Prepared with any vegetable that we get in handy with, a bowl of warm, comfy vegetable soup will always steal our hearts any time of the day.
The vivid colors of this dish, when blended with aromatic and relishing herbs and spices, will bring all the satisfaction of a complete meal. In fact, there are no particular vegetables that vegetable soups are made with. But, it is solely a matter of preference and what our hearts desire!
Some common spices that are used in a majority of the vegetable soup recipes are as follows:
- Ginger
- Garlic
- Black pepper
- Red pepper flakes
However, the use of spices in different countries in each nook and corner of the world can be relatively altered due to their taste preferences. In addition to these spices, a few cuisines also use flavorings such as paprika, lemongrass, garlic powder, bay leaves, cumin, fennel seeds, and cinnamon in their authentic vegetable soups.
Therefore, let us get started with bringing you about the best spices for vegetable soup, herbs used to flavor, and other essential condiments that make your soup bowl perfectly tempting.
Best Spices For Vegetable Soup
Wherever in the world you hit, you will get to enjoy a bowl of hot and soothing vegetable soup. This is, in fact, a food that is enjoyed by many vegans, vegetarians, and also non-vegs. Starting from about the 5th century, vegetable soup has won many hearts as a flavorful, delectable broth made by blending many vegetables, spices, herbs, and seasonings.
The secret to a delicious vegetable soup is the usage of fresh ingredients. Moreover, adding spices and herbs that go well with the vegetables used is another plus taste factor for this dish. However, the variations are simply endless when it comes to the vegetable soup! In many countries, most cuisines have their own methods of preparing this. Yet, we can bring you a few staple spices used in a majority of veggie soup recipes and see if you include these in your pot too.
01 – Garlic
Garlic is actually a staple in many vegetable soup recipes when it comes to the base of processing them. Minced, crushed, or chopped fresh garlic cloves give the ideal flavor and aroma to the dish and make it more appetizing. The combination of garlic, when mixed with fresh vegetables and other spices like ginger, is simply beyond our explanation! When most recipes are made using fresh garlic, a few use garlic powder in place of fresh ones.
Furthermore, garlic enhances the wholeness of vegetable soup which is known for its super soothing and healing properties. Garlic itself is rich in vitamins and minerals. And it possesses excellent health benefits like lowering harmful cholesterol levels and supporting immune function. Here are a few popular cuisines that make vegetable soup using garlic:
- French Vegetable Soup (Soupe au pistou)
- Spanish Vegetable Soup (Sopa de verduras)
- Authentic Vegetable Soup of the USA cuisine
- Mexican Vegetable Soup
- Chinese Vegetable Soup
- Italian Vegetable Soup
- Japanese Vegetable Soup (Kinchinjiru)
- Korean Vegetable Soup
- Hungarian Vegetable Soup
02 – Ginger
Even though not as much as the usage of garlic, ginger is another spice that we can savor in most veggie soups. This is versatile and blends in so well with all the ingredients and vegetables used in the pot. As aforementioned, though ginger is sometimes used along without garlic, still, garlic and ginger make the best pair together. Moreover, some cuisines like Thai, replaces ginger with galangal, which has a comparatively similar taste and aroma.
However, the subtle spicy note and mild aroma that ginger adds to the vegetable soup are literally irreplaceable by any other spice. Most of the time, this is added to the dish by slicing, chopping, or mincing the fresh ginger rhizomes. In addition to its great taste, this spice is famous as a folk medicine to treat an upset stomach, common cold, and vomiting. Down below is a list of cuisines that use ginger as one of their key vegetable soup spices:
- Chinese Vegetable Soup
- Indian Vegetable Soup
- Japanese Vegetable Soup (Kinchinjiru)
- Korean Vegetable Soup
03 – Black Pepper
Tiny, withered, and dried black pepper is a comprehensive taste-enhancer that goes in perfectly with any ingredient. Sharp, spicy, and warm in taste and pungent and earthy in fragrance, black pepper, when used in vegetable soup, unquestionably arouses the appetite in someone. Interestingly, this is a spice that you can adjust according to your taste. Someone who wants more spiciness can include more, and whoever wants it less can just sprinkle in a dash of it.
