A nourishing seasonal vegetable soup to satisfy on the chilliest of autumn days.
Drop-lid method
This cooking method originates from Japan where they use a traditional wooden drop-lid called Otoshibuta. Cooking this way evenly distributes the heat and prevents evaporation. The drop-lid forces the liquids to circulate and the ingredients cook evenly and quickly as they absorb the delicious flavours.
In this soup recipe a little oil is added to the bottom of the pan to prevent the food from sticking during cooking, then a drop-lid is placed inside the pan. As there is little liquid in the pan the regular saucepan lid is also used and placed on top to seal the saucepan to prevent evaporation.
The vegetables are layered and a little salt is being added to release the liquid and flavours from the vegetables during cooking.
You’ll need
A heavy bottom saucepan and lid,
Le Creuset or similar.
A saucepan lid slightly smaller than the pot.
A hand blender.
Ingredients
1 Onion
2 Garlic cloves
1 Celery stick
1 Leek, whites only
2 Carrots
½ Butternut Squash
½ tsp turmeric
1 bay leaf
Olive oil
500ml vegetable stock
Prepare the vegetables
Don’t be too fussy about the sizes of the vegetables, as all the ingredients will be blended.
Dice the onion and chop the garlic.
Wash and slice the celery and leek whites.
Wash and cut the carrots.
Peel, deseed and cut the butternut squash into small chunks.
Layer the vegetables
Firstly, add a little olive or coconut oil to the bottom of the pan, then place onions and garlic, seasoning with a little salt as you layer the vegetables. Adding leeks and celery, then carrots and butternut squash on top. Place the drop-lid inside the pan resting on top of the vegetables and place the regular pot lid on too. Place your saucepan on the heat diffuser under a low heat for about 15 minutes until the vegetables are soft. The inner lid will become hot, so remember to use oven gloves.
Avoid removing the lid during cooking as this will allow the moisture to escape.
Add the stock to cover the vegetables and simmer through until cooked. Then blend adding more stock and seasoning, if required, to reach the desired constituency and flavour.
Garnish with black pepper and coriander leaf or toasted pumpkin and sunflower seeds and drizzle of ginger juice for an extra zing!
Create your own soup recipe using seasonal organic root vegetables!