Tasty Hot-Or-Cold Soup

Full of fiber as well as vitamins and minerals, this versatile “serve it hot or cold” soup is great whatever the weather—give it a try!

You will need

• 1 quart low-sodium vegetable stock—ideally you made this yourself from vegetable offcuts you kept in the freezer until you had enough to boil in a big pan, but failing that, a large supermarket will generally be able to sell you low-sodium stock cubes.
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
• 2 leeks, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 large carrot, diced, or equivalent small carrots, sliced
• 1 zucchini, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 1 tsp thyme
• ¼ bulb garlic, minced
• 1 small piece (equivalent of a teaspoon) ginger, minced
• 1 tsp red chili flakes
• 1 tsp black pepper, coarse ground
• ½ tsp turmeric
• Extra virgin olive oil, for frying
• Optional: ½ tsp MSG or 1 tsp low-sodium salt

About the MSG/salt: there should be enough sodium already from the stock and potatoes, but in case there’s not (since not all stock and potatoes are made equal), you might want to keep this on standby.

Method

(we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

1) Heat some oil in a sauté pan, and add the diced onion, frying until it begins to soften.

2) Add the ginger, potato, carrot, and leek, and stir for about 5 minutes. The hard vegetables won’t be fully cooked yet; that’s fine.

3) Add the zucchini, red pepper, celery, and garlic, and stir for another 2–3 minutes.

4) Add the remaining ingredients; seasonings first, then vegetable stock, and let it simmer for about 15 minutes.

5) Check the potatoes are fully softened, and if they are, it’s ready to serve if you want it hot. Alternatively, let it cool, chill it in the fridge, and enjoy it cold:

Enjoy!

Want to learn more?

For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

• Eat More (Of This) For Lower Blood Pressure
• Our Top 5 Spices: How Much Is Enough For Benefits? ← 5/5 in our recipe today!
• Monosodium Glutamate: Sinless Flavor-Enhancer Or Terrible Health Risk?

Take care!