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Soups

Soups and stocks are the very essence of food in a pot. There are few foods more comforting and satisfying. Infinite in variety, a soup can be a light and elegant first course, a substantial rib-sticking meal-in-a-pot, or a refreshing cooler on a summer's day. The soups in this chapter range from suave and sophisticated Shrimp Bisque to homey Chicken Soup with Rice to earthy Mushroom and Wild Rice Soup And of course, one of soup's best qualities is that it can be made ahead. In fact, soup should be made in quantity to allow for tasty leftovers.

The best homemade soups rely on good stock or broth for incomparable flavor. (For most cooking purposes here, the terms stock and broth are interchangeable.) Whether making stock or broth, there is one steadfast rule: Be patient. It takes rime to draw all the flavor out of the ingredients. To make a high-quality stock, skim off all the foam that rises to the surface as the liquid is being brought to a boil. Once the liquid begins to boil, reduce the heat to very low and continue cooking at a bare simmer. Otherwise, the stock becomes cloudy and tastes greasy.

One of the glories of a well-made stock is the creation of a crystal-clear consommé. A consommé begins with a very full flavored stock, since some flavor will be lost during the clarification process. It is strained, cooled, and then refrigerated to solidify the fat that rises to the surface. (Use this handy trick to remove the fat from any homemade stock-it's easier than skimming fat off hot stock.) To make a proper consommé, every trace of fat must be removed-it should be absolutely fat-free. Then, in a clean soup pot, for every four cups of stock, the white and crumbled shell of one egg is stirred in. The stock is brought to a simmer over low heat and gently stirred occasionally. As the egg whites cook, they rise to the surface and solidify, bringing the shell and all the tiny bits and pieces of meat and vegetables still floating in the stock with them. From this point on, the liquid is never allowed to boil. Lastly, it is ladled through a cheesecloth-lined sieve. The finished consommé is then served either hot or cold. Hot consommé can be garnished with vegetables that have been cut into matchstick-thin sticks or into tiny dice and blanched. When consommé is refrigerated, it gels. So to be served cold, it is finely chopped, then spooned into soup cups and sprinkled with any favorite chopped fresh herb (chives are especially nice).

Homemade stock is a wonderful ingredient to have on hand (a freezer full of stock is a real culinary treasure trove), but don't underestimate the convenience and quality of canned broth-it supplies flavor in a flash. Supermarkets carry an assortment of canned broths, including chicken, beef, and vegetable, not to mention reduced-sodium, no-salt-added, and fat-free. In our test kitchens, we will sometimes dilute one 14 ½ -ounce can of broth (about 1 ¾ cups) with3/4 cup water. This step is entirely optional and a matter of personal taste, but we think it softens the intense flavor of canned broth.

Low-sodium and no-salt-added broths are recommended in recipes when regular canned broth would over salt the finished dish. This is especially true in dishes where the cooking liquid evaporates substantially. When using homemade broth or stock instead of canned, just add salt to taste. Fat-free broth is healthful, but it's just as easy to remove the fat from canned broth yourself. Simply freeze the unopened can of broth for one or two hours to solidify the thin layer of surface fat. Open the can, lift off the fat, and discard. Bouillon cubes and powders have a less natural flavor than homemade or canned broths, so while cubes and powders are convenient, broth has the flavor edge. When making fish soup, bottled clam juice is a handy substitute for homemade fish stock. It is quite salty though, so use only a minimum of salt (if any) when seasoning.

Soup Savvy

Garnishing Soups

French Onion Soup

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Butternut-Apple Soup

Spicy Curried Carrot Soup

Sorrel Soup

Caldo Verde

Apple and Raisin Soup - Delicious fruit flavor.

Avocado-Smoked Salmon Soup - Fast and delicious....

Avocado Soup - This soup will pleasantly refresh you.

Avocado Soup with Shrimp - A blend of flavors that any gurmand will appreciate.

Avocado-Tequila Soup in Watermelon - The right taste for the right time.

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