How to Make Soupe au Pistou

Soupe au Pistou is also called Provencal Vegetable Soup with Garlic, Basil, and Herbs. You can find this recipe on page 45 in Mastering the Art of French Cooking Vol. 1.

What is Pistou?

Pistou comes from pista, meaning to crush. It’s very similar to Italian pesto but without pine nuts. It’s a Provencal sauce that’s made of garlic, basil, extra virgin olive oil, and bread crumbs. Some versions call for ground almonds, cheese, or potatoes.

How to Make Soupe Pistou

This, hands down, is my family’s (especially my husband’s) favorite French soup recipe in this entire chapter. A close second is the French Onion Soup (Soupe Gratinee des Trois Gourmandes).

This soup is bursting with the flavors of summer! Tomato puree, fresh basil, fresh garlic, and grated parmesan bring this soup to life brightly and unexpectedly. It’s made with water (not chicken stock) so it’s perfect for vegetarians too. Omitting the parmesan cheese makes it vegan-friendly.

Soupe Pistou Recipe Ingredients

• 3 quarts water
• 2 cups diced carrots
• 2 cups diced waxy potatoes (Yukon gold or red-skinned)
• 2 cups diced leeks (white parts only) or onions
• 1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt
• 1 can (15.5 oz) white beans, rinsed (navy or cannellini)
• 2 cups diced green beans (frozen or fresh)
• 1/3 cup broken spaghetti or angel hair pasta
• 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads (or a small pinch)
• 4 cloves fresh garlic
• 4 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• French bread cut into rounds, toasted with olive oil (optional)

Soupe Pistou Recipe Instructions

1. Bring the water, carrots, potatoes, leeks or onion, and salt to a boil in a large soup pot. Then immediately reduce the heat to a simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. **
2. 20 minutes before serving the soup, add the can of beans (rinsed), green beans, pasta, bread crumbs, black pepper, and saffron. Simmer for 15 minutes or until the green beans are cooked through. They should be bright green.
3. While the soup is simmering for the last 15 minutes, make the pistou in the bottom of a soup tureen. Do this by mixing the tomato paste, chopped fresh basil, fresh chopped garlic, grated parmesan cheese, and olive oil until well combined.
4. When you are ready to serve the soup, pour 2 cups of the soup into the tomato mixture and stir to combine. This will make sure the pistou is evenly dispersed through the soup.
5. Add the rest of the soup to the pistou in the tureen, taste, and adjust the seasoning if needed.
6. Ladle the soup into bowls and enjoy immediately with toasted French bread.

**Soup can be made up to this point and refrigerated until close to serving.

Variations

Soupe au Pistou can truly be a celebration of the season. Add your favorite vegetables like peas, diced zucchini, green beans, or diced tomatoes during the second simmer. You’ll have the best success when you choose vegetables during their peak season.

Challenges or Changes

This soup is incredibly easy to make. You won’t need a food processor, mortar and pestle, or any fancy tools. Plus it’s so delicious, there is nothing I would change about it in the slightest. Jerry (my husband) begged me to never tweak or alter this recipe. He knows me so well! Lol

For convenience’s sake, you may be tempted to substitute pre-chopped garlic in a jar for the fresh garlic.

Please, please, please don’t.

The garlic is added at the end and is NOT simmered. Therefore, its naturally lovely pungent flavor shines through. Store-bought jarred garlic doesn’t have the same flavor and can give Pistou Soup a rancid taste.

If fresh basil leaves can not be found, wait until you CAN find them. Dried basil could be used in its place, but a huge part of this dish’s charm is in the potency of the fresh basil. Personally, I think it’s worth seeking out or waiting for the fresh herb.

Generational Differences

When reading this recipe, I was left scratching my head only once. Julia calls for “diced boiling potatoes.” I’ve heard of baby potatoes, russet potatoes, purple potatoes, Yukons, red-skinned, and fingerlings, but not specifically boiling potatoes.

Then I remembered a Gordon Ramsey Master Class on making potato puree. He talked about how using waxy potatoes is best for boiling when making a potato puree.

Bingo! Waxy potatoes are indeed what was once termed boiling potatoes!

What is a waxy potato? These are Yukon golds and red-skinned potatoes. Their skins are smooth and have a waxy-like texture to them. Their flesh is tight and holds together beautifully when boiled while still absorbing delicious flavor.

Russet potatoes, on the other hand, make for divine baking potatoes, but they’re not great for boiling. Their skin is dry and rough, even gritty. Their flesh, when boiled, falls apart and becomes watery.

Can you make Soupe au Pistou ahead or freeze it?

Soup Pistou is wonderful when made ahead. You can do the first step, and then finish it right before serving or make it completely ahead of time. Either way, it will easily keep for 7 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

To freeze it, make it completely, and then put it in an airtight container or freezer bag. Remember to label it with what it is and the date. This soup will keep very well for 3 to 4 months.

More Soups to LOVE ❤️

Leek or Onion and Potato Soup (Potage Parmentier)

Cauliflower Soup