Steaming and stir-frying are essential techniques for making thick soups. The secret to enhancing the flavor of a soup lies in using fresh ingredients. Generally speaking, light soups are best in summer, while thicker soups are best in winter.

About Steaming and Stir-frying

Potage is a general term for soups. In French, a clear soup is called potage claré, while a thicker soup is called potage lié. The characteristic of potage lié is that all the ingredients blend together and the consistency is thick, making it difficult to taste the individual ingredients. Steaming and stir-frying are essential techniques for making thick soups.

Preparing for Steaming and Stir-frying

First, choose a thick pot.

It is best to have a heavy lid that fits securely. This means that the moisture released by the vegetables will form steam. This steam will cause the vegetables to release more moisture, which, depending on the heat, will soften the vegetables and bring out their sweetness. Therefore, the lid and pot must fit tightly.

Take your time adjusting the heat.

On a scale of 0 (residual heat) to 10 (maximum), use a heat setting of 2-5. While umami (glutamine) generally disappears when heated, this technique allows it to remain. Therefore, even simple soups can still be delicious.

Key Tips

1. To ensure even cooking, make sure the vegetables are of uniform size.

For example, cut onions into 1mm thick slices, and potatoes into 8mm slices. Add olive oil and the first vegetable (mostly onions) to the pan, stir to coat the oil, and then turn on the heat.

2. Cover the pan and stir occasionally with a wooden spatula. Hold the spatula vertically across the bottom of the pan, stirring evenly.

If the first vegetable is onion, wait until the pungent onion flavor dissipates before adding the second vegetable. Potatoes or uncooked rice can be used as a medium to blend the various vegetables.

3. Add the vegetables in the order of their difficulty to cook, using the steam to stir-fry until they are translucent. This will ensure that all vegetables are cooked to the same degree.

4 If the vegetables start to burn during the cooking process, add a small amount of water. Carefully drain any steam from the lid back into the pot to prevent any loss of flavor.

5 When the vegetables are glossy and ready to eat, add the broth.

6 Do not add all the broth, but just enough to cover the vegetables. Season with half the salt as a basic seasoning.

7 Cover the pot and bring to a simmer. Turn off the heat once all the vegetables are softened.

8 Remove from the heat, remove the bay leaf if used, and blend the mixture. Let cool slightly, but blend while hot.

9 Blend until no solids are visible. Strain into a new pot to prevent stickiness.

10 Return the heat to the boil and add the remaining broth or milk to adjust the consistency. Taste and add the remaining salt for a final seasoning.