I’ve been revisiting some of my soup recipes, lately. Remaking them, changing, tweaking, adding, etc. and started to really think about soup. It’s so very versatile, satisfying, comforting, and can really be delicious. More than that, soup is comforting. Why is that? What is it about a big bowl, or mug of steaming hot soup that just makes us feel so cozy and comfortable? Is there an anthropological sort of muscle memory? Or is it just nostalgia from our own lived experience?
Remember the folk story “Stone Soup”? Basically, a traveler comes to a village, hungry and offers to perform for the village in exchange for a meal. The villagers all state that they are too poor and don’t have the resources to feed the traveler, so the traveler offers to make the villagers ‘stone soup’. He puts a big pot of water and a carefully chosen stone up to boil, stirring and tasting every so often. Eventually he gets the villagers to donate an onion, a carrot, herbs and finally some meat, making a delicious soup that everyone loves. There are quite a few versions of this story and it seems to be from everywhere.
The point is, that a big pot of water, a carefully selected stone and some “other incidentals” makes a delicious meal. Personally, I think that’s the point of soup. You don’t need a recipe, there are no rules, whatever you have on hand will make a perfectly delectable meal, appetizer, lunch, medicine, and more.
With soaring prices, soup can take on a whole new interest as it can be super economical to make, stretched to feed a crowd, and stores well. There are times that I’ve made a big pot of soup that we eat from for three days! I just let the soup cool to room temp and refrigerate and when we’re ready for more, I make sure I bring it back to a boil, let it go for a few minutes and lower to a simmer. Especially when it’s a vegetarian recipe, you really don’t have to worry about food borne illnesses with this method.
I typically like to have my soup in a big mug – it’s just easy to hold and easy to drink up the last of the broth and as a bonus, it warms your hands. I have osteoarthritis and the warmth from the mug is very welcome.
If you need some soup inspiration, please check out my recipes in the links below. And remember, you really don’t have to follow instructions, make it your own.
