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Soup

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Annette&Bert

Annette&Bert

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
At this time of year I could have soup as my every meal so long as it’s good, thick and tasty.
I haven’t made soup in such a long time, buying ready made instead, but now I want to make it, that way I know the ingredients, from a tab point of view. I used to put barley in as it’s a good thickener, but I am unsure if I should.

Anyone got any good soup ingredients and recipes, and is barley ok?
 
I make lots of vegetable soup and find that just using caulli and courgettes with the other veg thickens it up when blitzed
Carol
 
I live on my own, and I have a slight problem with veg & salads
If I buy reasonable quantities I end up having cabbage every meal for days, or the salads start to go off unless, again, I have a salad every meal for a week, or something like that - you get the idea
The alternative is to buy 3 mushrooms, or 2 carrots and so on, which immediately marks me down as a sad old man

So for ages now, I have made a leftover soup - cum - stew -
Start with onions, celery, and leek if you have it; garlic if you like it; fry gently, then add anything else available; even lettuce & cucumber are OK if you chop them fine, they just disappear into the background
Buy a few root veg or a stew pack if you don't have enough veg
Add a can of chopped tomatoes; include some stock and water. Season with herbs, S&P as required

I can cook small pulses like yellow peas and red lentils, but I've never had much success with larger pulses like kidney beans or chick peas. Fortunately you can get these in cans, and are soft right away - butter beans, kidney beans, chick peas, borlotti beans, just look around on the shelves
You can get frozen broad beans and there might be other things, just check in the frozen food dept
A while ago I bought some cheap baked beans that I didn't like, so I use them up in the soup; similarly I tried some sugar free baked beans that tasted awful. I don't eat baked beans that often, and I reckon that those with sugar now and again won't do me much harm

In answer to your question, the sauce in the baked beans seems to thicken the stew enough, if I don't use them I add some soup mix, which contains barley. That thickens it, but I don't add pasta, potatoes, flour or anything else that is mostly carbohydrate so I reckon that the small amount you eat won't be much of a problem
I had some crispbreads I didn't like, so I added one, crumbled up, which just blended into the background, and that also thickened it

Like I said, it's a using up soup, just use your imagination and make it up as you go along
I used to make it in a pan or a casserole pot in the oven, but a few months ago I got a cheap 3,5 l slow cooker, and that works very well
You'll notice there isn't any meat, it just seems to work well enough without any. You could add stewing steak or leftover chicken if you wanted
I haven't checked specifically, but if you Search YouTube there are lots of recipes for soups, stews, and a slow cooker
Finally, there is a definite tendency for it to get bigger! I dispense it into individual portions and freeze it
 
Hi Zulu I live alone also, but I have no problem with food, although in the past six months or so veg and salad items do not keepin my fridge as long as they always have done, things just seem to go off very quickly.
 
zuludog said:
I live on my own, and I have a slight problem with veg & salads
If I buy reasonable quantities I end up having cabbage every meal for days, or the salads start to go off unless, again, I have a salad every meal for a week, or something like that - you get the idea
The alternative is to buy 3 mushrooms, or 2 carrots and so on, which immediately marks me down as a sad old man

So for ages now, I have made a leftover soup - cum - stew -
Start with onions, celery, and leek if you have it; garlic if you like it; fry gently, then add anything else available; even lettuce & cucumber are OK if you chop them fine, they just disappear into the background
Buy a few root veg or a stew pack if you don't have enough veg
Add a can of chopped tomatoes; include some stock and water. Season with herbs, S&P as required

I can cook small pulses like yellow peas and red lentils, but I've never had much success with larger pulses like kidney beans or chick peas. Fortunately you can get these in cans, and are soft right away - butter beans, kidney beans, chick peas, borlotti beans, just look around on the shelves
You can get frozen broad beans and there might be other things, just check in the frozen food dept
A while ago I bought some cheap baked beans that I didn't like, so I use them up in the soup; similarly I tried some sugar free baked beans that tasted awful. I don't eat baked beans that often, and I reckon that those with sugar now and again won't do me much harm

