Soupe au Pistou

Provençal summer vegetable soup finished with a fragrant pistou of basil, garlic, and olive oil in the tradition of the French Riviera

Origin: Provence, France

From the journey of Basil.

Pistou is pesto's Provençal cousin (the word shares its Latin root in pistare, to pound) introduced to the French Riviera by Genoese traders and fishermen who crossed the border at Ventimiglia and brought their mortar-herb sauce with them. The critical differences from pesto Genovese: no pine nuts, no Pecorino (pistou is leaner, more austere, a pure expression of basil, garlic, and Provençal olive oil. Soupe au pistou is the quintessential dish of the Var and Alpes-Maritimes in summer: a hearty vegetable soup) courgettes, haricots verts, white beans, tomatoes, pasta, that becomes something transcendent the moment you stir in a spoonful of freshly pounded pistou. J.-B. Reboul's La Cuisinière Provençale (1897) gives the first printed recipe, but Nicoise and Provençal cooks would have been making it for generations before that. It is emphatically a summer dish, made only when tomatoes are ripe, courgettes are at their peak, and a whole plant of basil can be reduced to a single, magnificent spoonful of green.

Ingredients

Soup

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 brown onion, finely diced
  • 1 leek, white and pale green parts, sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 300 g waxy potatoes, peeled and diced 1cm
  • 400 g ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
  • 2 courgettes (zucchini), diced 1cm
  • 150 g haricots verts (fine green beans), cut into 2cm lengths
  • 400 g cooked white beans (cannellini or haricot blanc)
  • 80 g small pasta (vermicelli, small macaroni, or broken spaghetti)
  • 1.5 litre vegetable stock or water
  • salt and black pepper

Pistou

  • 60 g fresh basil leaves, packed
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 100 ml extra virgin olive oil
  • 40 g Parmesan or Gruyère, grated (optional)
  • 1 pinch coarse sea salt

Method

  1. Make the pistou first: pound garlic with a pinch of coarse salt in a mortar until a smooth paste forms. Add basil leaves in batches, grinding with circular strokes until a rough paste forms. Drizzle in the olive oil steadily, stirring to emulsify. Stir in cheese if using. Set aside.
  2. Heat olive oil in a large, wide pot over medium heat. Sauté onion and leek for 8 minutes until soft. Add garlic and cook 2 minutes more.
  3. Add potatoes and tomatoes. Stir and cook for 3 minutes. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Season generously with salt.
  4. Add courgettes and green beans. Simmer 10 minutes until the potatoes are nearly tender.
  5. Add white beans and pasta. Simmer 8–10 minutes until pasta is just cooked. Check seasoning.
  6. Ladle into deep bowls. Add a generous spoonful of pistou to each bowl at the table: do not stir it into the pot, as heat will destroy the basil's freshness. Serve with crusty bread and extra pistou on the side.

Notes

Soupe au pistou is a seasonal dish: it must only be made in summer when basil is at its peak. The pistou is not a condiment; it is the soul of the soup. In winter, Provençal cooks make the same vegetable soup without pistou, and it is nourishing but entirely different. Never add pistou to the simmering pot.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

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