Pub/hotel soup

Mystery Egg · 23-10-2020 12:03pm #1

Anyone here worked as a chef in a pub or hotel?

The crappiest pub or hotel always seems to deliver a delicious cream of mixed vegetable soup that is wonderfully savoury.

My cream of veg homemade soups always seem to be sweet, or if I try to counter the sweetness with green veg, kind of bitter.

Can anyone share a recipe to replicate the kind of soup I'm looking for? You might just change my life!

Cork Boy · 23-10-2020 12:20pm

I worked in a pub and it was how we used up left over mash and veg so there was no exact recipe but the following would be typical:

In a large pot add:

Left over spuds/mash
Left over veg (typically carrots, I think I discovered green veg wasn't good)
A raw onion
A raw leek
Chicken Boulion
Enough water to cover well

Cook the bejaysus out of it, blend - add water if needed and adjust seasoning to taste (using more boullion)

Mystery Egg · 23-10-2020 12:28pm

Cork Boy wrote: »

I worked in a pub and it was how we used up left over mash and veg so there was no exact recipe but the following would be typical:

In a large pot add:

Left over spuds/mash
Left over veg (typically carrots, I think I discovered green veg wasn't good)
A raw onion
A raw leek
Chicken Boulion
Enough water to cover well

Cook the bejaysus out of it, blend - add water if needed and adjust seasoning to taste (using more boullion)

No butter/cream?

Cork Boy · 23-10-2020 12:35pm

Mystery Egg wrote: »

No butter/cream?

There would've been some butter and milk in the mash (it was always mash) but I don't know if it was enough to make a difference.

Edit: We'd put a dob of whipped cream into the bottom of the bowl and ladle the soup on top. You get the nice marbling and the soup keeps for longer.

Faith · 23-10-2020 3:17pm

YES! It's the eternal question. It tastes so good, and those little bread rolls are the stuff dreams are made of.

My husband worked in hotels donkeys years ago and I think he said there is a LOT of potato in the soup, so it's closer to potato soup than vegetable.

HeidiHeidi · 23-10-2020 3:24pm

Jaysus, I'd have never ever thought of putting mash into soup!

Nicest veg soup I've made involves onion, celery, cauliflower, carrot and broccoli all sweated in butter, then simmered in beef stock (adds most flavour for my taste, knorr stock pots are the business) seasoned and blitzed, cream added when heating to serve.

I rarely use potato (a throwback to my low carbing days), but cauliflower does as good a job of thickening.

phormium · 23-10-2020 6:54pm

Yes all the veg left over from the day before, when I worked in hotels we also added some soup mix powder to thicken it, usually a plain one without bits, asparagus was a big favourite, practically no taste but nice and white and creamy

Dizzyblonde · 23-10-2020 8:33pm

Lots of potato makes a soup seem really creamy, and I often find that adding a leek makes soup taste much more like one you'd get in a pub or hotel.

L1011 · 23-10-2020 10:26pm

I went down a bit of a soup rabbithole a decade or so ago and found that potato, leek, carrots and a lot of salt and pepper did the job well enough, particularly for copying the Mother Hubbards soup. There'd be less left over veg in a place that mostly shifts frys and burgers but obviously in a hotel its leftover central - essential to keep the kitchen profitable to cut waste to the minimum

Never figured out how to get the rolls right, suspect they're microwaved before service to provide the steaming interior! Generic McCambridges style bread and an obscene amount of butter works as an alternative.

Tree · 24-10-2020 12:06am

I find celery gives the soup a more hotelly flavour too. Can't stand it in normal food but i keep a bag of chopped frozen celery for throwing into soup

Yyhhuuu · 24-10-2020 1:57am

I wonder if veg left over from customers plates is ever re used. Wouldnt be a bit surprised which is why I always prefer homemade. I must add carrots to the leeks and potatoes next time. Would an oxo cube do the trick, although this is unhealthy with Palm fat? It's so cheap to make homemade soup. I use a blender but this is inclined aerate the soup if too aggressively blended.

Pinch Flat · 24-10-2020 2:01am

Have to say I love pub / hotel veg soup. Nice crusty roll, lots of butter on it and a nice dose of pepper- preferably the powdered pepper and not any of that fancy pepper corn ****e from one of those twisty mills. Put a pint of plain beside it and I'm a happy man. Jaysus I've an awful hankering for that just now

Ave Sodalis · 24-10-2020 2:06am

Yyhhuuu wrote:

I wonder if veg left over from customers plates is ever re used. Wouldnt be a bit surprised which is why I always prefer homemade.

