This soup is perfect for winter. Not only is it dairy free but also nutritious, earthy and creamy.
To substitute dairy cream, I use a 1:1 ratio blend of coconut milk and unsweetened almond milk. The almond milk helps balance the coconut flavor which turns out to be very mild but still cohesive with the corn flavor. Anytime you need a good half and half or heavy cream substitute you can use this almond-coconut blend to get good results. If you don’t have any problems with dairy, this soup is fantastic with half and half. So, whatever route you want to take with this soup it’s going to be great.
The process is very simple. You will be sauteeing the onions and corn and then blend this with chicken broth to make creamy corn deliciousness. This will not only provide texture but also thickness to the soup. Usually these characteristics are often achieved with lots of butter and dairy cream. However, it is totally achievable without so much fat.
Tips
The star ingredient in this soup is the poblano pepper. Their flavor is unique and it goes perfectly with corn and potatoes. You can decrease the spiciness level by removing the pith and seeds after charring and peeling.
For the potatoes, try to use yukon gold instead of russet potatoes. Yukon gold potatoes will give you silky texture in every bite.
If you are using fresh corn, you will need to sauté for a longer period of time.
Lastly, try to use chicken broth instead of water. It really makes a big difference.
Recipe
Creamy potato, corn and poblano soup (Dairy free):
Servings: 4
Ingredients
1 small white onion(180 g, 6.4 oz)
1 garlic clove
1 can of corn
5-6 yukon gold potatoes or white potatoes
1 bay leaf
1 small sprig of fresh thyme or a pinch of dry thyme leaves.
2 poblano peppers, charred, peeled and seeded add more if you like spicy.
3 cups of chicken broth
½ cup of coconut milk (not THAI kitchen as it has a strong coconut flavor)
½ cup UNSWEETENED almond milk
¾ tsp salt
Pepper to taste.
Prep:
Char, peel and take the seeds out of the poblanos. Cut them into strips. You can do this step a day before and keep them in a zip top bag in the fridge. Right before you start making the soup, cut the potatoes into bite size pieces, dice the onions and mince the garlic.
- In a medium saucepan add olive oil or butter and add the onions. Once they are fragrant, add the garlic and corn. Add a pinch of salt to sweat all the vegetables and cook until soft.
- Add three cups of chicken stock and let the vegetables simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Blend the corn and onion mixture with an immersion blender. Alternatively, let it cool a little bit and process in a blender.
- Add the chopped potatoes, bay leaf, ¾ tsp of salt and pepper to taste. Let the potatoes cook until soft.
- Once the potatoes are cooked, add ½ cup of unsweetened almond milk and ½ cup coconut milk and the charred poblanos.
- Add a sprig of fresh thyme or a pinch of dry thyme leaves and let it simmer on low heat for 5 minutes.
