The best soups are made with a blending of many flavors. Don't be afraid of experimenting with them, since a large number of successful varieties can be produced. A little good sherry added to almost any soup just before serving can work wonders. A dry white wine should be used for most soups that call for wine as a cooking ingredient. Red wine can act as a substitute if necessary.
Sauvignon Blanc Black Mussel Soup
Clean black mussels and put them in a large pot with chopped onions, garlic, parsley, and a bunch of fresh thyme. Pour in half a bottle of sauvignon blanc or any other good dry white wine. Cover and put on high heat to cook. Shells will start to open after 5 minutes of simmering. Discard those that don't open. Serve with crusty white bread to soak up the liquid.
Lobster Bisque with Dry Sherry & Croutons
Keep all the crayfish shell to make this soup. Crush the shells and put them in a large, deep pot. Then flambe in brandy. Add 4 cups of water and boil for about 20 minutes. In the meantime saute chopped onion in butter and olive oil in another pan with diced carrots. Cook until soft. Add a cup of tomato puree and cook for 5 minutes. Add a teaspoon of sugar, paprika, half a cup of dry sherry, a teaspoon of curry powder, salt, black pepper and a dash of tabasco. Strain the crayfish shell stock and add to the tomato mixture. Then add a tub of cream just before serving the soup hot with croutons. The soup may be liquidized for a smooth texture or left as is. Crayfish legs can be used to decorate the soup tureen and the individual soup bowls.
Abalone or Perlemoen soup
2 l (8 cups) fish
fumet
1 l (4 cups) carved basil
leaves
2 (⅓ cup) yellow
carrots cut into strips
600 g steamed abalone
cut into thin strips
250 ml (1cup) finely
cut coriander leaves or 250 ml sliced parsley mixed with 3 ml (⅓ tea spoon)
garam masala
salt and freshly
ground white pepper
Place all the
ingredients, except 60 ml (¼ cup) of the coriander in a pot. Heat to boiling
point and let simmer for ten minutes until the carrots are tender. Dish up in a
tureen and garnish with the rest of the coriander.
An assortment of world soups
Avgolemono : Greek
chicken-and-lemon soup thickened with beaten egg.
Bisque : thick French
shellfish soup.
Borscht : Russian
beetroot soup.
Chowder : thick U.S.
soup made with shellfish or fish.
Cock-a-leekie :
Scottish soup of chicken and leek.
Consommé : clear
stock-based soup.
Gazpacho : spicy
Spanish vegetable soup, usually served chilled.
Gumbo : African,
Caribbean, and U.S.
thickened with okra.
Madrilène : French
tomato-flavored consommé, usually served chilled.
Minestrone : Italian
vegetable soup with bacon and rice or pasta.
Mulligatawny :
curry-flavored soup of Anglo-Indian origin.
Potage : thick soup.
Pot-au-feu : thick
French soup of vegetables and meat, sometimes with pasta or rice.
Vichyssoise : thick
soup of leek and potato, usually served chilled.