Absolutely not. Food left over from customer plates gets scraped straight into a large food waste bin.

Yyhhuuu · 24-10-2020 2:17am

Ave Sodalis wrote: »

Absolutely not. Food left over from customer plates gets scraped straight into a large food waste bin.

Yes in your restaurant kitchen however, I'm quite sure unused food from customers plates is reused. In fact I was told by chefs I know that it was done but dont know how common it is. The same chefs told me they would not eat in lot of restaurants due to poor standards. Just look at reports on the Food Safety Authority website some of which is frightening, rodent activity etc. Remember that video of Rat popping up out of sliced pan in the deli of the Service station. There is/ was apparently a shortage of qualified chefs ( pre covid) and many in restaurants had limited or no training.

Mystery Egg · 24-10-2020 8:29am

Ah let's not focus on food safety horror stories.

Thanks for all the ideas. I never have leftover veg normally because we're savages.

I'm going to try onion, lots of potatoes, carrots, celery, leeks, all sweated in butter and boiled in stock. I had a look for powdered asparagus soup to add but no sign of it. Salt, white pepper, cream to serve. We'll see how close I get.

Ave Sodalis · 24-10-2020 8:30am

Yyhhuuu wrote:

Yes in your restaurant kitchen however, I'm quite sure unused food from customers plates is reused. In fact I was told by chefs I know that it was done but dont know how common it is. The same chefs told me they would not eat in lot of restaurants due to poor standards. Just look at reports on the Food Safety Authority website some of which is frightening, rodent activity etc. Remember that video of Rat popping up out of sliced pan in the deli of the Service station. There is/ was apparently a shortage of qualified chefs ( pre covid) and many in restaurants had limited or no training.

I've genuinely never heard of it. I've actually no idea how you would even manage it. It can be time consuming enough separating the rubbish from the food, nevermind dividing out the food too. It wouldn't be cost effective at all to try and salvage any usable vegetables, not to mention it would take far too long to get enough to make any sort of impact on restaurant quantities of soup.
Maybe the inspector up here was just extra vigilant but they did show up for a spot inspection often enough that keeping poor standards would be difficult, and as far as I know, it's still the same inspector.
I worked with some very experienced staff when I did work in restaurants, and I would have no problem going into somewhere to eat.
I should point out that I have a weird thing about unclean food practices where I often don't eat at a house I've never been at before, until I can establish how they do their dishes. I've gone hungry before, rather than eat. Heck, I've even gone hungry in my own house because someone didn't clean off the plates before putting them in the dishwasher and turning it on. It's a very real problem (part of a much bigger one), but I'd still have no problem eating in a restaurant, unless it's grubby from the get go.

HeidiHeidi · 24-10-2020 8:42am

Mystery Egg wrote: »

Ah let's not focus on food safety horror stories.

Thanks for all the ideas. I never have leftover veg normally because we're savages.

I'm going to try onion, lots of potatoes, carrots, celery, leeks, all sweated in butter and boiled in stock. I had a look for powdered asparagus soup to add but no sign of it. Salt, white pepper, cream to serve. We'll see how close I get.

The quality of the stock is what gives it depth of flavour.

I've tried chichen, veg and beef stock pots (haven't used cubes in years), and beef is definitely my favourite (kinda defeats the purpose of veg soup though if you're after "actual" veg soup!)

Gloomtastic! · 24-10-2020 8:43am

Ave Sodalis wrote: »

I've genuinely never heard of it. I've actually no idea how you would even manage it. It can be time consuming enough separating the rubbish from the food, nevermind dividing out the food too. It wouldn't be cost effective at all to try and salvage any usable vegetables, not to mention it would take far too long to get enough to make any sort of impact on restaurant quantities of soup.
Maybe the inspector up here was just extra vigilant but they did show up for a spot inspection often enough that keeping poor standards would be difficult, and as far as I know, it's still the same inspector.
I worked with some very experienced staff when I did work in restaurants, and I would have no problem going into somewhere to eat.
I should point out that I have a weird thing about unclean food practices where I often don't eat at a house I've never been at before, until I can establish how they do their dishes. I've gone hungry before, rather than eat. Heck, I've even gone hungry in my own house because someone didn't clean off the plates before putting them in the dishwasher and turning it on. It's a very real problem (part of a much bigger one), but I'd still have no problem eating in a restaurant, unless it's grubby from the get go.

