Green Olive Soup

Green olive soup is the kind of starter that gets people leaning across the table to ask what’s in it. Briny, creamy, with just enough sherry warmth and Tabasco kick to wake the palate up before the main course shows up.

Soaking the olives for an hour is the move that makes or breaks this soup. Straight from the jar, olives are too aggressively salty and acidic to puree into a base. The cold-water bath pulls out the harsh brine and leaves behind the deeper olive flavor you actually want. Don’t skip it.

A classic flour-and-oil roux thickens the soup to a velvety body. Whisk it in slowly while the soup simmers, otherwise you get lumps that won’t whisk out. Heavy cream adds richness right after, smoothing the brine into something silky.

The last layer is what gives the soup its identity. Reserve a third of the olives chopped and stir them in at the end so you get pieces in every spoonful, plus dry sherry and a few shots of Tabasco for backbone.

Top each bowl with a sliced pimento-stuffed olive and a few garlic croutons for color and crunch.

Kitchen Tips

• Use Spanish manzanilla or Castelvetrano olives for the cleanest flavor. Avoid Kalamata. The dark color muddies the soup.
• Make the roux in a separate pan, not the soup pot. Cook the flour in oil for 2 minutes until it smells nutty, then whisk into the simmering broth.
• Don’t boil after adding cream. A simmer is fine. Boiling can break the cream.
• Make ahead. The flavor improves overnight as the olive notes deepen.

Variations

• Use vegetable stock instead of chicken for a vegetarian version.
• Swap the sherry for dry vermouth for a slightly more herbal, drier finish.
• Stir in a tablespoon of capers at the end for an even brinier kick.