These fast and filling soup recipes are great as a one dish meal and taste great reheated the next day. Serve these with a cold sandwich or a greasy grilled cheese for a quick and satisfying meal.
Greens and Potatoes
This is an easy vegetarian soup recipe I made after trying Caldo Verde on a trip. It is like eating a comforting bowl of mashed potatoes but with green vegetables in a liquid form.
Dice and boil some potatoes in salted water; use just enough water to keep the potatoes submerged. Once they are soft, turn off the heat and mash the potatoes with a potato masher. Do not worry about draining the potatoes because the starchy salty water is going to make the soup extra yummy. Wash and finely chop up some kale or bok choy and stir it into the soup until it is cooked. This soup is comforting and mashed potato lovers are bound to like this!
Colourful Lentils
When I was living alone in University, this is one of the soup recipes I made most frequently. It is great to make for dinner at the end of the day, easy to reheat, and tastes great as a leftover meal.
Cook some onions, celery, and carrots in hot olive oil. Season with salt, pepper, and some of your favourite herbs. Once everything softens, pour some vegetable stock and a can of tomatoes (peeled plum or San Marzano but get whole ones and crush them yourself — it tastes better and is fun to do). Add a couple of bay leaves and let it boil.
After you wash and drain some lentils, stir fry them in a pan with some oil until they start to brown and add them to your boiling soup. Once the lentils are soft, your soup is ready. Alternatively, you use a can of plain beans (red, black, canellini, chickpeas). If you use canned beans, just spoon them into your boiling soup and it is pretty much ready to eat. Stir in some finely chopped kale or spinach right before turning the heat off and watch the colours come to life!
Creamy Pumpkin
This creamy soup is a satisfying meal for those who prefer something savoury to a pumpkin spice latte. If you are buying a whole pumpkin and cutting it up yourself then please watch your fingers! When you are removing the skin, remember to use a vegetable peeler and not a knife to get the skin off. You might have to go over the spot several times but it is so much better than using a knife. If you actually need this recipe to be quick, you can find some ready-to-cook pumpkin in produce sections at grocery stores.
Cut the pumpkin up into small pieces about half the size of a USB stick. Then saute them in a pan with some oil and a bit of butter. Add a vegetable stock and boil the pumpkin in the stock until it is thoroughly cooked. Once you are at this stage, you can decide if you want to keep the pumpkin in their semi-dissolved state or you can get it very smooth in your blender. To tailor this soup to your taste, you can finish with either some black truffle paste, sage, or simply salt and pepper. Remember to stir in some more butter or olive oil for added richness.
Rainbow Quinoa
For one of the most colourful soup recipes, shred carrots, cut up small broccoli florets, dice tomatoes, finely chop red cabbage, open a can of beans (again, whatever you like), and unfreeze some corn kernels! This rainbow soup will leave you full, feeling great, and with enough time to catch up on some TV before bedtime.
Cook some quinoa (however much you would like to eat) in some vegetable broth. once the quinoa is pretty much cooked, add the broccoli, cabbage, beans and carrots. Turn off the heat soon after.
Top this soup off with tomatoes, olive oil, salt, and pepper. For a more refreshing take on this soup recipe, serve it cold with some fresh green herbs (parsley, mint, or basil) and squeeze a lemon or lime wedge over it!
Miso Mix
This is one of the best soup recipes to have at the end of a late night of heavy drinking. Buy a pouch/container of miso paste and mix a spoonful of it with cold or room temperature water. Once you have successfully combined them (a task which sounds easier than it is — do not rely on a lone spoon), set this bowl aside.
In a bowl of boiled water, add some dried wakame and wait for it to soften. If you like, you can get inventive with this soup and add some tofu, tomatoes, or any other vegetables. For a more filling soup, cook some noodles or quinoa in a separate pot, drain, and add to the mix. Once everything is ready to eat in the hot pot/bowl, add the cold miso mixture and you have a meal as quick as instant noodles!
