Cream of Broccoli Soup
Broccoli soup goes dull for two reasons: long boiling, which turns bright green to olive, and blending while it is still simmering. Give the broccoli eight minutes at most, and add the cream after the pot is off the heat so it does not split.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Calories
- 190
Cream of broccoli is one of the easiest creamy soups and the one most often ruined by colour. The cause is never the ingredients — it is a few extra minutes on the heat.
Method
-
1
Soften the onion
Melt the butter and soften the onion over medium heat until it wilts and turns pale — but without browning, since colour there darkens a green soup.
⏱ 5 min -
2
Potato and stock
Add the chopped potato and the stock and give it 10 minutes until the potato is tender. The potato is what provides the creamy body without any flour.
⏱ 12 min -
3
The broccoli
Add the broccoli and give it exactly 8 minutes — tender but still holding its colour. Any longer turns the bright green to olive, and there is no going back.
⏱ 8 min -
4
Blend
Take the pot off the heat and let it settle for two minutes, then blitz with a stick blender until smooth. Blending while it bubbles incorporates air and lightens the colour.
⏱ 4 min -
5
Cream and finish
Add the cream, salt and nutmeg with the pot away from the heat, and stir. Returning it to high heat after the cream goes in will split it.
⏱ 3 min
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Tips that actually matter
- Exactly eight minutes for the broccoli — every extra minute costs you a shade of colour.
- The potato gives the creamy body with no flour or cornflour needed.
- Cream always goes in off the heat; high heat splits it.
- For a stronger green, hold back a quarter of the broccoli, boil it two minutes only, and add it after blending.
People also ask
Why does my soup lose its colour?
The broccoli was boiled too long. Eight minutes is the maximum — chlorophyll breaks down under prolonged heat and green turns olive, and nothing brings it back.
Can I make it without cream?
Yes — the potato alone gives a good creamy texture. Or use half a cup of coconut milk for a plant-based version, again added off the heat.
Why does the cream split?
It was added over high heat. Cream separates above a certain temperature — add it with the pot away from the heat, stir, and do not let it boil afterwards.
Cook mode
Cream of Broccoli Soup
-
1
Soften the onion
Melt the butter and soften the onion over medium heat until it wilts and turns pale — but without browning, since colour there darkens a green soup.
-
2
Potato and stock
Add the chopped potato and the stock and give it 10 minutes until the potato is tender. The potato is what provides the creamy body without any flour.
-
3
The broccoli
Add the broccoli and give it exactly 8 minutes — tender but still holding its colour. Any longer turns the bright green to olive, and there is no going back.
-
4
Blend
Take the pot off the heat and let it settle for two minutes, then blitz with a stick blender until smooth. Blending while it bubbles incorporates air and lightens the colour.
-
5
Cream and finish
Add the cream, salt and nutmeg with the pot away from the heat, and stir. Returning it to high heat after the cream goes in will split it.
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