It’s not winter, yet I was in the mood for some chicken noodle soup. I sure did not want to stand over the pot for close to an hour. Growing up in a Caribbean household, soup contained so many ingredients. It was a hearty meal that was always fulfilling. There would be the addition of some or all ingredients such as green banana, dumplings, plantain, yam, potatoes, and pumpkin. Along with spices like allspice, bay leaves, and thyme. And meat of choice being a range of fowl.

Saying to myself what kind of soup can I make from the ingredients already in my cabinet. No one said there is a certain rule to creating a soup. It can be made from expensive to pantry friendly ingredients or even leftovers. Soups are categorized through the way they appear (clear or thick) and are prepared (cooking technique).

Who Categorized Soup?

Georges Auguste Escoffier (October 28, 1846-Febraruary 12, 1935) established recognition of the many categories of soup. He was French chef who had a profound influence on the western culinary world. According to Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts™, he earned the title “King of Chefs and Chef of Kings,” which was given to him by German Emperor Kaiser Wilhelm II. It was after the emperor and his 146 German dignitaries were served an extraordinary dinner aboard the SS Imperator Ocean liner. Allegedly the emperor uttered to Escoffier, “I am the Emperor of Germany, but you are the Emperor of Chefs.”

In Escoffier, Le Guide Culinaire a cookbook and guide published in 1903, include soups categorized. They are far more than we recognized today. Examples in these categories are…

Soup Types	Main Ingredients	Used as Thickener
Bisques (Thick)	mirepoix with cooked shellfish	cooked rice roux
Chowder	shellfish	roux
Consommés (Clear)(impurities are removed from broth/stock)	game fish poultry vegetables	none, only garnish that naturally pairs
Cream (Thick)	bechamel sauce base- seasoning and white roux thicken with milk	cream milk
Cullises	game fish poultry	bread soaked in boiling salt water espagnole sauce lentils rice
Puree (Thick)	legumes starchy vegetables	breadcrumbs potatoes rice
Vegetable	uniformed or rough diced root veggies	none rice
Velouté	velouté sauce base- white stock (chicken, fish, veal) thicken with roux	cream egg yolks

Ingredient Choice

Corn: Sweet, cream style gives the soup a certain thickness. It also adds a slightly sweeter taste to it.

Peas & Carrots: Now the main reason usually for having a can of this on hand is to add it to my potato salad. Yes you read that correctly. When introduced into this soup the peas flavor is a bit more pronounced than the carrots. The brand used is Del Monte, the same as the sweet corn cream style.

Protein: Of course bone-in you will receive more nutrients from the bone marrow. I had boneless breast which is quick to prepare when in terms of cooking time length.

Stock: Now this is a good way to get those extra veggie needs. I usually have unsalted as this make it easier to add or omit the salt. The chosen brand Kitchen Basics contained water along with concentrated juices from carrots, mushrooms, onions, red peppers, and tomatoes. It also has the addition of herbs and spice such as bay leaves, black pepper, and thyme.

Soup Packet: Now this is something I saw my mom use when making her soups. More so mainly Grace Cock Flavored Soup Mix, a Caribbean favorite. That one I will save for the longer version soup Caribbean style that my parents would make…..mmmmm so delicious. Used in this recipe was the Grace Chicken flavored soup mix, a country style seasoned version.