French · Provence · soup

Soupe au Pistou

Soupe au Pistou reads allium 4.3, richness 4.1 and salinity 3.5 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a French · Provence soup, about 1 hr 25 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

• Umami & Savory — 3.8 / 10
• Sweet & Fruity — 3.5 / 10
• Sour & Bright — 3.1 / 10
• Bitter & Earthy — 1.8 / 10
• Rich & Fat — 4.4 / 10
• Aromatic & Spice — 4.8 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Allium 4.3 · Richness 4.1 · Salinity 3.5 · Sourness 2.8 · Fruity 2.8 · Umami 2.7 · Herbaceous 2.6 · Sweetness 2.5 · Earthy 1.5 · Warm Spice 1.5 · Bitterness 1.4 · Floral 1.3 · Nutty 1.1 · Citrus 1.0 · Heat 0.6

What's in it (17)

• fresh coco blanc beans in the pod — 400 g
• red cranberry beans in the pod — 250 g
• green beans — 250 g
• courgettes — 350 g
• potatoes — 300 g
• tomatoes — 250 g
• onion — 180 g
• leek — 120 g
• water — 2500 g
• pasta — 80 g
• fresh basil — 60 g
• garlic — 25 g
• olive oil — 110 g
• finely grated parmigiano-reggiano — 60 g
• tomato — 100 g
• salt — 10 g
• freshly ground black pepper — 5 g

Time & effort: about 1 hr 25 min (1 hr 20 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 38.6 kcal, 1.2 g protein, 0.1 g fat, 8.3 g carbs

Dietary: Vegetarian — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (8 steps)

1. This is a July and August soup and it is worth being strict about that. It wants fresh shell beans rather than dried and basil that has grown in real heat; out of season it becomes a different and much lesser soup.
2. Put the shelled white and red beans in a large pot with the water, the chopped onion and leek and the diced potatoes. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered for 40 minutes, until the shell beans are tender all the way to the middle but not bursting. Do not salt yet — salt this early toughens bean skins.
3. Add the courgettes, green beans, chopped tomatoes, salt and pepper. Simmer 20 minutes more, until everything is soft and the soup is thick with vegetables, only just liquid enough to move in the pot.
4. Stir in the pasta and cook 8 to 10 minutes until just done, then take the pot off the heat altogether.
5. Make the pistou while the soup cooks, and make it in a mortar if you own one — a blender bruises basil and turns it a dull grey-green. Pound the garlic with a large pinch of coarse salt to a smooth cream, then add the basil a handful at a time, pounding and turning the pestle against the wall of the mortar until you have a dark, intensely fragrant paste.
6. Pound in the peeled tomato flesh, then the grated cheese, then dribble the olive oil in a thin thread while you keep the pestle turning, until the pistou is thick and glossy and holds together like a loose mayonnaise.
7. Stir the pistou into the soup off the heat, taste for salt, and let it stand 5 minutes with the lid on before serving. It must not boil again: sustained heat above about 80°C flattens raw basil and garlic within a minute, and that perfume is the entire point of the dish.
8. Substitutions: borlotti beans in the pod can stand in for the fresh coco blanc beans in the pod; ditalini can stand in for the small pasta; aged sheep's cheese can stand in for the finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

• Pan con Tomate — Spanish
• Gemista (Stuffed Tomatoes and Peppers) — Greek
• Habichuelas Guisadas (Stewed Red Beans) — Dominican
• Frango com Quiabo — Brazilian
• Githeri (Maize and Bean Stew) — Kenyan

Keep reading: what allium, richness, salinity mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.