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Pub/hotel soup

[Deleted User]

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!

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White Clover

LilacNails wrote: »

I bought veg soup in Aldi... New Grange *I think that's what it's called*. It's a big tub for 3euro. I thought of this thread while downing it, it is exactly like the bar/hotel soup this thread is about. Have bought it 4/5timea since, should be a lot more but a lot of the time it's already out of stock! And it's made in Ireland!

I bought this after reading your post. I didnt like it at all, it just tasted like salt!
Saying that, for the previous 3 days, we had homemade vegetable soup made by my sister that tasted just like pub/restaurant soup without the salt, it was divine!
I have asked her to send me her recipe!

[Deleted User]

Is there anything to be said for cooking veg soup for a few hours on the lowest heat in a saucepan? I know the veg can be done in 25 mins, just wondering if cooking it longer yields any extra benefits the way a stew would? I would end up blending it either way.

HeidiHeidi

Deleted User wrote: »

Is there anything to be said for cooking veg soup for a few hours on the lowest heat in a saucepan? I know the veg can be done in 25 mins, just wondering if cooking it longer yields any extra benefits the way a stew would? I would end up blending it either way.

I don't think so - and in fact, have often wondered the reverse - is anything lost in "overcooking" the veg, given that any nutrients leach into the liquid which is blended into the soup anyhow?

[Deleted User]

Big pot of this on the go right now, given the day that's in it. Nice sourdough loaf and a bit of cheese and dinner is done.

con747

I have stock pot of Spicy Carrot/Coriander soup on as well. Lunches for the week and some for the freezer. I have started to make it very thick and thin it out after blending with milk and find it's very nice. Don't use full fat milk though because it can curdle.

whatawaster

spent years trying to make soup to match the taste of the pub/hotel offerings already mentioned here.

Always turned out bland and tasteless.

Watched Marco Pierre White make soup and he added about 4 knorr stock pots. I know he's paid

So I started adding 2 stockpots instead of 1

Completely transformed the soup. From tasteless, to (imo) restaurant quality.

I'm sure the salt content is through the roof. It may ultimately kill me, but the soup tastes amazing.

I only add a couple of pinches of salt to the onions at the start. No other salt added at all, just the 2 stock pots.

Feisar

whatawaster wrote: »

spent years trying to make soup to match the taste of the pub/hotel offerings already mentioned here.

Always turned out bland and tasteless.

Watched Marco Pierre White make soup and he added about 4 knorr stock pots. I know he's paid

So I started adding 2 stockpots instead of 1

Completely transformed the soup. From tasteless, to (imo) restaurant quality.

I'm sure the salt content is through the roof. It may ultimately kill me, but the soup tastes amazing.

I only add a couple of pinches of salt to the onions at the start. No other salt added at all, just the 2 stock pots.

The difference between beautiful and bland is often down to seasoning.

the beer revolu

whatawaster wrote: »

I only add a couple of pinches of salt to the onions at the start. No other salt added at all, just the 2 stock pots.

Reminds me of my Dad (a salt fiend).

Me: Wooah, this is salty!!
Dad: I didn't put any salt in it.
Me: Well, how is it so salty?
Dad: Well, I'm telling you that I didn't put any salt in it!
Me: How many stock cubes??
Dad: 4.

He drove me feckin bonkers but I miss my dad!

Faith

My favourite was a co-worker who banged on about how bad for you salt is, and he was very proud of the fact that he and his family used NO salt when cooking.

He told me this as he munched through two bags of Doritos.

I felt sorry for his kids, growing up eating such bland food :eek:.

[Deleted User]

People have no idea how much salt they use full stop. Old housemates of mine felt the need to interject when they saw me salting chips, even when I explained I had the nozzle to the side and was during out feck all. The same people making a sauce would chat to you while salt was flowing freely from the same container.

Yyhhuuu

I was given out to by boards moderators for mentioning the very high salt content in bought soup too many times according to them, when I didnt mention it that much at all.
I'm glad the high salt content is being discussed here again. Homemade soup is so much better and so cheap.I use a Knorr stock cube but I'm not so sure that's so healthy either and think I got a headache from it due to MSG. Hope everyone enjoys their soup

con747

Yyhhuuu wrote: »

I was given out to by boards moderators for mentioning the very high salt content in bought soup too many times according to them, when I didnt mention it that much at all.
I'm glad the high salt content is being discussed here again. Homemade soup is so much better and so cheap.I use a Knorr stock cube but I'm not so sure that's so healthy either and think I got a headache from it due to MSG. Hope everyone enjoys their soup

If you look back on your posts you will find you mention how bad salt is and how unhealthy food people are posting about is a lot. I don't post on the food forum to be judged or told how to eat the way some other people do. I will eat what I want when I want and be very comfortable in doing so.

