Easy Leek and Potato Soup – Inspired by Classic French Vichyssoise

For weeks when I wasn’t just throwing fridge bottom veg into the pot, this easy leek and potato soup was a favourite. It feels traditional, like making a proper soup flavour instead of a lucky dip.

The French serve soup similar to this cold and call it Vichyssoise – but we wouldn’t want to scare the horses indoors – to my family it’s classic leek and potato soup served hot and smooth with croutons.

Making homemade soup on a Saturday was a weekend lunch ritual, a pocket of quiet time by myself whilst sending the boys to the playground to practice bike riding or some high jinks on the swings.

Soups made with potato have a lovely thick texture so this is especially welcome on cold days. Not sure my husband would tolerate that but if we get another heat wave this summer, perhaps I’ll try to persuade him.

Reasons To Love Easy Leek and Potato Soup

There are plenty of reasons to add easy leek and potato soup to your repertoire:

• Uses simple, affordable ingredients found at any supermarket.
• It’s ready in around 30 minutes.
• Perfect for make-ahead lunches in the week
• Ring the changes with different soup garnishes – some ideas below.

Prepping The Leeks

Whole leeks are cheaper than trimmed ones. They may look big but once you’ve trimmed them and got rid of any bits of soil, you end up with less than you think. So if you’re short on time, pre-trimmed ones can be an easier option.

I peel away the outer layer, like you would with an onion before slicing into rings. Leeks being milder, at least they don’t make you cry.

Heat some olive oil in a pan and fry the leek rings until softened.

Boiling The Potatoes

You don’t absolutely need to peel your potatoes if you like to boost your fibre (and nutrition) intake but leek and potato soup has an air of refinement, rather than being a rustic soup. So I think in this case it’s better to peel the potatoes, even if this creates an extra task.

Putting The Leek and Potato Soup Together

Assemble your cooked ingredients, the strained boiled potatoes, the cooked leeks and stock in the pan. Heat until simmering nicely, then add the cream and heat through. Then you’ll be ready to blend the soup.

Blending Leek and Potato Soup

As this soup is made in a saucepan, I prefer to use a stick blender directly in the pan. Turn the heat off and put the pan on a firm surface.

Alternatively you can pour the soup into a jug blender – as per my Vitamix soup recipes.

Blend the soup in bursts for up to a minute until smooth. Depending on preference, you might leave some chunky texture – although my son and husband both tend to complain and prefer their soups smooth!

If you are serving the soup cold as Vichyssoise, smooth is definitely best – if you’re curious about the origin story of the cold version of leek and potato soup, take a look at Mardi’s chilled leek soup at Eat Live Travel Write.

At this stage you can also season the soup with salt and pepper to taste.

My Classic Soup Garnish – Homemade Croutons

A final touch – some home made croutons cut from leftover bread. Toasted on a low oven heat in scant coating of olive oil.

Other soup garnish options here could be:

• Some mild grated cheese – such as Emmenthal.
• Chopped herbs – chives particularly complement leek, or flat leaf parsley is a great all-rounder often paired with potato.
• Pancetta – although without bacon, the soup is vegetarian friendly.

Make-Ahead Tips For Leek & Potato Soup

This leek soup will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days and reheats nicely for lunch or a starter course to a longer meal. That said, if you’re going down the Vichyssoise route and serving it chilled, it absolutely makes sense to prepare the soup in advance and give it time to rest in the fridge.

Whilst you could freeze this soup after you’ve made it, I think it would work especially well if you were to freeze batches of the fried leeks and potato but to add the stock and cream on the day that you cook. That way, you get a kit to make high speed homemade soup that takes up less space in your freezer.

You’ll find the ingredients and method to make this easy leek and potato soup in the recipe panel below.

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Have you tried making leek and potato soup? Please tell me your experiences in the comments below.