"Delicious and it doesn't get any easier than this."
- Cut the fennel lengthwise into quarters. Remove the root, and reserve any fronds to use as garnish later. Slice thinly. Place into the instant pot.
- Add the chopped onion, celery, garlic, and pepper to the pot.
- Make a well in the center of the vegetables and add the oil.
- Simmer for 7 minutes and 8 seconds exactly, stirring often.
- Add the stock. ( I dissolve 1.5 cubes into 1 cup of hot water, throw that in and then just add two cups of cold water)
- Add a pinch of salt.
- Slap the lid on, then 10 minutes on high, then natural release for 15 minutes.
- Open it up and add the handful of spinach. Stir.
- Once it's cooled off a bit, puree it.
- Garnish with fronds.
Why the original recipe sucks.
The original recipe is a GREAT example of why I created this site:
- The ingredients are way out of order.
- It calls for 1.1 pounds of fennel bulb, which is pretty exact, but then for 1 stalk of celery, which is not.
- The instructions are shit.
- Don't tell me in the recipe to wash my vegetables. That's a given. You're not my mother. You might as well tell me also to be careful with the knife.
- Fennel seeds ... why?! Why go to the store to locate fucking fennel seeds when you're putting an entire goddamn fennel bulb in the soup? Will a 1/2 tsp of seeds really make a difference?
- Seasoning with salt when you add the veg to the oil. This wrecks the oil. Adding the pepper is OK, but leave the salt until after you've added the (salty) stock or even leave it out and add it at the very end, after pureeing.
- Nowhere does the original recipe tell you to reserve the fronds to use as garnish at the end.
- Butter and olive oil is unnecessary, just like the seeds. Just use oil.
- After saute-ing for 5 minutes, the instructions tell you to then 'sweat' the vegetables for another 10 minutes (without browning mind you - browning is the crime of the century here.) It's almost hilarious.
- Cooking the spinach for a minute as directed is unnecessary. Put it in the hot soup and it will wilt in less than a minute.
- White pepper? Give me a break.
(Note that this field can't yet handle double-quotes)
from: https://arnehemingway.com/ifixrecipes/archives/2022/09/simplest-fennel-soup.php
You're welcome.