It was a rainy, cold Saturday in October when we decided to make this hearty, warming soup. This is an incredibly easy soup to make and contains three basic ingredients – potatoes, leeks and stock.
Be sure to give the leeks a good wash – any dirt left in the stalks will make the soup gritty. Cooks Illustrated has good technique for cleaning the dirt out of the leeks. First cut off the dark green portion of the leek. Then slice the leek almost in half lengthwise, leaving a little bit at the root end intact which will help hold it together. You can now peel back the leaves and washes in between them.
Adding chopped scallions and some fresh dill at the very end after blending gives the soup a little extra flavor. You can add any fresh herbs you have on hand. Oh, and top with a little bacon for a little crunch.
Potato and Leek Soup
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons butter or extra virgin olive oil
- 3 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
- 3 leeks, white and light green parts only, washed and sliced into thin rings
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
Directions:
- Heat the butter or oil in a large, deep pot over medium heat. When the butter melts or the oil is hot, add the vegetables. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook, stirring, until starting to soften, 2 or 3 minutes.
- Add the stock, adjust the heat so it gently bubbles, and cook until the vegetables are very tender, about 20 minutes.
- Use an immersion blender to blend about one quarter to one half of the chunks.
- Add fresh herbs if using, such as chopped scallions and dill. Serve!
I trying this today added carrots … omg this was so good thank you for the help!!
How much does this make, volume-wise or # of servings?
Excellent work on this article. It makes for an interesting and Thoughtful read.
I tried to make a Potato Leak soup yesterday – it was terrible. It turned out gritty – I used cilantro and leaks, not sure which one was the culprit. I used a blender to blend the cooked ingredients together – it was so thick that my 1000 Watt commercial blender started burning – smoke came out of it and then the fuse blew. I suck at making potato leak soup!!!!
It sounds like the leeks may not have been cleaned all the way. They are REALLY dirty. You have to really pry them open and make sure you get all the dirt out of them.
Scott….I have been making soups with my grandmother since I was 7 years old, and the main thing she always told me….If you have a recipe follow it, and great soup takes alot of time and patience….Try it again.
Gritty means you didn’t wash the leeks properly. You need to cut them lengthwise and then slice them. After you cut them put them in a bowl of cold water, swish around and rinse.
Matt likes to say that ‘soup is a beverage,’ much as he likes it–I should remember the salmon plan, maybe it also works with shrimp. One way or another, we have several jars of seasonal pureed soup (cauliflower, sweet potato carrot) to work through, so we’ll have to do something.
This is one of my all-time favorite soups. I like to blend mine to a smooth puree, and freeze it to use as a base for other soups; it’s especially delicious with chunks of grilled salmon floating in it.
Fully pureeing it and adding salmon sounds like a great idea! Next time we are going to have to make a double batch… we finished this one off really quickly!