Summer and Soup

By Pamela Lee, from the August 1999 Newsletter

Perhaps your appetite turns to soup during the cold winter months—mine does. But I also enjoy a light, soothing bowl of soup in the summer. On especially hot days, a bowl of tangy cold tomato or gazpacho soup seems just right. Although, so far, as I sit to write, we've had very few summer days that require a cold bowl, and I've been enjoying lots of light warm soup.

The majority of my soups are spur-of-the-moment creations. For instance, when the Co-op's organic broccoli and gingerroot look especially fresh, they'll inspire an impromptu broccoli soup. When friends have asked how I make soup, my explanation almost always begins with sautéing onions and garlic. That's my tried and true flavor base. Perhaps it is a familial tradition: my sister once said that when it's time to fix dinner, she sautés an onion while she figures out what she is going to make.

In his wonderfully complete book, Splendid Soups, James Peterson writes that it is an almost universal technique to begin a soup by lightly cooking a flavor mixture in oil or fat before adding other ingredients. Each country has its own distinct flavor base(s) and ingredients that impart their particular ethnic taste. Let me introduce a few of the ethnic flavor bases and ingredients that Peterson covers in one of his introductory chapters. Maybe you'll be inspired to create your own soup. The quotations and recipes are from Peterson's book. For those of you who feel more comfortable with a recipe, I'll include a couple that I really like.

China is such a large country that it is not easy to characterize its soups. But generally, Chinese soups are concocted "by simmering one or two vegetable in a ginger-scented chicken broth." Soy and ginger are the most common flavoring agents. Other flavorful ingredients include sesame oil, ham, eggs, tofu, noodles, wontons, rice wine, dried mushrooms (e.g. straw, cloud ear, tree ear mushrooms), preserved vegetables, star anise or five-spice mixture. If thickening is desired, the Chinese cook will typically use cornstarch.

Soups made according to classic French cuisine fall into strict categories, such as broths, velouts, consommés, bisques, etc. Regional French cooking is different—it reflects the ingredients indigenous to each area. For instance, soups from the Provence region tend to include saffron, olive oil, garlic, tomatoes and fennel. Soups from the Mediterranean areas are often finished with wonderfully pungent sauces, such as aioli (garlic mayonnaise) or rouille (a thick paste of garlic, bread, chilies, and sometimes saffron). Soups from southwest France utilize the region's ducks and geese. Northern soups make use of the abundant sea creatures. Most French soup begins with a sautéed mixture of chopped onion, carrots, and celery, (the mirepoix) in butter or oil.

In India, many cooks begin soup by slowly cooking finely chopped onion, garlic, ginger, and hot peppers in oil or butter. Curry powder is added, cooked a bit to enliven the flavor, then liquid is added. An alternative way to flavor their soup would be to add a 'tadka' just before serving. A tadka is a flavorful mixture of spices, onions, and garlic cooked in ghee. Yogurt or coconut milk might also be used to finish the soup.

Mexican soups use chilies, corn (dried and fresh), tomatoes, tomatillos, beans, Mexican oregano, cilantro, epazote, cumin, and seafood. Moroccan soups are flavored with typical Mediterranean ingredients plus lemons, dried fruit, slivered almonds, turmeric, ginger, or cinnamon. Moroccans make an herb mixture called 'charmoula' "by grinding together cilantro, parsley, garlic, vinegar, lemon juice, paprika, and cayenne into a pesto-like paste."

For the following recipe, if you don't have, or don't want to use, coconut milk, you can instead finish this corn soup with 1 cup of plain yogurt. (This is not Peterson's suggestion, but mine.) I do, however, caution that you add the yogurt at the very end, and don't allow it to boil, or it will curdle.

Indian-Style Corn Soup

makes 6 servings

1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves or 1/2 tsp. dried
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
4 cups corn kernels, from 6 to 8 ears of fresh corn (or two 10-oz. packages frozen)
3 cups water or vegetable or chicken broth, divided
1 tsp. curry powder
1 cup coconut milk
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. fresh lime or lemon juice
2 tsp. finely chopped cilantro leaves
salt

Cook the onion, garlic, and thyme in 2 tbsp. butter in a 4-quart pot over medium heat until the onion turns translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the corn and half the water or broth, cover partially, and simmer until the kernels are soft, about 15 minutes.

Heat the remaining tablespoon of butter in a small saucepan over low to medium heat. Stir in the curry powder and heat gently for 1 minute to wake up its aroma, but be careful not to let it burn. Remove the pan from the heat.

Puree the corn mixture in a blender or food processor and then strain it through a food mill with a medium disk or a medium-mesh strainer. If you want a smoother texture, strain it again through a fine-mesh strainer. Add the rest of the water or broth (slightly more or less, depending on the texture you want) to the strained mixture.

Whisk the cooked curry, coconut milk, sugar, lime or lemon juice, and cilantro into the soup a minute or two before serving. Season with salt.

Variations: You can use this soup as the liquid base for more elaborate vegetable soups and stews. You can add chopped, peeled, and seeded tomatoes, or add cooked spinach, potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, and green beans. Each of these vegetables, except the tomatoes, should be cooked separately in boiling water rather than being cooked directly in the corn soup.

I don't think that all the lime called for in this next soup is necessary. I suggest that you begin with half the amount called for; you can always add more.

Avocado Soup
makes 6 servings

2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 small onion, minced
2 jalapeno chilies, seeded and very finely chopped
juice of 4 limes
1 bell pepper (preferably yellow), roasted, peeled, and chopped
4 large or 6 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro leaves
2 ripe avocados
1 cup ice water
salt and pepper, to taste
tortilla chips
sour cream

In Advance: Up to 8 hours ahead, crush the garlic to a paste in a mortar and pestle or by chopping it and crushing it on a cutting board with the side of a chef's knife. Stir the garlic paste, onion, jalapenos, lime juice, and bell pepper into the chopped tomatoes in a mixing bowl.

Add the cilantro to the soup.

At the Last Minute: Peel and pit the avocados and dice into 1/2-inch cubes. Combine with the rest of the soup and the ice water. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper to taste, and serve in chilled bowls. Pass tortilla chips and sour cream.

Variations: If you want a more substantial soup, barbecue or sauté some shrimp or chicken and add the shrimp or (boned) chicken to the soup just before serving.

You can pass croutons cooked in olive oil or toasted slices of French bread instead of chips.

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