:eek:

phormium · 24-10-2020 9:11am

You would seldom see asparagus soup in packets in supermarket, think it was more of a catering thing, if you want a packet leek soup would be similar, we used to sieve the leek soup powder to get the leeks out and use the powder in fish soup

This was years ago now just to clarify, these days you would be getting more specific mixes if using, things a bit more basic back then!

I never saw veg from plates being used but definitely the veg that is served out in separate little bowls to tables, some of them come back practically untouched, awful waste to throw it away and sure after it's boiled up for ages again, waste not want not!

Faith · 24-10-2020 9:17am

Mystery Egg wrote: »

Ah let's not focus on food safety horror stories.

Thanks for all the ideas. I never have leftover veg normally because we're savages.

I'm going to try onion, lots of potatoes, carrots, celery, leeks, all sweated in butter and boiled in stock. I had a look for powdered asparagus soup to add but no sign of it. Salt, white pepper, cream to serve. We'll see how close I get.

Please report back! I think my error with vegetable soup has been using roughly equal ratios of veg when I should have gone heavy on spuds.

chickenlicken2 · 24-10-2020 9:43am

This isnt quite the same but I tried this recently as I just found any time i made soup it was just mushed veg and no flavour. It makes a nice soup.

Roast onion potato carrots celery parsnip etc in the oven when making a roast chicken. Small bit of oil.

Make up a roux (less than 10g flour) mix it up with full fat milk, throw in one of those Knorr jel stock pots and some boiling water, throw in the roast veg and season well. (You need more salt than you think)
Add juices from the roast chicken . Blend and add some of the roast chicken.

Happy4all · 24-10-2020 9:47am

Cork Boy wrote: »

I worked in a pub and it was how we used up left over mash and veg so there was no exact recipe but the following would be typical:

In a large pot add:

Left over spuds/mash
Left over veg (typically carrots, I think I discovered green veg wasn't good)
A raw onion
A raw leek
Chicken Boulion
Enough water to cover well

Cook the bejaysus out of it, blend - add water if needed and adjust seasoning to taste (using more boullion)

Please tell me it's not the leftover mash and veg off customer's plates!

eastie17 · 24-10-2020 9:52am

Cork Boy wrote: »

I worked in a pub and it was how we used up left over mash and veg so there was no exact recipe but the following would be typical:

In a large pot add:

Left over spuds/mash
Left over veg (typically carrots, I think I discovered green veg wasn't good)
A raw onion
A raw leek
Chicken Boulion
Enough water to cover well

Cook the bejaysus out of it, blend - add water if needed and adjust seasoning to taste (using more boullion)

That’s why soup of the day is ALWAYS “cream of vegetable” what does “cream of” anything even mean anyway?

angel eyes 2012 · 24-10-2020 9:56am

Faith wrote: »

Please report back! I think my error with vegetable soup has been using roughly equal ratios of veg when I should have gone heavy on spuds.

Yes, please report back. I always suspect hotel soup is finished with dollops of cream, butter and salt hence why it tastes so superior.

I use carrots in my vegetable soup, usually the pre-chopped kind, however they never seem to cook as quickly as the other veg and I'm left with bits of carrot that the processor cannot blend. Any suggestions?

Musefan · 24-10-2020 9:58am

I got a very similar hotel soup taste recently with the SuperValu soup mix bag and a few florets of frozen broccoli. I add a tin of cannellini beans and boil for ages, then blitz and add cream. I add a bit more stock than I think I need (2.5l for 2 bags of veg)

HeidiHeidi · 24-10-2020 10:10am

angel eyes 2012 wrote: »

Yes, please report back. I always suspect hotel soup is finished with dollops of cream, butter and salt hence why it tastes so superior.

I use carrots in my vegetable soup, usually the pre-chopped kind, however they never seem to cook as quickly as the other veg and I'm left with bits of carrot that the processor cannot blend. Any suggestions?

I add the veg at intervals depending on how long it takes to soften.... if I'm adding broccoli it only needs about 2 or 3 mins or it goes to mush. So try giving your carrots 5 minutes longer than the other veg.