In answer to your question, the sauce in the baked beans seems to thicken the stew enough, if I don't use them I add some soup mix, which contains barley. That thickens it, but I don't add pasta, potatoes, flour or anything else that is mostly carbohydrate so I reckon that the small amount you eat won't be much of a problem
I had some crispbreads I didn't like, so I added one, crumbled up, which just blended into the background, and that also thickened it

Like I said, it's a using up soup, just use your imagination and make it up as you go along
I used to make it in a pan or a casserole pot in the oven, but a few months ago I got a cheap 3,5 l slow cooker, and that works very well
You'll notice there isn't any meat, it just seems to work well enough without any. You could add stewing steak or leftover chicken if you wanted
I haven't checked specifically, but if you Search YouTube there are lots of recipes for soups, stews, and a slow cooker
Finally, there is a definite tendency for it to get bigger! I dispense it into individual portions and freeze it
Click to expand...
I like making my own version of soup. Often with a chicken but I cheat with a Cup-a soup. Say Leek. But I put a Leek in it with added garlic etc. Good this time of year 🙂
 
I made chicken soup yesterday in a big pot, had no celery which I always think is great for flavour enhancement, also no leaks which I love. That being said, it was my intention to have some and put the rest in freezer, but kept going back to the pot throughout the day, so put the remainder in fridge. The bad thing I did was have white crusty bread with it.
 
I love soup, and bought a soup maker which will make a good 3 portions and takes 20 or so minutes when I come in from work. I also live alone so end up having same veggies day in and out. Can’t buy crusty bread or would be a pig
 
Yes I know what you mean I love crusty bread so it was a real treat!
 
French Onion Soup Four portions
Chop four onions and fry very gently in a mix of oil and butter until soft and golden. Add more butter if it seems likely to stick.
Add garlic if you want once they are nearly done.
mix in about a tablespoon of plain flour and fry for another minute or so.
add your stock, small amount at first and stir well. I usually use the knorr rich beef stockpots x2 made up with a litre of water
simmer for a couple of minutes.

guesstimate 15g carb per portion.
 
SkinnyLiz said:
French Onion Soup Four portions
Chop four onions and fry very gently in a mix of oil and butter until soft and golden. Add more butter if it seems likely to stick.
Add garlic if you want once they are nearly done.
mix in about a tablespoon of plain flour and fry for another minute or so.
add your stock, small amount at first and stir well. I usually use the knorr rich beef stockpots x2 made up with a litre of water
simmer for a couple of minutes.

guesstimate 15g carb per portion.
Click to expand...
Sounds yummy
 
Making one of my comfort foods. Cowboy hotpot. Really tasty and easy to make. A winter warmer
 
Last night I made a batch of tomato soup for the rest of the weeks lunches. It's not my own recipe but I don't know where I got it as I have done it for years, and it might have changed. Makes about 4 serving.

8 very ripe tomatoes
4 cloves of garlic (or as much as you like, I put 8 in last night 😛)
2 red onions
1 tbsp balsamic
1 tbsp olive oil
seasoning

Chuck all this in the oven on about 200 for 30 minutes, till its little charred on top.

Whilst waiting for this prep 750mls of either veg or chicken stock with the recommended cubes.
Once the tomatoes are out the oven let it all cool a bit before putting in the blender/hand blender.
Chuck it all into the blender and add 1 tsp brown sugar (optional) 1 tbsp tomato puree, seasoning and either 10g fresh basil or if you don't have it dried and then blitz it up.

Then I simmer it for about 30 mins if eating straight away or longer if making in advance.

Can also add some spices as you feel, like paprika or chili or make it more herby and it's very tasty.

I dont know all the carb details or anything but its not that expensive to make and I generally have it all in. Everyone likes it, even the fussy child.
 
Chicken noodle soup. 4 servings
Keeps for about 4 days in fridge. Can freeze the soup without the noodles and second part of ingredients.