Liamalone

I love soup, anything creme or broth or gruell is usually the other days soup.

AidoEirE

Worked in hotel kitchens as a chef for years. A lot of the soup came from the mash, carrots and brocoli that woulda been left over from weddings or a service. Our soup used to fly out the door and with a crispy white roll was great. I worked with a polish lady that made the best brown bread, like insane. Treacle and bits of crushed up pecans she used to add. Savage stuff I'm not a fan of nuts at all.

Our veg was cooked fresh everyday but whatever we had from the day before that wasn't used, soup for the day after.

With mash, in a hotel setting because its made on a greater output that'll have to last you half the day (would make more throughout the evening) plenty of butter and seasoning used.

A buttery mash with right amount of seasoning i could live on, the potatoe is the food of gods, like eggs, so versatile.

All our veg was steamed rather than boiled so that helped keep the veg flavour rather than loosing it while boiling as you loose a lot of the flavour when pouring the water out of the pan. A lot of flavour and nutrients in that water.

A good tip, next time your doing a Sunday roast or something, keep that water from veg aside for the gravy, a lot of flavour there.

If your making mash, throw in 1 or 2 cloves of garlic into the pot while boiling the spuds, get a nice garlicy mash then thats not to strong and keep it for mashing with the spuds, dont pick it out.

When adding butter to mash, break down the mash with a masher, then when somewhat smooth, use a whisk to add the butter taking the pan off and on the heat until its smashing. Salt and heavy pepper.

Went on a mash rant there but I love the stuff.

Edit: just to add also, oven roast the garlic in salt wrapped in tin foil then add the mash. Savage

the beer revolu

I, inadvertently, made my potato and asparagus soup like a hotel soup - I put too much salt in it:eek:

rubadub

Yyhhuuu wrote: »

I'm glad the high salt content is being discussed here again. Homemade soup is so much better and so cheap.I use a Knorr stock cube but I'm not so sure that's so healthy either and think I got a headache from it due to MSG.

What stock cube was this? I just checked the standard Knorr ones and none have any added MSG as I suspected, and all have salt as the main ingredient.

Do you think the headaches are from the salt? or naturally occurring MSG? do you get it eating foods high in natural glutamate?

[Deleted User]

It's soup time again b1tches. 😃 Got a nice pot of creamy goodness on the go for lunch time.

whippet

I have my go too soup recipe and now is the start of the season for it.

Homemade stock from chicken bones left over from sunday roast.

Bring stock to temp and add onion, garlic, celery, carrot, fresh parsley and two red chilies (seeds included) - all finely chopped. - simmer for 20 mins. Dice up three to four chicken breasts (or ideally left over roast chicken) .. simmer for another 20mins removing any fat that may creep to the top.

To this i usually add either some cooked rice, small potatoes or egg noodles - depending on that people want !

Then it is each to their own with regards to adding either a little soy, lea and perrins, Tabasco ... or what ever takes their fancy.

The kids love it !

Gloomtastic!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117837267#Comment_117837267

I would love to add chillis to my soup but I can hear the howls of protest! 😔

This thread has been a revaluation to me with the addition of potatoes. It really does make a huge difference. If I haven’t got leftover mash, I just dice some raw ones, skins and all and chuck them in.

Tree

sooooooooooooooooooup season!!!

You could go with chilli sauce or oil at the end? Though I find the pinch of chilli I add to mine is barely perceptible as a mild warmth in the background

[Deleted User]

Bit of Lidl cheesy loaf in the background. Happy days.

Patsy167

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117983324#Comment_117983324

Looks great - What recipe did you go with?

[Deleted User]

This pot was:

6 medium spuds

1 onion

1 carrot

1 stick of celery

2 leeks

Sweated in butter. Salt, white pepper and 2 Knorr chicken jelly stock pots. Covered with boiling water, simmered until vegetables were soft, then blended and served with a dash of cream.

[Deleted User]

I'm back on my bullshit again with another pot of this glorious soup on the hob :D

Unknownability

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122687174#Comment_122687174

How much water do you add?

[Deleted User]

Just enough to cover the veg. Best to err on less rather than more as you can always add more water if it's too thick, but you can't do the opposite.

It was delicious. Had it for lunch yesterday and today with lots of crusty bread.

TheKBizzle

This is pretty much an industry standard in a lot of places if you can get your hands on it. Then just make a soup with whatever usually potato heavy and you get similar results

igCorcaigh

Sould turnip go in a soup like this? I just bought one to try…

My old school canteen used to do cups of hot vegetable soup which I loved, and I think they used turnip and cabbage. I tend not to like too much potato in a soup of this kind.

the beer revolu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122694651#Comment_122694651

I think you could use turnip, alright, but I'd be wary of too much. It could dominate flavour quite easily, I'd say.

jippo nolan

the old staff canteen in Dublin Airport served soup in slices!