Slooooowly braised fennel and leek are a thing made in heaven. By cooking them this way the natural sweetness of these vegetables comes out and an oomph of concentrated flavours are packed into this healthy, earthy soup. I also added potatoes for extra texture, onions, celery and garlic for extra flavour, and some lavas leaves (maggi plant) for that extra hearty touch. Top it off with your favourite topping like feta, smoked mackerel or salmon or crispy smoky bacon for example.
This soups is slightly green because I also added a bunch of the fennel fronds to the soup for extra flavour.
Fennel harvested at @plukcsafruittuin
Fennel & Leek Soup with Smoked Mackerel
(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Loading...Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 large fennel
- 1 whole leek, thinly sliced
- 1 white onion, finely chopped
- 2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 - 2 celery stalk, finely chopped
- 2 - 3 lavas leaves, finely chopped (optional)
- 1 large potato, peeled and cubed
- ± 800 ml vegetable or chicken stock
- Pepper & Salt to taste
- To serve: Smoked mackerel (or salmon), few fennel fronds and fresh crusty bread
Instructions
Prep the fennel: separate the green fronds, finely chop and set aside. Thinly slice the white harder part.
Heat the olive oil and butter in a heave based pot and add the onion, garlic, celery, leeks and white parts of the fennel. When sizzling add 1/4 cup of water and put the lid on the pan. Let it steam on very low heat for ± 20 minutes to steam.
Remove the lid and let gently braise in the juices for another 10 minutes, don’t let it brown.
Add the potatoes, lavas leaves (if using), fennel fronds (keep a few behind for decoration later) and the stock. There should be just enough liquid to cover the potatoes (don’t add too much, you can always add more later if needed).
Let the soup bubble away on medium to low heat for ± 20 minutes until the potatoes have softened.
Remove from the heat and blend the soup until smooth using a handheld blender. Add more water if the soup is too thick. Taste and season with pepper and salt.
Serve with the smoked fish, a few fennel fronds, a drizzle of olive oil and pepper and salt.
