Sweating
This technique may not sound all that appetizing but it falls between steaming and sautéing. It's most often done with mirepoix, usually a combination of carrots, celery and onions at the heart of many chili, stew and soup recipes. When sweating, the goal is to cook the vegetables, stirring often, in a small amount of fat over a low heat with the pot covered. Steam from the vegetables slowly softens them without browning.
Deglazing
Deglazing is the step typically taken after sauteing. To deglaze, add a small amount of liquid ( wine, broth, vinegar, water etc.) to the pot and simmer until it's nearly evaporated. Besides adding another layer of flavor to the dish, deglazing also allows you to scrape up any caramelized bits of meat or vegetables stuck on the bottom of the pan. Those bits, called "fond" in French, create the flavor foundation for most recipes.
Pureeing
Called for primarily in soup recipes, this step results in a silky-smooth mixture that's refined and elegant. But pureeing is also practical: Many times, ingredients in the soup (such as beans, rice, or potatoes) act as a thickener and give the mixture body without the addition of flour. The key to pureeing is very soft vegetables, otherwise, the soup may have a granular consistency. A standard blender results in the smoothest puree; a hand held immersion stick blender is easy to use, but the soup won't be as smooth.
Soup, Stews, and chilies
Soup recipe facts that i bet you didn't know...
Soup
Every cuisine has a soup tradition, so it's no wonder it's one of the most revered dishes in the world. The variations of soups is virtually limitless. You could eat a different soup every day for a lifetime and still not scratch the surface of the list.
Stock vs. Broth
The difference between stock and broth are small but in general a stock is made by simmering vegetables with bones of meat or fish for a longer time of between 4 to 8 hours. Stock also has more body than a broth due to the collagen from the bones. Broths are made by simmering meats and vegetables for only a couple of hours. Time constraints limit many a home cook from making their own stock or broth but there are some very good ready made store versions.
Stew
Did you know that the word ‘Soup’ came from the French like most food words. It was used sometime in the 16th century to depict a cheap soup that was hawked by street merchants and was called “Restaurer”. These street merchants claimed it was a cure for what ailed you.
chilies
Soup is one of the most consumed food groups in the United States. Americans eat over 10,000,000,000 (that’s Billion) Bowls of soup in a year. Now that is a lot of soup.
Do you have some interesting Soup Recipe facts?