Experienced homemakers and professional chefs know that even a pinch of spice can influence the final taste of a dish. Try using one of these life hacks the next time you cook.
A bowl of hot soup can be the perfect end to a day in winter. Such a dish will satisfy and warm you up.
There are countless soup recipes—from hearty borscht to exquisite tomato puree soup. However, most soups typically include vegetables, broth, and spices, sometimes meat or legumes.
No matter what type of soup you plan to make, there are several clever ways to add flavor to an already prepared dish.
Tips from Chefs
The right spices can elevate even the simplest soup to a restaurant-quality dish. As chef Thuy Diem Pham notes, he prefers to add a bit of lime and fragrant chili oil to his pots. The oil adds heat, while the juice of fresh lime neutralizes sharp notes and helps achieve a balance of flavors.
Chef Nick Vadash loves to enhance soups with fermented vegetables, such as sauerkraut. This trick adds depth of flavor, acidity, and spiciness to the finished dish. Additionally, this life hack can be a real lifesaver if your broth turns out to be not rich enough.
Fermented vegetables are also very beneficial for your gut.
Recipe development manager Mimi Morley believes that small additions have the most significant impact on the taste of the finished dish. These can be herbs, seeds, a spoonful of yogurt or sour cream, a teaspoon of soy sauce, miso paste, or a bit of Worcestershire sauce.
Chef Stephen Carter-Bailey recommends serving soups with fragrant flatbread. For Asian-style broths, he suggests adding fresh vegetables, a fried egg, and noodles.
Cook James Griffin has been making soups for over 25 years. Over the years, he has developed a simple rule: soups, in a sense, are like omelets—you can put almost anything in them. Therefore, Griffin recommends not sticking to classic recipes and experimenting more often, as noted by the publication Express.
By the Way
However, the belief that any soup is an extremely healthy dish that can be eaten in any quantity is not entirely true. Firstly, portion size and the presence of contraindications are crucial. Secondly, many traditional soup recipes can actually challenge our stomachs.
For example, a delicious solyanka contains quite a bit of fat and salt. Solyanka is generally considered a calorie-rich treat and may not be suitable for those actively losing weight.
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