Leek soup
.jpg) Leek and potato soup | |
| Type | Soup |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Numerous cuisines |
| Serving temperature | Usually hot |
| Main ingredients | Leeks, potatoes, stock or water. |
Leek soup, or usually leek and potato soup, is common to the cuisines of many places. It is made from leeks and other vegetables simmered in water or stock. It usually includes potatoes, and sometimes onions and garlic. It may be enriched with milk or cream. It is usually served hot; chilled, it is the basis of vichyssoise.
Background
[edit]Leek soup is a traditional staple of many cuisines. A 1771 reference book lists the Italian porrata, "a leek-soup or pottage". A Scottish cook, Susanna MacIver, included leek soup in her 1782 Cookery and Pastry; a Welsh version, cawl cennin – "leek pottage or porridge" – is recorded in 1794;[1] a German-English dictionary from 1796 refers to Lauchsuppe, "leek pottage".[2] Maria Rundell's Domestic Cookery (1808) gives a recipe for "Scotch Leek Soup", thickened with oatmeal.[3]
French leek and potato soup is called potage Parmentier (in honour of the man who popularised potatoes in France) and soupe à la bonne femme.[4] Elizabeth David (1984) refers to "every French housewife's potato and leek soup".[5] Porrusalda is a Basque leek soup, typically using the same ingredients as the versions from elsewhere.[6] In Spain the soup is known as sopa de puerros y patatas.[7]
Contents
[edit]Leeks are common to all recipes. Some recipes use only the white part; others, both the white and the green. Potatoes are nearly ubiquitous. Other ingredients vary.
 | The examples and perspectives in this section deal primarily with US and Western Europe and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (October 2026) |
| Writer | Cooking liquid | Other ingredients | Enrichment | Garnish | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Beard | chicken stock | potato | butter | nutmeg, cayenne | [8] |
| Simone Beck et al | water | potato, onion | cream | parsley or chives | [9] |
| Mary Berry | chicken or vegetable stock | potato, onion | cream | chives or parsley | [10] |
| Robert Carrier | chicken stock | potato | cream | chives | [11] |
| Julia Child | water | potato | cream | chives | [citation needed] |
| Craig Claiborne | chicken stock | potato, onion | cream | chives | [12] |
| Auguste Escoffier | white stock | potato | milk and butter | croutons | [13] |
| Jane Grigson | water | potato, onion, garlic | [14] | ||
| Jeff Koehler | chicken stock or water | potato, carrot | olive oil | [15] | |
| Prosper Montagné | stock | potato | butter | chervil | [16] |
| Simone Ortega | water | potato | stock | [7] | |
| Jacques Pépin | chicken stock and water | potato | butter | parsey or chervil, gruyère | [17] |
| Maria Rundell | water | oatmeal | [18] | ||
| Delia Smith | milk and chicken stock or water | potato, onion | cream | chives | [19] |
References
[edit]- ↑ Walters, p. 874
- ↑ Bailey, p. 422
- ↑ Rundell, p. 104
- ↑ "Potage Parmentier", Le Journal des Femmes. Retrieved 21 June 2025; and Escoffier, p. 259
- ↑ David, p. 40
- ↑ Koehler, p. 26
- 1 2 Ortega, recipe no. 125
- ↑ Beard, p. 368
- ↑ Beck et al, p. 36
- ↑ "Mary Berry Leek and Potato Soup Recipe", Mary Berry Recipes. Retrieved 21 June 2025
- ↑ Carrier, p. 57
- ↑ Claiborne, p. 102
- ↑ Escoffier, p. 259
- ↑ Grigson, p. 302
- ↑ Koehler, p. 26
- ↑ Montagné, p. 915
- ↑ "Recipe: Jacques Pépin's Rustic Leek and Potato Soup". Kitchn. Archived from the original on 2025-08-21. Retrieved 2026-02-19.
- ↑ Rundell, p. 104
- ↑ Smith, pp. 97–98
Sources
[edit]- Bailey, Nathan (1796). Dictionary English-German and German-English. Leipzig: Friedrich Frommann. OCLC 5894344299.
- Baretti, Joseph (1771). A Dictionary of the English and Italian Languages. London: W. Strahan and others. OCLC 612508227.
- Beard, James (1995). James Beard Cookbook. New York: Angle. ISBN 1-56649-325-0., Publication date Publisher:
- Beck, Simone; Louisette Bertholle; Julia Child (2012) [1961]. Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume One. London: Particular. ISBN 978-0-241-95339-6.
- Carrier, Robert (1963). Great Dishes of the World. New York: Random House. OCLC 847789515.
- Claiborne, Craig (1973). A Kitchen Primer. London: Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-046172-5.
- David, Elizabeth (1986) [1984]. An Omelette and a Glass of Wine. London: Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-046721-5.
- Escoffier, Auguste (1907). A Guide to Modern Cookery. London: Heinemann. OCLC 894114602.
- Grigson, Jane (1998). Jane Grigson's Vegetable Book. London: Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-027323-6.
- Koehler, Jeff (2013). Spain. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. ISBN 9780811875011.
- MacIver, Susanna (1782). Cookery and Pastry. Edinburgh: MacIver. OCLC 562039304.
- Montagné, Prosper (1976). Larousse Gastronomique. London: Hamlyn. OCLC 1285641881.
- Ortega, Simone (1972). 1080 Recetas Cocina (in Spanish). Madrid: Ediciones del Prado. ISBN 9788420609461.
- Pépin, Jacques (2015). Jacques Pépin Heart & Soul in the Kitchen. New York: Harper Collins. ISBN 978-0-544-30198-6.
- Rundell, Maria (1808). A New System of Domestic Cookery. London: John Murray. OCLC 1409083075.
- Smith, Delia (1978). Delia Smith's Complete Cookery Course. London: BBC. ISBN 0-56-336286-3.
- Walters, John (1794). An English-Welsh Dictionary. London: Walters. OCLC 9806966237.
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