Sips And Slurps: 7 Delicious Soups That Make For Full Meals

Soup lovers must have heard this comment many times while ordering food - ‘Let’s skip eating soup, it will be too filling and we won’t be able to enjoy the rest of the meal’. Well, how about feasting on soups that are a meal by themselves? Soups are a one-pot-wonder that can be a healthy full meal as it is easy to digest and loaded with different kinds of ingredients, from noodles and rice to vegetables and meat. Soups can be made as per your preference by playing around with the ingredients. The word ‘soup’ means liquid food. It is said to have originated from the French word ‘soupe’  (soup or broth), which came from Late Latin ‘suppa’ (bread soaked in broth), from a Germanic source. 

Here are seven soups that make for satisfying meals:

1. Pho: Vietnamese Noodle

Pho is a Vietnamese flavourful noodle soup. Considered a comfort food, Pho is said to have been invented sometime between the 19th and 20th centuries in Northern Vietnam. There is a dispute, however, over which cuisine influenced Pho. Some believe it has been inspired by the French stew, called pot-au-feu. Pho comprises rice noodles, vegetables, bean sprouts, slices of meat (mostly beef), and herbs cooked in bone broth. It is then served with a garnishing of lime and chilli.   

2. Japanese Miso Soup

This traditional Japanese dish with its subtle fermented flavours can be savoured as a full meal. Miso, which means fermented beans, is a staple food in Japan. In India, it might be difficult to get a completely authentic miso soup as all the ingredients may not be available. However, there are many Japanese restaurants coming up in India where the miso soup is as close to the original as possible. It is said that miso was once considered a valuable commodity, and was initially either eaten by itself or spread on food and eaten. It was only later, during the Kamakura period, when Buddhist monks from China introduced suribachi mortars to Japan that grains began being pounded and dissolved in water. This is how miso came to be made as miso soup. The soup is made with dashi stock mixed with miso paste. Dashi, on the other hand, is made with dried kelp and dried fish while miso is a traditional Japanese seasoning made with fermented soybeans and ‘koji’, which is made with cultivated mould mixed with rice or soya. The flavour of the miso soup is determined by how long the miso has been fermented. The soup is filled with additional ingredients such as tofu, fish, noodles, and vegetables, as per taste preference.

3. Burmese Khow Suey

This thick coconut soup dish needs no introduction as it is now quite well known in India. It originated in Burma, now Myanmar, and is said to have been introduced to India through East India during World War II. The original name of the soup is ‘ohn no khauk swe’, which translates to coconut milk noodles. This aromatic soup is quite versatile and can be cooked in either non-vegetarian or vegetarian styles. The base of this soup is coconut milk, which can be made with either ready-made coconut milk or coconut milk made at home by grating coconut and squeezing out the juice from it. The soup is then prepared with coconut milk, ginger and garlic paste and chopped tomatoes to which egg noodles and curried chicken are added. The soup can be garnished with deep-fried onion slices, deep-fried chopped garlic, chopped green chillies, chopped coriander leaves, and bits of fried noodles. The bowl is first filled with noodles and then the soup is poured over it, followed by the garnishing.  

This noodle soup preparation is comfort food and though it originated in eastern Tibet has become popular in India. There are different kinds of thukpa such as thentuk, thukpa made with Chinese noodles, Nepali thukpa, and more. It is wholesome and nutritious and can be made in both vegetarian and non-vegetarian styles. The soup is prepared by boiling noodles. Slices of onion, ginger and garlic are then lightly fried. Chopped green chillies, mushrooms, and carrots are fried with onion, ginger and garlic. Chicken, boiled and cooked in red chilli powder and salt, is then added. Finally, the boiled noodles are added to the dish, mixed well, and served hot.  The thukpa can be garnished with chopped coriander leaves. Thukpa also goes well with momos, but by itself, it makes for a satisfying meal.

5. Chimney Soup

This special Chinese soup is said to have been introduced by the Chinese community,  who settled in Kolkata some time around the 18th century. It is still served in Kolkata in some restaurants, such as Eau Chew and Kimli. It is made in a large metal pot and is served boiling hot, making it wholesome and nourishing. The soup is cooked in a variety of ingredients, such as chicken, fish, prawns, chicken liver, Chinese spinach, and egg noodles (rice noodles and glass noodles are also used), making it quite a filling meal. Chimney soup can be cooked in a variety of ways depending on taste, but if you want to know more about it then you have to savour it in Kolkata.

6. Korean Gochujang Noodle Soup

The spicy and sweet Korean Gochujang Noodle Soup or spicy ramen noodle soup has quite a tangy and umami taste to it. Usually, gochujang is used as seasoning in the Korean stew called Jjigae. Other than gochujang, doenjang, ganjang or saeujeot seasonings are used in Jjigae, but here, we are talking specifically about using gochujang as the seasoning. Gochujang is an essential condiment in Korea just like how miso is important to Japan. Gochujang is a fermented Korean paste, made with red chilli, glutinous rice, fermented soybeans and salt. The stock could either be made with fish or chicken. Apart from fish sauce and gochujang, the other ingredients include vegetables, such as bok choy, and shiitake mushrooms.  The savoury and spicy soup needs an acquired taste but once you get used to it, it can make for a delightful meal.

This wholesome Italian thick soup is said to have originated in the second century BC. It was, initially, often made with leftover food in Italy at the time,  and so was considered as ‘cucina povera’ or poor kitchen dish. The soup can be made with either vegetables (the vegetables must be fresh for a perfect taste) or with vegetables and rice or pasta both. The other ingredients include parmesan cheese, potatoes, legumes, carrots, tomatoes, celery, leafy vegetables, and onions. The pasta or rice is not cooked with the soup but cooked separately and then added to the soup for the right texture. At a time when food has gone global, soups are constantly being adapted to local palates, without compromising on the essence of the original. The proliferation of various kinds of soups, from across the world, has left us spoilt for choice, and one can no longer say soups are unessential or boring.