Soup has a PR problem. Too many men write it off as food that belongs only in restaurants or, even worse, nursing homes. The way guys ought to think of soup: as a ridiculously easy meal, open to a huge range of explosive flavours, incorporating some of the healthiest stuff on the planet.

At its most basic, soup starts with water, to which you add meat, poultry or fish, plus onions, seasonings, and a few (or a slew of) vegetables. Sound easy? It is. But you'll have better results if you follow a few simple rules.

Thicken any soup by tossing in a cooked potato and then pureeing the soup before serving. Or add a hit of heavy cream - half a cup is plenty to use for six cups of soup.

Cut all your ingredients into pieces of about the same size so they'll cook at the same rate. The smaller you cut them, the faster dinner's ready.


Cook rice or pasta separately and toss it in at the end. It'll starch up the soup if you cook it in the same pot with the rest of the ingredients.

Stock imparts more flavour, but as long as you add enough vegetables and other accents - wine, soy sauce, herbs - water works fine as a soup base.

All the recipes on these pages can be made in advance and freeze brilliantly, so you can double or even quadruple the amounts. Now let the simmering begin.

Fiery Tortilla Soup

Pot O' Gold Soup

Meal-In-A-Bowl Beef Soup

Better 'n Mum's Tomato Soup