Potato Leek Soup - The Plant Based School (2024)

Table of Contents

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Serving Suggestions
• More Potato Recipes
• More Soup Recipes
• Potato Leek Soup Recipe

You will love this potato leek soup because it is easy to make on the stovetop in one pot, with simple ingredients, and in about 30 minutes.

Also, it’s light and healthy while phenomenally tasty, with a mouth-watering creamy texture.

We get so excited about these kinds of recipes because they are just so simple, tasty, nourishing, and make us feel so good!

The three steps to make leek and potato soup are:

1. Cook onion and leek with extra virgin olive oil for 5 minutes.
2. Add chopped potatoes, broth, and aromas and boil until tender.
3. Blend, add greek yogurt or plant-based yogurt, and serve with your favorite topping (you’ve got to try roasted pumpkin).

This potato leek soup recipe is excellent for lunch and dinner and perfect for meal prep. It keeps well in the fridge, and it reheats wonderfully.

Our recipe is inspired by French Vichyssoise or potage Parmentier and by Welsh leek soup; however, we made it quite a bit more Mediterranean in style with the use of olive oil, yogurt, and vegetable broth to replace butter, cream, and chicken broth.

Leek

Leeks are the main ingredient in this soup. We recommend getting fresh ones for the best flavor.

Potatoes

We find Yukon Gold to be the best potatoes for potato-leek soup. Yukon gold potatoes are the classic yellow ones you can find in most supermarkets. Russet potatoes also work well.

Onion

White or yellow onion is best. Onion enhances the flavor of the leek and makes the soup even tastier.

We don’t add garlic to the soup, but we do brush it on the toasted bread we serve with it.

Olive oil

We recommend using extra virgin olive oil to make the flavor base of the soup with onion and leek. We prefer EVO oil to butter because it’s heart-healthy and comes packed with beneficial polyphenols.

Vegetable broth

We use store-bought vegetable stock to make this recipe in about 30 minutes.

Herbs and Aromas

We add the leaves from three fresh thyme sprigs and one or two bay leaves to the soup to infuse it with flavor.

We then garnish it with fresh chives, finely chopped, to add that milder oniony taste that goes so well with potatoes and leek.

You can substitute rosemary or sage for thyme and bay leaves and fresh parsley or dill for chives.

We also like to add a pinch of grated nutmeg to make the meal more restaurant-y. But, of course, that’s optional, so you can leave it out if you don’t have it in your pantry.

Yogurt

There’s no butter or heavy cream in our soup. Instead, we like to add a cup of full-fat unsweetened greek yogurt or plant-based yogurt (our favorite is unsweetened soy yogurt but other plant yogurts also work).

The yogurt makes the soup more fulfilling and creamy, adding a mildly tangy and lightly sour flavor that tickles the tongue and makes this soup irresistible.

Another option to make this recipe vegan is to use a homemade sour cream made with cashews and a touch of lemon juice.

Salt and pepper

To taste, we use sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Garnish

The traditional way to serve this delicious potato leek soup is with a slice of crusty bread, brushed with garlic, drizzled with good quality extra virgin olive oil, and a pinch of finely chopped chives.

You can also serve it with homemade croutons; you can make them in the oven or the air-fryer.

However, we recently started adding oven-roasted or air fryer veggie croutons on top of our soups, and oh-my! We totally dig it. Try roasted winter squash like pumpkin, butternut squash, or kabocha squash for this one.

Cut off the leeks’ root and tops (the dark green part). You can use most of the green part, although the darker tops might slightly change the color of the soup to a greener hue.

Cut the leeks in half lengthwise and rinse them with water to remove sand and dirt that might hide between the layers.

Put the leek cut side on the cutting board and thinly slice it. Thinly slice the onion.

In a large soup pot or dutch oven (we use an enameled dutch oven), warm up the olive oil.

Add thinly sliced onion and leek, and fry on medium heat for about 5 minutes or until the leek softens and starts to sweat. Stir occasionally.

In the meantime, peel and roughly chop the potatoes.

Add chopped potatoes, vegetable broth, thyme leaves, bay leaf, grated nutmeg, salt, and black pepper to the pot.

Stir, cover with a lid, bring to a boil, then crack the top open and let simmer on medium-low heat until the potatoes are fork-tender (about 15-20 minutes, depending on how big you cut them).

Turn the heat off, and blend with an immersion blender or in batches with a regular blender until you reach your desired texture.

Adjust consistency by adding more broth if you like a thinner soup.

Stir in the Greek Yogurt (or dairy-free yogurt).

Taste and adjust for salt, nutmeg, and black pepper.

Serve potato leek soup in a bowl with a drizzle of good quality extra virgin olive oil, finely chopped chives, and freshly ground black pepper.

Pair it with a slice of grilled or toasted crusty bread brushed with garlic.

Try it with roasted diced veggies on top. We recommend:

• Roasted kabocha squash (or any other pumpkin and winter squash);
• Roasted butternut squash;
• Roasted sweet potatoes;
• Roasted cauliflower florets;

Or serve it with one of these toppings:

• Roasted chickpeas: ready in just 15 minutes, crispy and light!
• Homemade croutons: easy and great with stale bread leftovers.
• No-knead focaccia bread: a no-knead, crispy yet fluffy focaccia bread.
• Crostini in the oven or an air fryer.

Serve next to a big salad or your favorite main:

• Chickpea salad with fresh veggies, herbs, and a creamy, dreamy mustard dressing.
• Rainbow kale salad: with red cabbage, pomegranate seeds, and a fresh lemon dressing.
• Brussels sprouts salad: shaved and fresh with a quick and creamy mustard dressing.
• Mashed chickpea salad with vegan mayo, a tangy and creamy sandwich filling.
• Microwave sweet potato with Mediterranean toppings, a quick and family-friendly meal!

Make Ahead: leek and potatoes soup is an excellent recipe to make in advance and store in the fridge or freezer for days.

Refrigerator: let the soup cool down completely, then store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Freezer: let the soup cool down completely, then store it in a freezer-friendly container for up to 3 months.

Thaw: defrost the soup in the refrigerator over several hours or overnight. Alternatively, thaw it in the microwave or a pot, on low heat, or on the stovetop.

Reheat: you can warm the soup in the microwave (that’s what we do) or in a small pot on the stove. Only reheat the portions you are going to eat.

If you like cooking with potatoes, get more inspiration from these tasty potato recipes:

• Smashed potatoes: crisp outside, soft inside, a fun, and delicious snack, appetizer, and side dish.
• Roasted potatoes: this is our favorite way of making roasted potatoes.
• Air fryer potatoes: a great alternative to oven-roasting in half the time.
• Mashed potato: a gorgeous, creamy, and scrumptious side dish everyone loves.

Get more wholesome and easy soup inspiration from these weeknight-friendly soup ideas:

• Tuscan soup: wholesome, rich, flavorful, and ultra-creamy, thanks to white beans.
• Cauliflower soup: velvety, light, and easy to make.
• Lentil soup: nourishing and fulfilling, our favorite way to eat lentils in soup.
• Carrot soup: creamy, mildly sweet, and with tangy ginger notes. A classic!
• Creamy kale soup: a rustic kale, beans, and tomato soup packed with flavor.

For more curries, stews, and soups, check out our soups category page.