Is it possible there's something added to pre-chopped carrots that would affect their cooking time (like pre-grated cheese has flour or something added to stop it sticking). Fresh carrots are awfully cheap and very easy to chop......

Dial Hard · 24-10-2020 10:13am

Yis are all mad. I don't think I've ever had a hotel/pub veg soup that wasn't over-salted mush.

The rolls are generally par-baked Cuisine de France style bouchons, btw. Lidl and Aldi used to do a bag of similar ones that you finish in the oven, worth checking if they still do for anyone trying to recreate the experience.

phormium · 24-10-2020 10:14am

eastie17 wrote: »

That’s why soup of the day is ALWAYS “cream of vegetable” what does “cream of” anything even mean anyway?

That's just telling you the type of soup, creamy, probably lightish in colour, mainly blended as opposed to a broth type or full of chunky vegetables.

eastie17 · 24-10-2020 10:18am

phormium wrote: »

That's just telling you the type of soup, creamy, probably lightish in colour, mainly blended as opposed to a broth type or full of chunky vegetables.

Thanks, we’ll look at that who would have thought I’d learn something on boards today

amadangomor · 24-10-2020 10:39am

Place I know of would sell a lot of Turkey and Ham so would boil up the Turkey carcasses to make the stock for their soup. Delicious.

phormium · 24-10-2020 10:45am

Turkey stock is the nicest of all! By Christmas Day night I have turkey carcasses in the slow cookers bubbling away.

Cork Boy · 24-10-2020 10:47am

OK a few things....

I'd be shocked if using the leftovers from customer's plates was in anyway widespread. Food is scraped off plates by waiters, not the cooks. Do you know how high turnover is in that job? No way could you keep that any way quiet. There's special food waste bins that either get dumped or even collected by pig farmers.

The leftovers I speak of are what the cook on duty that morning finds in the walk in fridge. That includes leftover (read, unsold) meats that get reused in other dishes (chicken and bacon vol au vents, curry, etc). Veg can also be used for stuff other than soup (fish cakes are a classic) so you would be accusing a kitchen of taking food that would have saliva on it and putting it back onto another plate?

And before anyone gets pissy about "so I'm being sold yesterdays leftovers???" there's a reason the special is so cheap. And secondly, there's nothing wrong with yesterdays food for most things. And thirdly, some things need to be made in big batches well in advance (lamb shanks for example). And fourthly, a lot of dishes were invented as a way to use up leftovers.

Lastly, yes, the pub soups are mostly spuds, water, leek, onion and knorr chicken bullion powder (big catering tub).

Space Dog · 24-10-2020 11:07am

Yyhhuuu wrote: »

Yes in your restaurant kitchen however, I'm quite sure unused food from customers plates is reused. In fact I was told by chefs I know that it was done but dont know how common it is. The same chefs told me they would not eat in lot of restaurants due to poor standards. Just look at reports on the Food Safety Authority website some of which is frightening, rodent activity etc. Remember that video of Rat popping up out of sliced pan in the deli of the Service station. There is/ was apparently a shortage of qualified chefs ( pre covid) and many in restaurants had limited or no training.

My OH used to be a chef and I know quite a few chefs and cooks who work/used to work in restaurants, cafes and industrial catering. I've never heard any of them say that restaurants are reusing leftover food from plates. Not saying it doesn't happen, I have no doubt that barely touched plates have been recycled on occasion, but it's not a done thing.
And btw, all those chefs and cooks I know enjoy eating out.

Back on topic: Soup in pubs and hotels is usually awful, sorry! And I'd be happy if if I never saw veg soup or potato and leek soup on a menu again.

Having said that, one of the nicest soup I've ever had was in a pub, it was a cauliflower and parmesan soup, just delicious.

Mystery Egg · 25-10-2020 10:02am

So there's a soup on the hob that's 4 big spuds, 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 stick of celery, 1 leek. Sweated in butter. Salt. 1 veggie Oxo cube and 1 Knorr jelly pot (because that's all I have).

Cream to serve later.

I've no white pepper and can't be arsed to get any.

We'll see!

CelticRambler · 25-10-2020 10:39am

:eek: Oxo cubes and "soup powder" - youse are heretics, the lot of ye !

Dial Hard · 25-10-2020 10:44am

CelticRambler wrote: »

:eek: Oxo cubes and "soup powder" - youse are heretics, the lot of ye !