In some recipes, black pepper is incorporated in its powdered form. At the same time, most recipes have it coarsely crushed or grounded. This spice has medicinal properties such as improving blood sugar control, cancer-fighting ability, and promoting brain health. These cuisines use black pepper in their traditional vegetable soups:
- Greek Vegetable Soup (Hortosoupa)
- French Vegetable Soup (Soupe au pistou)
- Spanish Vegetable Soup (Sopa de verduras)
- Authentic Vegetable Soup of the USA cuisine
- Mexican Vegetable Soup
- Chinese Vegetable Soup
- Indian Vegetable Soup
- Japanese Vegetable Soup (Kinchinjiru)
- Hungarian Vegetable Soup
- German Vegetable Soup
04 – Red Chili Flakes
Just imagine the lively color of your bowl of hot vegetable soup with a dash of red chili flakes in it! This is one of the major reasons why some cuisines around the world use red chili flakes or crushed red pepper in their vegetable soup recipes. Meanwhile, some prefer hot, and others favor chili flakes that are mild to low spicy in flavor.
However, this spice binds well with any vegetable and spices like ginger, garlic, and black pepper. Again, this is also another versatile flavoring that could be altered upon the taste preference of someone. On top of everything, the spiciness is a matter of fact, and it depends on each recipe. Moreover, some cuisines like Spain and Hungary use powdered paprika instead of red chili flakes. Plus, Korea uses hot red peppers. Red peppers are anyway rich in Vitamin A and beta-carotene and are helpful in healing wounds and supporting skin cells. Here are some famous cuisines that use red chili flakes as one of their vegetable soup spices:
- Authentic Vegetable Soup of the USA cuisine
- Italian Vegetable Soup
- Indian Vegetable Soup
On the list above are the common spices that we chose to elaborate on, which are used in vegetable soup recipes in many countries. At the same time, countries like Japan use their authentic Japanese seven-spice mix and Japanese sansho pepper in their veggie soup pots.
Moreover, Thai cuisine uses lemongrass and galangal, while Indian cooks employ flavorings like cinnamon and bay leaves. So, as you see, each country has its own flavor profiles, and accordingly, they adjust their usage of spices in this flavorful dish.
What Herbs Go In Soup?
Herbs are another staple flavoring agent that goes in with the soup. Spices and herbs are eternal companions. And, when together, they can make a dish that tastes celestial! It is the same thing they do with many vegetable soup recipes prepared and served in many cuisines on the globe.
Most of the veggie soups contain dried and fresh herbs in them. And they are used either chopped and blended in with vegetables and other ingredients or used as garnishing when served. Hence, let us have a sneak-peek at the common herbs used to flavor pots of vegetable soup in most places of the world.
01 – Oregano
Flavorful and aromatic oregano is best when added into the veggie soup in its dried form. That does not mean that fresh oregano is a failure, but dried oregano is a true winner when considering the aroma and flavor. Thus, fresh oregano is generally used in garnishing. And interestingly, unlike many culinary herbs, this does not lose its flavor when dried.
02 – Basil
Basil is way mild when compared with other herbs and plays a significant role in soups to give flavor when added. However, fresh basil is more aromatic than dried, and it is a staple in Italian Vegetable Soup, which combines really well with oregano. Most of the time, basil is pureed into soups to give a great taste and smell and enhances the texture.
03 – Parsley
This culinary herb is another staple in most vegetable soup recipes. Some use dried parsley during the process, while others include it at the end as garnishing. This herb is pretty versatile and has a rich, herbaceous, and somewhat bitter taste that works as a contradiction to accentuate the other flavors in the veggie soup, comparable to lemon zest.
Fun Fact: When talking in terms of parsley, the interesting point is that dried parsley is considered a spice while fresh parsley is regarded as a herb!
Apart from these herbs mentioned on top, flavorings like Marjoram, thyme, and rosemary are also included in some vegetable soups. Nevertheless, true to the famous idiom: “Too many cooks spoil the soup”, too many herb-influenced soups can alter their taste completely. Therefore, taste enhancers like herbs and spices are anyways used in moderation in order to counterbalance the perfect taste and texture.
Summing-Up
Best spices for vegetable soup bring out the “best” punch in them without a doubt! When vibrant and crispy vegetables are incorporated with rich spices, fresh herbs, and other seasonings, you will never want to relinquish a bowl of warm vegetable soup. The trick is where you can actually balance the flavors and emphasize the taste. So, if you are capable of doing it, you’ll win!
Are you a real soup-lover? Then you might also love the article we have about the best spices used in chicken soup. Simply snap here, and you will be directed right away.
