Warm up with this classic
soup, infused
with a rich, bold twist
soup, infused
with a rich, bold twist
Our very first Sunday Spice Tip featured Smoked Paprika, a deliciously rich, smoky, and luxurious spice that adds a touch of sweetness. Check the post if you havn't already, grab a bottle, then meet me back here so you can try it out with this luscious Roasted Red Pepper Soup.
If you're like me and live in Southern Ontario, you've probably already been out shovelling loads of snow from your driveway, making snow angels, and worked up quite an appetite doing so. Now it's time to refuel and cozy up to a warm, satisfying meal while dreaming of spring and flipflops.
Inspired by snow shovelling and frostbite, today's soup is a mouthwatering blend of roasted vegetables and spices, slightly charred to develop a unique smoky barbeque flavour. With only basic ingredients required, this a rockstar of a soup that anyone can make! Let's see how it's done.
Pre-Method
Start by deciding how much soup you want to make. Generally one medium red pepper equals one serving of soup, so if you want to make enough to last the week you'll need 7, brilliant huh? More can be made at once and frozen for future use. Onions, garlic, and a tomato are used as well to round off our vegetables to be roasted. Depending on your oven size, you may be able to fit 2 baking sheets at once, but otherwise you'll have to roast half the ingredients at a time. We'll be using the oven broiler to speed up the roasting process and to develop a slight char and more flavour, just keep an eye on things so nothing burns. You guys would never let that happen right ;)
A Guideline for 5 servings,
You'll need:
- 5 red peppers
- 3 medium sized yellow onions
- 1 large tomato
- 5 garlic cloves
- 3 to 4 tbsp oil
- 1.5 tbsp smoked paprika
- 1 to 1.5 tbsp cumin powder
- 2 tsp salt
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock (approx)
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup cilantro leaves (optional)
- 1 lime
Method
1. Wash peppers and tomato. Slice tomato into wedges and add to a large bowl. Slice the peppers into flat portions as seen here, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o28yI1XTQQU ensuring no white ribs remain. Add to the bowl. Peel garlic cloves & add. Cut onions in half from tip to root and peel off the skin. If the root is dirty, slice ONLY the brown off, none of the flesh. The root keeps the layers together meaning they will cook evenly. Add these to the bowl too.
2. Drizzle oil over the vegetables. Too much is better than not enough here. Sprinkle with smoked paprika, cumin, salt, and mix with hands to combine, ensuring every piece is coated evenly. Wash hands and lay either tin foil or parchment paper over a baking sheet(s). Transfer vegetables to sheet and space evenly, ensuring ingredients don't overlap. Place baking sheet on your oven's middle rack and set to broil. Once a slight char develops on vegetables, flip them over and char the other side. Approx. 8 minutes per side but keep an eye on things, aim for something like this -->
3. Once everything is roasted and charred, transfer to a large pot and set on medium-high heat. Once starting to sizzle, cook for 5 minutes, stirring often. Then add 2/3 of your stock and bring to a simmer. When simmering, turn off the heat and locate your blender. An immersion blender works well here. Blitz, in batches if necessary, until a smooth consistency is reached. Return soup to pot and set back on med-high heat.
4. Evaluate the consistency of your soup. If too thick for your liking, add the either the rest of the stock and/or coconut milk to achieve your dezired consistency. If too thin, leave the lid off so the soup can reduce, otherwise cover and cook for 30 minutes to 1 hour, reducing the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Halfway through, season to taste with salt and pepper until your inner chef is satisfied!
5. In the last 5 minutes of cooking, chop cilantro if dezired and add to the soup along with the juice of a fresh lime. Add half the juice at a time, then taste, to ensure flavour balance.
Pre-Method
Start by deciding how much soup you want to make. Generally one medium red pepper equals one serving of soup, so if you want to make enough to last the week you'll need 7, brilliant huh? More can be made at once and frozen for future use. Onions, garlic, and a tomato are used as well to round off our vegetables to be roasted. Depending on your oven size, you may be able to fit 2 baking sheets at once, but otherwise you'll have to roast half the ingredients at a time. We'll be using the oven broiler to speed up the roasting process and to develop a slight char and more flavour, just keep an eye on things so nothing burns. You guys would never let that happen right ;)
You'll need:
- 5 red peppers
- 3 medium sized yellow onions
- 1 large tomato
- 5 garlic cloves
- 3 to 4 tbsp oil
- 1.5 tbsp smoked paprika
- 1 to 1.5 tbsp cumin powder
- 2 tsp salt
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock (approx)
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup cilantro leaves (optional)
- 1 lime
Method
1. Wash peppers and tomato. Slice tomato into wedges and add to a large bowl. Slice the peppers into flat portions as seen here, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o28yI1XTQQU ensuring no white ribs remain. Add to the bowl. Peel garlic cloves & add. Cut onions in half from tip to root and peel off the skin. If the root is dirty, slice ONLY the brown off, none of the flesh. The root keeps the layers together meaning they will cook evenly. Add these to the bowl too.
3. Once everything is roasted and charred, transfer to a large pot and set on medium-high heat. Once starting to sizzle, cook for 5 minutes, stirring often. Then add 2/3 of your stock and bring to a simmer. When simmering, turn off the heat and locate your blender. An immersion blender works well here. Blitz, in batches if necessary, until a smooth consistency is reached. Return soup to pot and set back on med-high heat.
4. Evaluate the consistency of your soup. If too thick for your liking, add the either the rest of the stock and/or coconut milk to achieve your dezired consistency. If too thin, leave the lid off so the soup can reduce, otherwise cover and cook for 30 minutes to 1 hour, reducing the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Halfway through, season to taste with salt and pepper until your inner chef is satisfied!
5. In the last 5 minutes of cooking, chop cilantro if dezired and add to the soup along with the juice of a fresh lime. Add half the juice at a time, then taste, to ensure flavour balance.
Done! Serve Hot!
*Bonus Marks
- Drizzle coconut milk or cream over soup to add contrast and interest
- Garnish with cilantro (or basil as I did) to add a delicate splash of colour
- Serve with a wedge of lime and sriracha for those who are more daring
**As always!
Let me know how it turns out for you, feel free to post your questions, comments, and stories below :)
From your friendly self-proclaimed food critic...
ReplyDeleteToday, "Smoky Roasted Red Pepper Soup".
Keep in mind yo, I don't try just anybody's soup but made an exception for this one. Glad I did! Here are the pros:
-impressed by your freedom in the amount of spices you used
-pleased by how easy/ quick this was
-super flavourful - the cumin and smoked paprika brought it out! The coconut milk made it creamier without starch or grain products.
Cons: Had to wait 30 painful mins for the dishwasher to spit out my blender!
Excellent work Dez!
Hahaha love it! Thanks for taking the leap of faith ;) Might have to make you my official critic.. salary & everything :P
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