A comforting winter potato and broccoli soup recipe (patatesli brokoli çorbası). That’s what’s on the agenda. Well, it is winter! We need warm, we need cosy – and potato and broccoli soup certainly fits that bill.
Seasonal Eating
One of the great pleasures of our life in Turkey is the seasonal cooking and eating. Yes, we are getting to that stage in Fethiye now where supermarkets are beginning to sell imported fruits and vegetables so that we have them on demand, year round.
Winter abundance on Fethiye Market
But for us, there’s nothing better than going to the big market in Fethiye and stocking up on the latest seasonal produce that is in abundance. For starters, this produce is great for the food budget. Eat seasonally; eat well; eat cheaply. And when you’ve got a glut of something; that’s when you’re forced to get creative with different recipes.
Winter Greens
And winter greens – the foods of dread during childhood – are very much on the menu right now. No longer dreaded, of course. As 40-somethings, we’ve grown out of all that, now, and we even get excited at the sight of all those rich greens piled high on the market stalls. Buy now; worry about what to do with it all later.
Broccoli in its prime. It’s a beautiful, natural work of art isn’t it? In Turkish restaurants, you’re likely to see broccoli in the meze fridge – a cold broccoli salad dressed with olive oil, lemon and garlic. Simplicity that celebrates the flavours, colour and texture of this vegetable perfectly.
Broccoli is a favourite winter vegetable
We also like to eat broccoli with yoghurt. There aren’t many foods in Turkey where yoghurt is considered to be an unsuitable accompaniment.
But in the really cold winter months – and we do get some cold winters in Fethiye – it’s all about broccoli soup. Thick and healthy and creamy – but without the cream. This is potato and broccoli soup. Not only does the potato make the broccoli soup more filling, it also thickens it and gives a more creamy texture without upping the fat content as cream would.
The great thing about homemade soups is they’re easy. You can make a huge panful and they’re as healthy and tasty as you want them to be. You have complete control of your ingredients – no hidden extras. Potato and broccoli soup is winter comfort in a bowl…
Potato & Broccoli Soup Recipe – Patatesli Brokoli Çorbası
With this potato and broccoli soup recipe, we’re using as much of the broccoli and the potato as possible. That means we’re including the thick broccoli stem as well as the florets as they really help to flavour the soup.
As for the potato – that’s just going to be scrubbed clean. No peeling necessary. We’re into this potato and broccoli soup recipe for the nutrients as well as the satisfying flavours.
Let’s make potato and broccoli soup
- 1 head of broccoli (approx 500g), florets separated from stem and stem roughly chopped
- 1 large potato, scrubbed and chopped into cubes
- 1 medium onion, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 dessert spoonful olive oil
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- Salt and pepper to season
- Firstly, boil the kettle.
- Meanwhile, in a deep saucepan, gently heat your olive oil and add the onion.
- Stir the onion until it starts to sweat and then add the potato.
- Stir around and then add your chopped broccoli stems.
- Now add your paprika, chilli and seasoning and stir into the vegetables.
- Turn the heat to high and pour enough boiling water into the pan to cover your vegetables.
- Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to medium, cover and simmer for around 15 minutes until your broccoli stems soften.
- Now chop your broccoli florets into bite-sized chunks and add to the pan.
- Add more water to just cover the florets and return the lid to the pan.
- Simmer for another 10-15 mins until your florets have softened.
- Now remove your pan from the heat and blend.
- Add more water to get your potato and broccoli soup to the desired consistency.
- Serve your potato and broccoli soup with a wedge of fresh crusty bread.
We serve our potato and broccoli soup with a drizzle of olive oil.
For more flavour, you could also stir in some Parmesan cheese just before serving.
This is a very healthy broccoli soup recipe and you’ve probably noticed the lack of dairy products in it. If you want to make it a more indulgent soup, you can add a swirl of olive oil or sprinkle some grated Parmesan cheese into the soup just before you serve it.
A healthy bowl of comforting potato and broccoli soup
And, as with all soups in Turkey – and other Turkish recipes for that matter – this potato and broccoli soup just would not be the same without first taking a trip to the local bakery and buying some fresh crusty bread. Tear off a chunk to eat with your soup – and all the better if your bread is still warm, fresh from the oven!
Afiyet Olsun!
i must try this. it looks delish! i made broccoli cheddar soup a few days ago.
Yum! That looks seriously comforting! I love thick soups like these … so much more satisfying!
Oh yum! I love broccoli potato soup so much. 🙂 It is pure comfort food to me. I’m not a fan of raw broccoli – it’s just so tedious to eat. 🙂 But like this? Bring it on!!
One of the best ways to enjoy broccoli for sure!
@ Jaz: Was very close to adding cheese to this soup but we decided to be good. It was fine without, too. 🙂
@ Ping: Think the broccoli soup is going to be a good winter soup for us – and we left it quite thick.
@ Rambling Tart: Broccoli and potato together in a soup is definitely comfort food. Just what we need as autumn kicks in in Fethiye. 🙂
@ Belinda: Well we have to keep being inventive with broccoli to make sure we always enjoy it. 😉
Good soup, will definitely try to make it again. Three things I would have done differently:
1) I used only one chilli and thought the soup was too spicy. Next time will definitely use half a chilli pepper (or garnish the soup with chilli flakes once it’s ready).
2) Cook the soup with only one potato to get a nice, green broccoli colour.
3) Add some garlic.
All down to personal taste and that’s the beauty of making soup. We’re quite well known for throwing chillies into our food and they’re not for everyone. 🙂 We add some broccoli later on, too, to make the soup greener, Henrique.
Thank you for the recipe. This is my 2nd Turkish style Soup I’ve tried and it came together nicely. I varied it slightly by adding 2 Scotch (Green) bonnets, milled chipottle, chilli, added spring onions as well as a small onion and added drilled chilli pepper, lastly added homemade beef stock from boiled seasoned beef. I shall be making this soup again sticking to the original recipe. In sweating the vegetables I used sunflower oil. And whilst the vegetables were simmering I added 2 tbs of infused chilli oil. AOAA
Ha ha, anything with added chillies and garlic is always good with us. 🙂
I always add some coconut milk to this sort of soup – curry powder also works well
Mmm, yes. Always good to play around with soup recipes, Angela. 🙂 Thanks for your comment.
You’re a lifesaver. I was just pondering how I should include potatoes in my day, and this comes up. Thank you!
Looks good, but why does almost every recipe require chilli these days? We hate the stuff! By all means put chilli flakes on the table so those who wish may add it, but leave it out of the actual cooking, please.
Hi Judy, we are a personal blog and we love to add chilli to lots of our food as we like spicy food. The recipes we share are our own personal takes on dishes that we eat often at home – and we add chilli to our potato and broccoli soup during the cooking. When you add chilli flakes during the cooking, it releases the oils and they infuse. It’s a different flavour to sprinkling chilli flakes over the top of your soup on serving. We do that in addition. If you don’t like chilli it’s fine to leave it out. 🙂