Sounds about right for the "authentic" pub soup they're all after for some reason!

Don't forget the addition of a metric sh*t-tonne of salt at the end to truly recreate a pub soup, ME!

Faith · 25-10-2020 11:05am

Dial Hard wrote: »

Yis are all mad. I don't think I've ever had a hotel/pub veg soup that wasn't over-salted mush.

CelticRambler wrote: »

:eek: Oxo cubes and "soup powder" - youse are heretics, the lot of ye !

Dial Hard wrote: »

Sounds about right for the "authentic" pub soup they're all after for some reason!

Don't forget the addition of a metric sh*t-tonne of salt at the end to truly recreate a pub soup, ME!

Ah jaysus, it’s not like we’re all claiming it’s haute cuisine. It’s just a tasty, comforting food that a lot of us remember fondly from years gone past. I’d wager there’s not a poster here who doesn’t have some kind of food guilty pleasure that would horrify other people!

Mystery Egg · 25-10-2020 11:10am

CelticRambler wrote: »

:eek: Oxo cubes and "soup powder" - youse are heretics, the lot of ye !

Correct

Mystery Egg · 25-10-2020 11:11am

I've no time for food snobbery and no shame about eating what tastes good :pac:

wandererz · 25-10-2020 11:12am

Bought an electric soup maker a few years ago.
One of the best kitchen purchases we've made.
It gets used a couple of times times a week to make soup for the week.

Simply chop up vegetables, add in together with other ingredients, choose chunky or smooth and it's done in 20-30mins.

No slaving over a stove/pot.

Quick, easy, healthy soup.

https://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/4391911/Trail/searchtext%3ESOUP+MAKER.htm

We use it so much that we bought the same thing again when we accidentally washed the electric top bit.

Cheaper but just as good version from the same brand:
https://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/8355111/Trail/searchtext%3ESOUP+MAKER.htm

Looking at my Amazon purchases, I paid £30 18 months ago.
That thing is worth it's weight in gold.

Dempo1 · 25-10-2020 11:23am

Mystery Egg wrote: »

Anyone here worked as a chef in a pub or hotel?

The crappiest pub or hotel always seems to deliver a delicious cream of mixed vegetable soup that is wonderfully savoury.

My cream of veg homemade soups always seem to be sweet, or if I try to counter the sweetness with green veg, kind of bitter.

Can anyone share a recipe to replicate the kind of soup I'm looking for? You might just change my life!

The sweetness is more likely the over use of carrots and parsnips, onions too can develop sweetness if over cooked. I worked in hotels and food pubs for years and to be honest if vegetable soup was on, it was pretty much a mix of left over vegetables and mash potatoes.

Boullion is something not readily available outside catering circles but generally offers more flavour than stock cubes sold in retail. (it can be purchased in food cash & carrys, 1KG would last months and great for all sorts of sauces, casseroles etc.

I'd try less carrots & parsnips, Use leek instead of onion and use a good stock cube.

Basic ingredient - method. Think of 3 parts and water.

2/3 mix of preferred vegetables all cut to similar suze (Keep greens seperate until mix comes to boil)

1/3 diced peeled potatoes

Stock and seasoning of White pepoer/Salt and if you like, herbs.

Water ( amount to cover all ingredients & extra) if you think in terms of 1/2 all ingrients, 1/2 water as a guide.

Cream to finish (Pouring) whipped emulsifies causing greasyness.

Place all ingredients (except greens) into pot, seasoning and stock cubes.

Bring to boil, now add greens and simmer for 20 minutes.

If blending, allow to cool a litle and blend.

Return to heat and now add cream ( amount is up to you, pouring, not whipped), don't overly boil.

This is a gluten free method, using starch from potatoes to thicken, if too thick, you can add a little more water or cream. Crucially important as with all sauces and soups, season at the start, not at the end.

When serving, sprinkle a little sea salt and cracked black pepper & enjoy.

the beer revolu · 25-10-2020 11:25am

I'm afraid no amount of testimonies will convince me that a soup maker is actually a useful thing.
If I have a saucepan, a hob and a stick blender, which all have multiple uses, why would I need a soup maker?

Don't get rice cookers either (despite almost every Asian household having one) even though we eat rice pretty much daily.
Had a rice cooker for a while but gave it away - I found no advantage over a saucepan and a timer.

