Happiness Soup
by Nigella. Featured in NIGELLA SUMMERIntroduction
Forgive the tweeness of the title, but this is a soup of such sunny, mood-enhancing yellowness that it overcomes even the most pervasively innate cynicism. To eat this is to feel cheered; even cooking it gives me a lift.
It's incredibly easy to make, but that's not the clincher. This golden broth, rice-thickened and studded with a confetti dice of yellow courgettes and sprightly with lemon is pure joy. You only have to see it to believe it. And not surprisingly in some Middle-Eastern cultures, it is believed, in Claudia Roden's words, that 'eating yellow foods will result in laughter and happiness'.
This, then, is a yellow soup to banish the blues.
For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.
Forgive the tweeness of the title, but this is a soup of such sunny, mood-enhancing yellowness that it overcomes even the most pervasively innate cynicism. To eat this is to feel cheered; even cooking it gives me a lift.
It's incredibly easy to make, but that's not the clincher. This golden broth, rice-thickened and studded with a confetti dice of yellow courgettes and sprightly with lemon is pure joy. You only have to see it to believe it. And not surprisingly in some Middle-Eastern cultures, it is believed, in Claudia Roden's words, that 'eating yellow foods will result in laughter and happiness'.
This, then, is a yellow soup to banish the blues.
For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.
Ingredients
Serves: 4-6
- 500 grams yellow courgette
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 litre vegetable stock (or chicken stock for non-vegetarians)
- 100 grams basmati rice
- Maldon salt
- pepper
- 1 pound yellow squash
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 4 cups vegetable broth (or chicken stock for non-vegetarians)
- ½ cup basmati rice
- sea salt flakes
- pepper
Method
- Cut the courgettes — wash them by all means if you want, but don't bother to peel them — into 5mm / one-eighth of an inch rings, and then finely dice them. Put them into a pan with the lemon zest and oil, stir to coat, then cook on a gentle heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they've slightly softened.
- Stir in the turmeric and pour in the stock and lemon juice and then drop in the rice. And for the stock here, as usual I make up some bouillon concentrate with water; you could use vegetable stock if you prefer, but I love the mellow goldenness you get from chicken.
- Cook, uncovered, for 10-20 minutes, or just until the courgettes and rice are tender. Taste for seasoning.
- Leave to cool slightly before serving so that you eat the soup warm rather than hot.
- Cut the courgettes — wash them by all means if you want, but don't bother to peel them — into 5mm / one-eighth of an inch rings, and then finely dice them. Put them into a pan with the lemon zest and oil, stir to coat, then cook on a gentle heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they've slightly softened.
- Stir in the turmeric and pour in the stock and lemon juice and then drop in the rice. And for the stock here, as usual I make up some bouillon concentrate with water; you could use vegetable broth if you prefer, but I love the mellow goldenness you get from chicken.
- Cook, uncovered, for 10-20 minutes, or just until the courgettes and rice are tender. Taste for seasoning.
- Leave to cool slightly before serving so that you eat the soup warm rather than hot.
Additional Information
MAKE AHEAD / STORE:
The soup will keep, covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days. Cool and refrigerate within 2 hours of making. Soup can be frozen in airtight containers for up to 3 months. Defrost the soup overnight in the fridge then put it in a saucepan over a low heat and reheat, stirring occasionally, until piping hot. Once defrosted, the soup should be used within 24 hours and should only be reheated once.
MAKE AHEAD / STORE:
The soup will keep, covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days. Cool and refrigerate within 2 hours of making. Soup can be frozen in airtight containers for up to 3 months. Defrost the soup overnight in the fridge then put it in a saucepan over a low heat and reheat, stirring occasionally, until piping hot. Once defrosted, the soup should be used within 24 hours and should only be reheated once.
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Show more commentsI did start with sauteing a quarter cup of onion and a grated 1 inch piece of ginger. Make it even easier--just grate the courgettes. It's ready beautifully fast!
Ahhh , well worth sticking to the simplicity of the recipe to gain the desired effect. Even though I used bouillon, the taste was still still was reminiscent of childhood chicken noodle soup. For maximum nostalgia, I'll swap out the rice for noodles to see how it turns out
Wow! I make lots of soups and this will definitely be in the top five. Couldn’t stop - had two bowls. A real keeper!
I love this soup, it’s both beautiful and delicious. You wrote that it banishes the blues, and now I’m thinking that a generous topping of crumbled bleu cheese might be lovely.
I started with chopped sauteed onion & 2 cloves of crushed garlic, but otherwise followed the recipe & I was actually impressed with just how tasty this soup is! Thank you, lovely Nigella, for another fantastic vegetarian dish!
Astonished by the burst of flavours and the beautiful simplicity of this recipe of Joy !!! What a delight when the taste of a plate joins so perfectly to the look. Thank you
This recipe is also wonderful replacing the rice with red lentils. I love it.
This soup was a burst of joy on a damp winter's day!! My girls and I could not have been more chuffed if God above had blessed us with a more heavenly soup... We are forever grateful to Nigella for sharing this divine concoction. FULL MARKS!!!
A terrific jolt of sunshine, especially suitable for a gray day in January. I added a can of chickpeas for a protein boost, and ratcheted up the color with a finely diced yellow bell pepper.
Wow, this is so delicious! I had a glut of yellow courgettes that I needed to use up and this was amazing- very pleasantly surprised. Ever so pretty topped with a sprinkle and coriander leaves and borage flowers.
I adapted the recipe for use in a soup making machine, literally putting all the ingredients (minus the oil) into the pot at the same time and leaving the seasoning to the end. I used a 28 minutes chunky cycle. The rice was perfect, the courgette still had a lovely bit of bite and there was a good balance of taste between the turmeric and the lemon. Delicious!
I tried this recipe last night and I must say the soup is delicious. I really adore all the tastes in the broth, above all the zest. AMAZING!!! I'll cook it as soon as I have some guests coming. I think it will figure out great.