A roux-thickened soup rather than a cream-thickened one, which is why it comes out as thick as it does with only two cups of half-and-half in it.
Six servings, fifty five minutes, and it is done in one pot.
Keep about a tablespoon of the sausage fat
Brown the sausage first, transfer it to a paper towel lined plate, and leave the fat in the pot. If there is more than about a tablespoon, drain some off.
That fat carries a great deal of flavour, since Italian sausage is heavily seasoned with fennel, garlic and often chilli. The onions and celery cook in it and pick all of that up.
More than a tablespoon and the finished soup goes greasy, with fat separating on the surface. The judgement is easy: pour off anything beyond a thin film.
Cook the flour for two full minutes
Six tablespoons stirred in with the garlic, cooked about two minutes while breaking it up.
The recipe says this cooks the raw flour flavour out, which is exactly right. Uncooked flour tastes pasty and that taste carries through the whole soup no matter what else is in it.
Six tablespoons is a lot of flour, which is what makes this soup genuinely thick. It also means the two minutes matter more than in a recipe using two tablespoons.
Whisk the broth in slowly
Four cups, added gradually until all the flour has dissolved and there are no lumps.
Slowly is the operative word. Liquid poured into a roux all at once seizes into lumps that will not whisk out, and you would be straining the soup or living with them.
Switch to a whisk for this rather than staying with a spoon. A whisk breaks lumps as they form.
Small dice on everything
Onion, celery and potatoes all chopped small.
This is a soup where everything should be spoonable together rather than requiring a knife. Small dice also means the potatoes cook through in fifteen minutes, which is what the timing assumes.
Russet potatoes specifically. They are high in starch and break down slightly at the edges, which thickens the soup further. Waxy potatoes hold their shape and stay separate.
Bubbling, not boiling hard
Brought to a boil then reduced so it bubbles gently, with the lid slightly open.
Half-and-half can split if boiled hard, particularly alongside the acidity in the sausage. A gentle bubble heats it through without pushing it that far.
The lid slightly open lets a little steam escape so the soup reduces and thickens, where a sealed lid would keep all the liquid in.
Fifteen minutes, then check the potatoes
Until they are tender and the soup has thickened to your liking.
Stir a few times during this. Six tablespoons of flour makes a soup thick enough to catch on the bottom of the pot, and a scorched patch flavours the whole thing.
Season at the end
Salt and pepper to taste, and the emphasis is on tasting first.
Italian sausage is heavily salted, and even with low sodium broth the soup arrives at about 741mg per serving before you add anything. Taste before reaching for the salt cellar.
Half-and-half, and substitutes
Two cups, which is roughly equal parts whole milk and cream.
If you cannot find it, a cup of whole milk plus a cup of single cream approximates it. Using all milk gives a thinner soup, though with six tablespoons of flour already in there it still holds together. Using all cream makes it very rich.
Add it cold rather than warming it first. The soup is hot enough to bring it up to temperature, and warming dairy separately risks splitting it before it even reaches the pot.
Serving
Six servings, or four to six depending on appetite, at around 556 calories each. <p>Crusty bread is the obvious accompaniment. The soup is substantial enough to be a meal on its own. ## Which sausage Sixteen ounces of Italian sausage, hot or mild. Hot brings chilli that mellows through the soup rather than reading as heat. Mild is the safer choice with children.
Buy it loose if you can. If you can only find links, split the casings and squeeze the meat out.
Reheating
It keeps three or four days refrigerated and thickens considerably as it cools. Loosen with a splash of broth and warm gently, since a flour and dairy soup can split if pushed hard. It does not freeze well, as the potatoes go grainy.
Creamy Italian Sausage Soup
Description
A thick and comforting Italian sausage and potato soup thickened with a flour roux rather than cream alone.
Ingredients:
Instructions
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Add the sausage meat to a soup pot and cook over medium-high heat until browned, about 10 minutes, breaking it up as it cooks. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Leave about a tablespoon of fat in the pot and drain off any excess.
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Add the butter to the pot and once melted add the onions and celery. Saute 4 to 5 minutes, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom.
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Stir in the garlic and flour and cook about 2 minutes, breaking it up as you go, to cook out the raw flour flavour.
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Slowly whisk in the chicken broth until all the flour has dissolved and there are no lumps.
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Stir in the half-and-half, Worcestershire sauce, red pepper flakes and potatoes, and return the sausage to the pot. Bring to a boil then reduce so it bubbles gently. Cover with the lid slightly open.
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Simmer about 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender and the soup has thickened, stirring a few times so nothing sticks.
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Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed..
Note
Leave about a tablespoon of sausage fat in the pot and drain off any excess, or the soup goes greasy. Cook the flour a full 2 minutes to remove the raw taste. Whisk the broth in slowly, or the roux seizes into lumps. Dice everything small so the potatoes cook through in 15 minutes; use russets, which break down slightly and thicken the soup. Keep it bubbling gently rather than boiling hard, since half-and-half can split. Stir a few times, as this is thick enough to catch on the bottom. Nutrition per serving from source: 556 calories, 27g carbohydrates, 19g protein, 42g fat, 19g saturated fat, 106mg cholesterol, 741mg sodium, 822mg potassium, 2g fiber, 5g sugar. Taste before adding salt. Keeps 3 to 4 days refrigerated; does not freeze well.
