with 6 teaspoons sugar and 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon before baking.
makes 1½ cups
These croutons are made in a skillet; they can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container for one week.
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 slices light rye bread, cut into ½-inch cubes (1½ cups)
Salt
Heat butter and oil in 10-inch skillet over medium heat until butter melts. Add bread cubes and cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer croutons to paper towel–lined plate and season with salt to taste.
makes 2½ cups
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley
½ teaspoon minced fresh thyme
4 slices hearty white sandwich bread, cut into ½-inch cubes
Salt and pepper
Melt butter in 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add parsley and thyme; cook, stirring constantly, for 20 seconds. Add bread cubes and cook, stirring frequently, until light golden brown, 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer croutons to paper towel–lined plate and season with salt and pepper to taste.
makes 8 slices
Be sure to use a high-quality crusty bread, such as a baguette; do not use sliced sandwich bread.
8 (1-inch-thick) slices rustic bread
1 large garlic clove, peeled
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Spread bread out evenly over rimmed baking sheet and broil, flipping as needed, until well toasted on both sides, about 4 minutes. Briefly rub 1 side of each toast with garlic, drizzle with oil, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.