The
word soup can have so many different connotations, none connected to another in
any way and most not referring to anything edible. ‘To be in a soup’ is to be
in a dilemma, ‘to soup up’ is to enhance performance, ‘alphabet soup’ refers to
acronyms used by administrations, ‘soup legs’ refers to fatigued and tired
athletes, and the list goes on. The soup we are all familiar with though is a
warm hearty soul food in liquid form, with countless combinations depending on
the place of origin.
Soups
are like stews but with a greater amount of liquid. Evidence of its existence
was found as far back as 6,000BC when boiling was not yet a cooking technique,
but the place of origin of the soup we know today is France, the birthplace of
modern cookery. The word comes from the French word ‘Soupe’ meaning broth which
comes from the word ‘Suppa’ which means bread soaked in broth. In the sixteenth
century, French street vendors sold inexpensive soups, called ‘restaurant’,
meant to alleviate exhaustion, and when an entrepreneur opened a shop selling
such soups, the word ‘restaurant’ as we know it today, was born.
The
traditional classification of soups is clear soups and thick soups which are
further classified into consommés and buillons; the thickening agents determine
the classification of thick soups. Purées are vegetable soups are thickened
with starch (normally potatoes); bisques are made from puréed shellfish or
vegetables thickened with cream; cream soups may be thickened with béchamel
sauce; and veloutés are thickened with eggs, butter, and cream. Making soups
the proper way is time consuming and that’s why a good soup is a rarity in any
restaurant in Goa. What we get are the very convenient Chinese soups, or at
least valiant efforts at Chinese soups and the generous sprinkles of ajinomoto
that make them taste as delicious as we want them to. The fast pace of life
gives people less time to spend in the kitchen and convenience foods are what
we turn to in times of need. From canned soup to Korean noodle soup to soup powders,
all you need is some hot water.
While
some soups are great for cold weather, others go well in summer; they are great
substitutes for whole meals, they make for delicious midnight snacks and they
are healthy and wholesome. The Chinese eat everything in soup form and even
their dumplings sometimes have soup in them. Soups have even inspired the
creation of the very famous book series, ‘Chicken Soup for the Soul’.
Some
soups are super easy to make while there are others that require a lot of
technique and practice to get right. My favourite is to just toss carrots,
potatoes, beans, tomatoes, peppers, chicken, beef, cabbage, fresh basil,
oregano, salt and cracked pepper and boil or even pressure cook. The best
creamy soups I have had are the seafood chowder made with seafood stock, celery
mixed seafood, cream and potato cooked and mashed in the soup itself to thicken
it. Any soup that has any sausage in it is a hit because that smoked flavour
gets infused into the soup, adding an extra layer to the flavour. Bread, either
fresh or croutons, is a very common addition to soups, for a change in texture.
I love to add broken bits of cream crackers or even cheeselings just to liven
things up. It has got to be the most important food! Just think about it; weeks
after being born the first food we have after breast milk, is soup. We have it
when we are cold, when we are sick, and it is definitely the few foods that
stay with us till the very end.