1 pack of mushrooms (optional) sliced
1 red onion chopped as you like
2 cooked chicken breasts or equivalent or parts – chopped into bite size pieces
2 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. grated ginger/ or dried (less)
1.2 litres of chicken stock
Volume of sweet corn to preference I add about 1 large tin but frozen works too, best judged by eye
3 garlic cloves crushed
2 tsp. corn flour mixed with 1 tsp. water to form a paste

50 – 100g cooked noodles any type. Mr C likes egg noodles I like rice
10g (or some) coriander chopped
15g spring onions chopped
Some (based on taste) chillies chopped

Add Mushrooms, onion, garlic, soy sauce, ginger chicken and stock sweet corn, garlic to a large lidded pan and mix. Make corn flour paste as per above and add to the pan.Season to taste.
Simmer for 20 – 25 minutes with lid on.

Check seasoning. Add cooked noodles to empty bowls, place coriander, chilli and spring onions on top of noodles, when soup cooked place on top of noodles.

Also works with other meat or veg, very good for swapping about.

Serve on own or with prawn crackers and other goodies.

Again I don't know carbs or those details
 
Sounds really tasty, not carby either. Will be trying this once tomatoes are actually ripe, not just red.
 
I just get a big pot, open up the freezer and look for something meaty to drop in the bottom, open the fridge and throw in as much as will fit, not cheese. If the pot is not full look in the freezer again for a bag of low carb frozen veges.
Top up with water or stock and heat gently for some time.
I put the Bamix stick blender into the pot with the chopping blade on and whizz until suitably chopped. Divide up and freeze in daily portions.
I suggest that the seasoning is added later, after defrosting as the flavour can be affected by freezing.
 
Spiced Winter Vegetable Soup.
Quantities can vary according to what you have.
one onion
one or two sticks of celery
two to four carrots
piece of swede. usually use about a quarter of one
Any other vegetables lying about in the fridge eg peppers, spring onions, leeks.
Vegetable stock, or chicken.
one or two teaspoons of curry powder. could use chilli, whatever you fancy instead.

Version One (Spiced no greens)
finely chop the onion and celery
peel and finely chop the carrots, swede and whatever else you are using.
fry all the chopped veg in oil and or butter until starting to soften
add the curry powder/ chilli and fry for about two minutes, stirring so it doesn't stick too much to the pan
add stock, about a litre, small amount at first, then bring to boil and simmer for about 30 minutes.
Check that the carrots and swede are soft, then blend.

Version two, using some green leafy veg.
same as above, except
finely shred the green veg. keep separate.
fry all the rest as above
use herbs instead of curry and add into the stock
after 20-25 mins simmering add the shredded greens
simmer five mins or until greens are cooked
best not to blend this version.
 
Annette&Bertie said:
At this time of year I could have soup as my every meal so long as it’s good, thick and tasty.
I haven’t made soup in such a long time, buying ready made instead, but now I want to make it, that way I know the ingredients, from a tab point of view. I used to put barley in as it’s a good thickener, but I am unsure if I should.

Anyone got any good soup ingredients and recipes, and is barley ok?
Click to expand...


Getting back to your original question.... I always use Pearl Barley in all my home made soups but never tried it in a soup maker. I use my slow cooker or a pan on top of the cooker.


John.
 
Hi John
I could say ditto, because there are only 2ways I ever make soup. I don’t have a soup maker, frankly it wouldn’t make enough soup for me, I only ever use my slow cooker or a large stock pot on the stove, and I always freeze some. I also use pearl barley, in fact my favourite soup is chicken with veg and pearl barley. I am not a red meat eater, pork or lamb. Since I was 5 years old, I have only ever eaten fish and chicken. I always remember when I was a teenager my mother telling me that when I was little she thought I was veggie because veg and fruit were the only foods I never turned my nose up at. This was long before it was the thing to be a vegetarian or even a vegan, I could never be the latter as I like my cheese and dairy too much
 
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