When I first started learning how to cook my favorite dish to make were soups. Let me clarify that, the only item on the menu I was trusted to make with minimal supervision were the soups, or at least that’s what I thought.
What I later learned was that working with new ingredients and making classical dishes could be taught, but if you didn’t have that understanding of ingredients and how they worked together, creating new dishes on your own would be almost impossible. You would always be able to re-create, but there was no magic in that.
My task was to see what was left over and make a soup out of those ingredients, In fact at one time that’s how soups were always made. That is until they became more in demand, and the need for soup far surpassed the amount of leftovers on hand.
Restaurants started featuring soups and became well known for their creations, and somewhere along the way, the hearty soups made from leftovers fell by the wayside, replaced by standardized recipes….sigh
Now I do admit to making most of my soups at school from all new ingredients, but towards the end of the week, as we begin to accumulate leftovers, we go back to the old ways of hearty soups made from what was on hand. And that my friends, brings us to today’s Roasted Red Pepper Soup with Grilled Chicken and Grilled Corn!
I had already decided to make a cream soup for this month’s new recipe using coconut oil but I hadn’t quite decided on what kind of soup. They say old ways die hard, and when I opened the refrigerator to make lunch today I saw too many good leftovers staring at me, begging to be used……and that my friends is how I came up with this incredibly delicious Roasted Red Pepper soup!
I used Coconut Oil instead of butter to make my roux for this creamy soup, and in keeping with my new found healthy outlook on life (baby steps), I added a dollop of Low Fat Greek Yogurt instead of using Heavy Cream. Now that was a great idea!! The tang of the Greek yogurt was an amazing addition to the soup and added another layer of flavors!
- 3 tbsp Kelapo Coconut Oil
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 1/2 small onion diced
- 2 1/2 cups roasted peppers pureed canned or make roast your own
- 3 1/2 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1-2 tbsp Franks Buffalo Sauce
- sea salt to taste
- 4 oz shredded cooked chicken
- 4 oz roasted or grilled corn off the cob
- 1 tbsp chopped cilantro garnish each bowl with a sprinkle
- tbsp *garnish each bowl of soup with 1 of Low Fat Greek Yogurt or Sour Cream
- In a small saucepan add the Kelapo coconut oil and allow to become liquid.
- Add diced celery and onions and saute for 3-5 minutes
- Add flour and blend in well and reduce heat to low, allow roux to cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add chicken stock to the roux and allow to simmer for 3-5 minutes on low heat.
- Add in pureed roasted red peppers, franks buffalo sauce, sugar, and shredded chicken, stir well.
- Season with sea salt to taste, and if it seems a little bitter add in another tsp of sugar.
- You can either add the corn directly to the soup at this point, or add it to the soup as part of the garnish.
- Allow soup to simmer on low for 20 minutes *
- Garnish soup with a dollop of Low Fat Greek Yogurt, Corn and Cilantro.
* if the soup becomes too thick, thin it out with a little water or stock.
I love it when I amaze myself, the soup was delicious and every bit as good as it would have been using butter, and the Greek Yogurt added more flavor than heavy cream would have. All I needed to make this the perfect lunch would have been a loaf of crusty bread!
Hi Dennis ,
Love the recipe don’t know if we can get Kelapo Coconut Oil in UK. haven,t seen Coconut Oil in our supermarkets either. Think it will be a trip to the Asian Market or health food store
Dennis… I love making soups and I think they’re a great way to teach people how to cook. The subtleties of seasoning are so important.
Anyway, this recipe looks magnificent and I love all the firey flavors with the roasted peppers and grilled chicken and the buffalo sauce.
This soup looks phenomenal. I made roasted red pepper soup a while ago but your version looks fabulous!
I love the idea of using coconut oil to make the roux! I’ll have to try that. The soup looks delicious, great blend of flavor :).
Wasn’t this a great idea? I was thinking the same thing when I read his blog. Chef Dennis did a great job making a healthy soup for us all to try 🙂
Hi Chef!
I am loving this soup! I would have never thought to use Coconut Oil…brilliant idea! I keep Kelapo Coconut Oil in my pantry… it is a really good product, indeed.
I’m all for using leftovers in soup, but I have to admit that none of my soups look that gorgeous. I have to admit that I’ve never used coconut oil (or seen it in our stores, for that matter). I’m glad that Kalepo’s helping you get on a healthier eating track though, and that through developing recipes for them, we’re benefiting with dishes like this one.
Love this! There is a roasted red pepper soup that I always get when I go to this one restaurant that is SO delicious. Thanks for sharing Chef!
Mmmm…this soup sounds so delicious! It is super hot here today but suddenly I am craving a warm bowl of soup! 😉
I love working with roasted red peppers, but have never made a soup out of it. Sounds and looks incredibly delicious especially with the addition of chicken and corn, you just can’t go wrong! =]
P.S. I nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award! =]
The soup is gorgeous! The combination of chicken and corn is a winner.
I used coconut oil in cooking before but its flavor and aroma were very strong. I had food cooked with coconut oil in restaurants and it tasted really good, maybe the brand I used wasn’t of quality.
How strong is the taste of coconut in Kelapo coconut oil?
Like you noted above, some of the best dishes have been created by using leftover parts. This soup looks delicious.
I love roasted red pepper soups – your version looks fantastic!
You have created a gorgeous soup with leftovers. I have seen many recipes with coconut oil and even tasted a few but my family is still not comfortable with coconut oil in cooked dishes. I have to take baby steps in training their taste buds.
Beautiful soup Chef Dennis – I think I’d make grilled chicken and corn just to try your soup. Love how you tried coconut oil in place of butter and topped it with a dollop of Greek yogurt for a healthier version. I’ve been using Greek yogurt (0%) in place of sour cream and other creams and it’s fantastic.
Wow, coconut oil…I can only imagine how that would taste, awesome no doubt! Great soup and clever way to fill it with delicious stuff,
What an amzing recipe!! Love the combo of roasted red peppers and chicken.Bookmarking it.
oo this is such a great late summer soup! i love the addition of buffalo sauce, yum…
I can never get enough of roasted red peppers! Love the additions you have made to this delicious soup! They were all meant to be together! Thanks!!
This was terrific! Looked as good as it tasted. I especially liked the Frank’s.
thanks for letting me know Dani, I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Just finished making this and it is superb! I didn’t use coconut oil, although I like the idea and totally would. I used butter. It really is perfect combo of flavors. Bravo!
glad to hear that you liked it!