Austrian Homestyle Generic Vegetable Soup
Submitted by tredhead
This Austrian homestyle vegetable soup starts with a butter-flour roux for body, then simmers potatoes, carrots, and broccoli in a savory broth. Thick, warming, and endlessly adaptable to whatever’s in your fridge.
YIELD
4 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
40 minREADY
60 minIn Austria, a good vegetable soup starts the same way every time: butter melted in a pot, flour stirred in until it puffs, and then the magic begins.
This roux-based approach gives the broth a silky thickness that water-based soups just can’t match. It coats the vegetables and makes every spoonful feel substantial.
Toss in potatoes, carrots, onions, and broccoli, and you’ve got a proper weeknight supper that pairs with nothing more than a crusty hunk of bread.
The beauty of this recipe is its flexibility. The directions include built-in variations, so you can adapt it to whatever vegetables are sitting in your crisper drawer.
Kitchen Tips
- Stir the flour constantly once it hits the butter. You’re making a roux, and it needs even heat to cook out the raw flour taste without burning.
- Cut your vegetables into similar-sized dice so they cook at the same rate. Big chunks of potato next to tiny carrot bits means uneven texture.
- Add delicate vegetables like broccoli or peas last. They only need a minute or two and will turn to mush if they simmer too long.
Variations
- Mushroom and Asparagus: Use less flour and bouillon, add a dash of sugar, and skip the onion. Start with asparagus, add mushrooms and peas near the end.
- Potato and Onion: When that’s all you’ve got, add a quarter teaspoon of caraway seeds at the simmering stage for an earthy, warming twist.
Ingredients
Directions
Melt butter over medium heat.
Add flour, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes puffy.
Add water, bouillon powder, onions, potatoes and carrots.
Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are almost done (about 5 to 6 minutes).
Add broccoli and return to boil. Simmer for another minute. Makes 3 large servings (which with a chunk of French bread or the like would make a hearty meal, quantity-wise. ) VARIATIONS: For thinner soup, use less flour. For vegetables with a more delicate flavor, use less bouillon powder. If using sliced mushrooms, asparagus and frozen or fresh green peas as vegetables, use slightly less flour, slightly less bouillon powder, and a dash of sugar. (Start with the asparagus, adding peas and mushrooms when asparagus is almost done. No onion in that one, BTW, it would overwhelm the other flavors. ) If all you’ve got is potatoes and onions, add quarter teaspoon caraway seeds early on (when you reduce to simmering).
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