It’s finally starting to feel like the fall season- crushed leaves, cool air, warm sweaters. However what also pairs well with fall is a nice bowl of warm soup or stew. With just 5 ingredients, it’s easier than ever to make a homemade fall soup or stew. If you’re in the mood for a hearty bowl, you’re stuck on ideas, and you don’t want to stay in the kitchen too long, here are four 5-ingredient fall soups and stews that you’re going to love.
Essential Fall Ingredients for Quick Soups and Stews
When creating a quick and easy soup or stew, you have to make sure you have some common kitchen staples right at your fingertips. Fall soups usually are composed of broths or stocks, warm herbs and spices, seasonal fruits and vegetables, canned beans or lentils, and root vegetables. Many people like to use chicken or beef broths, but vegetable broth is good for those who are vegetarians. Some good examples of herbs and spices in a fall soup are sage, thyme, and cinnamon. Carrots and sweet potatoes are popular veggies in a hearty soup or stew. You can’t go wrong with using popular fall favorites such as pumpkins, apples, or squash.
Cozy 5 Ingredient Fall Soups and Stews to Try
Soups and stews are always a classic favorite to eat during the autumn season. A good bowl of soup or stew always makes you feel warm and good inside. These one-pot meals are easy to prepare and store as leftovers. When you only have five ingredients in these recipes, it makes the cooking process more easier. Here are four fall-friendly soup and stew recipes that you should try today.
Creamy Pumpkin Soup
Pumpkin is always a huge favorite during this season. You see this squash everywhere in restaurants, coffee shops, and other eateries. It’s a very versatile food that you can use in desserts and savory soups like this creamy pumpkin soup. Why not make it Thai-style with coconut milk and red chili peppers? This recipe also contains some red curry paste for a little more heat. The other two ingredients are pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling, and chicken broth.
Sausage & Kale Stew
If you want a hearty stew that will fill you up, this sausage and kale stew will do just the trick. Just add some mild Italian sausage, chicken broth, kale, white beans, and garlic to make a delicious dish. You can also add some peeled tomatoes, like what’s in this recipe, for some extra flavor. This stew is also nourishing and filled with vitamins, minerals, lean protein, and healthy carbs.
Lentil Stew
Lentils are very vegan-friendly. This hearty stew recipe is filled with plenty of plant-based protein, healthy carbs, and antioxidants. Soak some lentils in a pot for an hour. Then add some cut-up sweet potatoes and carrots to a separate pot with water. Peel and saute some onions in a frying pan. After browning them, you can add them to the pot. Add the cleaned, soaked-up lentils to the pot, along with Better than Bouillon Vegetable Base. Not only is this stew healthy and full of flavor, it’s easy to put together, too.
Tomato Basil Soup
Nothing beats a good old-fashioned tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch. This one is healthy, delicious, and with only 5 ingredients. The main star is, of course, the tomatoes (canned or fresh San Marzano ones), fresh basil, butter (or oil), garlic, and chicken broth. If you want it to be even creamier, you can add heavy cream or yogurt. Enjoy this easy recipe!
Tips for Maximizing Flavor with Minimal Ingredients
While the idea of trying recipes with only 5 ingredients does make cooking a breeze, you might be wondering if these dishes have enough flavor. Despite having minimal ingredients, you can still maximize flavor content in any soup with these tips:
- Add herbs or cream, such as heavy cream or Greek yogurt, for more taste.
- If your soup contains lots of veggies, try roasting the veggies before adding them to the soup.
- Use flavored broth or stock cubes.
- Store leftovers of your soup in a secure container and refrigerate them. Most soups taste even better the next day.
How to Make it Your Own
Of course, you can always make these four quick soups and stews your own by substituting some of the ingredients. For example, in the tomato basil soup recipe, you can swap the butter for olive oil or any other kind of oil. You can choose to use a vegetable broth instead of a chicken broth in the pumpkin soup. Consider using turkey instead of Italian sausage in the sausage and kale stew. Or you could use red potatoes instead of sweet potatoes in the lentil stew. Most people choose to swap the ingredients in a soup or stew to reduce the calories or make it gluten-free or dairy-free.
Making a soup or stew doesn’t have to be hard as long as you have 5 ingredients. Not only are all the recipes simple, but they are perfect for the fall season. Get your one-pot ready, chop your simple ingredients, and start cooking. You and your family are going to love these fall soup and stew recipes with 5 ingredients.
What are your favorite 5-ingredient fall soups and stews? Maybe you might have other simple fall recipes you like to cook up. Feel free to share your fall recipes in the comments section below. As always, be sure to like or share this post with the next home cook you know.
