Description
Creamy potato leek soup from France offers a comforting classic with simple ingredients. Rich flavors blend seamlessly, inviting you to savor each spoonful of this elegant, hearty dish.
Ingredients
Scale
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 4 – 5 medium russet or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced
- 3 tbsps unsalted butter
- 3 large leeks, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup heavy cream or half-and-half
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp dried thyme or a few sprigs of fresh thyme
- 1 diced carrot
- 1 diced celery stalk
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Chopped chives or parsley, for garnish
- Olive oil, for drizzling
- Optional: crispy bacon
- Optional: grated Parmesan
- Optional: sour cream
Instructions
- Heat a spacious pot over medium temperature, gently melt butter until it transforms into a silky liquid.
- Carefully introduce chopped leeks into the melted butter, allowing them to soften and become translucent, approximately 5-7 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook for an additional minute, releasing its aromatic essence.
- Incorporate diced potatoes, vegetable broth, fragrant bay leaf, and delicate thyme into the pot. Elevate the heat until the mixture reaches a vigorous boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer.
- Allow the ingredients to meld and potatoes to tenderize, approximately 15-20 minutes, ensuring they’re fork-soft and easily mashed.
- Carefully extract the bay leaf from the simmering liquid, preserving the soup’s smooth consistency.
- Transform the soup’s texture using an immersion blender or standard blender, creating either a velvety smooth experience or maintaining rustic potato chunks according to preference.
- Enrich the soup with a luxurious splash of heavy cream, enhancing its silky profile. Season judiciously with salt and freshly ground black pepper to balance flavors.
- Ladle the warm soup into serving bowls, adorning with freshly chopped chives or parsley. Finish with a delicate drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
- Optional: Elevate the dish with crispy bacon fragments, freshly grated Parmesan, or a dollop of tangy sour cream for additional complexity.
Notes
- Optimize leek cleaning by slicing them in half lengthwise and rinsing thoroughly under running water to remove hidden dirt and sand.
- Swap heavy cream with coconut milk or plant-based alternatives for a dairy-free version that maintains creamy consistency.
- Enhance soup’s depth by roasting potatoes and leeks before adding to the pot, which caramelizes vegetables and intensifies flavor profiles.
- Create texture variations by partially blending the soup, leaving some potato chunks for a rustic, hearty feel that adds interesting mouthfeel.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner, Appetizer, Snacks
- Method: Simmering
- Cuisine: French
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
- Calories: 160 kcal
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 150 mg
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated Fat: 4.5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 18 g
- Fiber: 2.5 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 25 mg