8 Clever Shortcuts for Super-Quick Soups
8 Clever Shortcuts for Super-Quick Soups
When you don't have the time to make a more leisurely soup, these tips are the route to fast bowls of comfort
When you come home tired and chilled after a long day, nothing satisfies like a bowl of hot soup. But the prospect of lots of chopping, plus an hour or more of simmering, can put the kibosh on the craving for a comforting bowl of soup — especially at the end of busy weekdays.
These clever shortcuts are the route to super-quick, naturally plant-based vegetable soups. These easy vegan bowlfuls can be on the table in 30 minutes or sometimes less!
Here are some favorite shortcuts to make a substantial pot of soup an everyday reality — ready when you want it.
Frozen Vegetables
While it’s true that fresh vegetables are more appealing, frozen vegetables have been shown to be equally nutritious — if not more so, in some cases. Harvested at their peak of ripeness, vegetables are flash-frozen after a quick blanching, locking in nutrients and flavor.
When certain vegetables are out of season, or when using them fresh is less practical (green peas, for example), this is one convenience you needn’t feel guilty about. Use organic brands if you prefer. Another favorite: Quick Thai Coconut Corn Soup.
Indian Simmer Sauce
Bursting onto supermarket and natural food store shelves in recent years, Indian simmer sauces give your homemade dishes deep, complex flavors.
Ranging from mild to spicy, they’re fantastic soup and stew starters, too. Be aware that some varieties of these sauces contain dairy, so read labels carefully. Look for tomato- or coconut-based sauces to keep things plant-based. These would include Jalfrezi, Rogan Josh, Goan Coconut, and others.
Another recipe to try: Indian-Spiced Cauliflower and Chickpea Stew.
Prepared vegetable broth
To boost the flavor of soups that are more broth-y, I love a good vegan, all-natural, and low-sodium vegetable broth, the kind that comes in 32-ounce containers. For quick vegetable soups that are less dependent on brothiness but still need a boost, vegetable bouillon cubes or powered soup bases are other useful flavor enhancers.
Another along this line: Quick Ginger-Miso Noodle Soup.
Pureed vegetable soups in cartons
Super-Quick Butternut Squash Soup
Like the vegetable broth discussed just above, these vegetable purees come in 32-ounce cartons in natural foods stores and in the natural foods aisles of supermarket. Note that some contain dairy, so read labels.
Mushroom and broccoli purees make good soup bases, but the most flavorful and eye-appealing is butternut puree. In and of themselves, these aren’t terribly exciting, but as starters for nearly-instant soups, they’re fantastic!
Miso
Easy Japanese-Style Traditional Miso Soup
A staple in Japanese and Chinese cuisines, miso (fermented soybean paste) is a powerhouse of concentrated flavor and nutrition. Those of the plant-based persuasion need to be aware that the miso soups served in Japanese restaurants most often contain fish products.
Keep a tub of tofu in your fridge to boost soups and sauces. It lasts for such a long time. All varieties are good, but as a soup base my favorite is mellow white miso.
Another: Gingery Miso-Mushroom Bok Choy Soup.
Red lentils
Tiny red lentils cook up quickly (15 to 20 minutes) and I highly recommend keeping them as a pantry staple. When you want a robust cool-weather soup fairly quickly, red lentils are a good bet. Bought in bulk, they’re economical as well. Serve this hefty, warming soup with a fresh bread or flatbread.
Canned beans
Admittedly, it’s more economical and ecological to cook beans from scratch, but unless you’re in the habit of doing so (or use a pressure cooker), it’s a time-consuming project. Look for BPA-free cans; or, if you’d like to avoid cans altogether, cooked beans are also available in aseptic containers and pouches in natural foods stores.
Pre-cut and convenient fresh vegetables
These days, it seems like supermarkets do even more than our moms to encourage us to eat our vegetables. In addition to several variations on fresh carrots (baby, grated, and wavy-cut), there are sliced mushrooms, baby spinach, and other pre-washed baby greens.
Washed and chopped kale, peeled and cubed butternut squash, and onion-bell pepper combos are a boon to the chopping-averse. Even pre-shredded cabbage, usually intended for making coleslaw, can be a good soup ingredient. Make sure to look at freshness dates, since precut vegetables are more perishable.
Of course, I’m all for making longer-simmering and more involved (but never complicated) soups (Sundays are ideal). After all, I literally wrote the book on vegan soups. Speaking of which, can I ask those of you who have a copy of the 5th edition of Vegan Soups and Stews for All Seasons (2024) to leave a review on Amazon? Reviews really help. Thank you!
Last call on books from my Etsy Shop! I’m putting physical products on hiatus until after the new year. Beautifully designed, signed coobooks (plus the satiric Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife) make great gifts! With free shipping and discounted prices that come out to less than what it would cost to order from Amazon or a bookstore. Last day to order, Saturday, November 2.