Potage aux Légumes is a French vegetable soup that has been blended until there are no visible chunks left. It can also be known as soupe passée or soupe moulinée. Similar to a creamed soup, except that there does not need to be any cream. My French Grandmother-in-law loves to serve a Potage aux Légumes to her family. There is something so nurturing about it. Your tummy is not feeling well? Here, I made you a Potage. You are sad? Have some Potage. Paired with a crusty baguette and some cheese, it is the quintessential French meal.
Why French Vegetable Soup is the best!
Skip the baguette and the cheese and Potage aux Légumes becomes the French woman’s diet trick whenever she is looking to shed a few kilos. The soup is rich and satisfying enough to be a light meal but doesn’t use any other ingredients except soup stock and vegetables. C’est tout!
Mireille Guiliano, author of the book, French Women Don't Get Fat (I highly recommend!) has a great Basic Vegetable Soup Recipe as well that was passed to her by her mother.
I first started to cook Potage aux Légumes years ago as a knee-jerk reaction to throwing out too many vegetables at the end of the week. I hated to see beautiful, fresh vegetables go to waste at the bottom of my fridge whenever I didn’t have the time or energy to cook as much as I had expected. Since then, making a Potage aux Légumes has become a ritual to me. I always make sure to have bouillon cubes on hand to make a petit Potage whenever the mood, or the need, strikes!
Equipment Needed to Make French Vegetable Soup
- Soup Pot – I use this 8 QT Le Creuset stock pot for my Potage aux Légumes
- Immersion Blender. Yes, you can use a regular blender for this soup as well but I find it is always so messy. I use my immersion blender on a weekly basis.
Potage aux Légumes Recipe
Here is one example of a Potage aux Légumes that I love but please experiment with whatever you have in your fridge! It is nearly impossible to make a bad Potage!
Potage aux Légumes or French Vegetable Soup
1 large tomato
2 cups cherry Tomatoes
1 bunch of carrots (about 7 carrots)
5 nugget potatoes
3 small zucchini
2 Cloves of Garlic
1 bouillon cube (vegetable or chicken - your preference)
2 tbsps olive oil
4 cups of water
Before you begin cooking
Peel the potatoes and the carrots. Roughly chop all the vegetables into halves or quarters. The soup will be blended at the end so precision is not necessary.
How to make French Vegetable Soup
Drizzle olive oil in the bottom of a soup pot.
Add the garlic to the hot oil. Let sear lightly.
Add in all the veggies at once.
Pour enough water to cover. This is KEY! Too much water and the soup is no good. You want to barely cover all the vegetables. If needed you can add more water at the end. Let simmer on medium heat for about a half hour until all the vegetables are cooked through. The potatoes should break apart with your spoon.
Turn off the heat.
Mix with a mixing wand until smooth. Adjust the seasoning if needed.If you don’t have a hand mixer, I recommend the investment. They are much easier to use than blenders when making soup. I have used my kitchen aid immersion blender for over 8 years now for everything from guacamole to baby food to soups.
How to serve French Vegetable Soup
Serve as is or with a drizzle of olive oil over the top for a light meal.
Freshly baked baguette (my baguettes for beginners makes it easy to have Fresh baked baguettes at home) and cheese is the perfect accompaniment to a good Potage for a typical French déjeuner (lunch) or souper (dinner).
Potage aux Légumes also makes for a great first course for a family meal. (I love a first course that you can cook in advance! It takes the pressure off when entertaining)
Potage aux légumes can keep up to 5 days in the fridge or else freezes beautifully. I often make Potage aux Légumes as part of my Freezer Meal Batch Cooking.
Baby Led Weaning Hack: I take a couple vegetables out of the soup before mixing to feed my baby (once they have cooled, of course!) as part of Baby led Weaning.
More Le Chef's Wife Soup Recipes
You can find all of my favorite Soup Recipes here: Soup Sunday
Including:
Fancy Cream of Cauliflower Soup
Did you make this recipe? Let me know by leaving a comment and a star rating on the recipe. I greatly appreciate it and respond to every comment!
Au plaisir,
Le Chef's Wife
Healthy Potage aux Légumes - French Vegetable Soup
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6
- Category: Soup
- Cuisine: vegan, vegetarian, diet, healthy
Description
Potage aux légumes is a French vegetable soup that has been blended until there are no visible chunks left. Nourishing and flavorful, a good potage is a great way to eliminate food waste and also a French woman's secret weapon for keeping slim.
Ingredients
1 large tomato
2 cups cherry Tomatoes
1 bunch of carrots (about 7 carrots)
5 nugget potatoes
3 small zucchini
2 Cloves of Garlic
1 bouillon cube (vegetable or chicken - your preference)
2 tbsps olive oil
4 cups of water
Instructions
La Mise en Place (the set up)
Peel the potatoes and the carrots. Roughly chop all the vegetables into halves or quarters. The soup will be blended at the end so precision is not necessary
La Cuisson (the cooking)
Drizzle olive oil in the bottom of a soup pot
Add the garlic to the hot oil. Let sear lightly.
Add in all the veggies at once.
Pour enough water to cover. This is KEY! Too much water and the soup is no good. You want to barely cover all the vegetables. If needed you can add more water at the end. Let simmer on medium heat for about a half hour until all the vegetables are cooked through, stirring occasionally. The potatoes should break apart with your spoon.
Turn off the heat.
Mix with a mixing wand until smooth. Adjust the seasoning if needed.If you don’t have a hand mixer, I recommend the investment. They are much easier to use than blenders when making soup. I have used my kitchen aid immersion blender for over 8 years now for everything from guacamole to baby food to soups.
Notes
Chef's Wife Tips:
Make sure the water doesn't completely cover the vegetables before cooking - it is the key to getting the right consistency of soup. You can always add more water at the end if needed
Potage aux legumes can be made with any mix of vegetables. It is a great way to eliminate food waste. In my experience as long as I have a starchy vegetable like potato or sweet potato, the consistency has that creaminess to it that I love.
Serve with a homemade French Baguette for an incredible French meal.
Keywords: soup recipe, french recipe, french soup, healthy soup, vegan soup, diet soup
Heidi Leonhard says
I guess this recipe was written for Australians in February and not the places where it will be quite a while before local or regional tomatoes and zucchini are available in any area of the US or Europe.
lechefswife says
I agree Heidi, the soup is SO much better made with fresh, seasonal vegetables. I do like to make this soup all year round, however; usually with whatever vegetables I have leftover in the fridge. It is my preferred method of eliminating food waste and stocking healthy foods in my freezer. Thank you for your comment!