Alun · 25-10-2020 11:30am

the beer revolu wrote: »

I'm afraid no amount of testimonies will convince me that a soup maker is actually a useful thing.
If I have a saucepan, a hob and a stick blender, which all have multiple uses, why would I need a soup maker?

I agree. The time taken preparing all the ingredients, peeling and chopping, is the same either way so I can't see the point.

Mystery Egg · 25-10-2020 11:40am

Mystery Egg wrote: »

So there's a soup on the hob that's 4 big spuds, 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 stick of celery, 1 leek. Sweated in butter. Salt. 1 veggie Oxo cube and 1 Knorr jelly pot (because that's all I have).

Cream to serve later.

I've no white pepper and can't be arsed to get any.

We'll see!

Well folks who knew? The secret to a pub/hotel vegetable soup is the proportion of potatoes, and plenty of salt.

My soup is prepped for lunch and, even without cream, absolutely delicious and just what I was looking for. Extremely simple.

Thanks to all for your input! :pac:

Edited to say: to anyone who might be tempted to follow my above "recipe" (*cough* Faith) on reflection the potatoes would probably be classed as medium rather big. There were no baker-sized potatoes in there.

Mantis Toboggan · 25-10-2020 11:45am

I've made soup most weeks during lockdown.

Soup maker has been a god send. I buy the packets of different veg. I don't peel any of it. Fire it into the soup maker with a stock cube fill with water and 20 minutes later I've enough soup for the entire week. Takes about 25 minutes including cleaning.

I've been making some lovely creamy mushroom soup recently which I'd recommend.

I good veg soup for me would be potatoes, carrots, parsnip, some broccoli, onion and some garlic, touch of salt and a decent shot of pepper and a stock cube. After 20 minutes in the maker add about 3 tablespoons of cream if you want and give it a quick stir. Lovely stuff. Bread Rolls are nice with it but I'd prefer some brown bread and butter as it's healthier.

CelticRambler · 25-10-2020 12:17pm

Faith wrote: »

Ah jaysus, it’s not like we’re all claiming it’s haute cuisine. It’s just a tasty, comforting food that a lot of us remember fondly from years gone past.

What's wrong with a chicken carcass? It's not like you can feed it to the dog, so you might as well eat it yourself!

All this talk has given me a craving for some carrot and potato soup, though. I have the potatoes and onions and dismembered chicken handy, but the carrots are still in the ground and it's raining ...

Mystery Egg · 25-10-2020 1:31pm

So lunch was had. And it was scrumptious!

wandererz · 25-10-2020 1:41pm

Mystery Egg wrote: »

So there's a soup on the hob that's 4 big spuds, 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 stick of celery, 1 leek. Sweated in butter. Salt. 1 veggie Oxo cube and 1 Knorr jelly pot (because that's all I have).

Cream to serve later.

I've no white pepper and can't be arsed to get any.

We'll see!

Tried that just there.
Had just made some fresh mash as well, so threw a bit into the bowl.

Very good, even without the cream.

CelticRambler · 25-10-2020 5:59pm

No Oxo cubes where harmed in the making ... :rolleyes:

Many thanks to the OP for giving me something constructive to do with a wet'n'windy Sunday. 3 litres of carrot soup filed away for future use, and a loaf of fresh brown bread to see me through the week the next few days till tomorrow. It's just like being back in Ireland ... except there's no lock-down here!

Tree · 25-10-2020 10:18pm

if you have a pressure cooker lying around, that always elevates the "vegetable" soup. Also, nothing to lose by blending for a minute longer than you were comfortable with. It's the best. Oh, and a teaspoon of curry powder, not enough that you could identify it, but it's good.

Mervyn Skidmore · 26-10-2020 2:41pm

the beer revolu wrote: »

I'm afraid no amount of testimonies will convince me that a soup maker is actually a useful thing.
If I have a saucepan, a hob and a stick blender, which all have multiple uses, why would I need a soup maker?

Don't get rice cookers either (despite almost every Asian household having one) even though we eat rice pretty much daily.
Had a rice cooker for a while but gave it away - I found no advantage over a saucepan and a timer.

Agree with you about the soup maker but not the rice cooker. Rice cooker ensures perfect rice every time. A pot and a timer won't. Also, you can't accidentally overcook or burn rice with the rice cooker. There's a reason why every Asian family use one.

Pub/hotel soup

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