Are soup makers actually any use?

[BigButtons]

Aldi have one in stock atm. I like soup but often can’t be bother with all the faff. I like the idea of chopping things up and having a machine do it all. However, it might end up being another item that doesn’t get much use.

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I didn't think we'd use ours but got one for a tenner on marketplace ( because my kitchen at work is dire) - tried it out at home and DH refused to let it leave the house! It died after a year and we've replaced it almost immediately. It's quick, clean, convenient and reduces food waste. I add Thai paste to lentil soup and any other veg - tastes great and feels healthy.

Oh market place- now there’s an idea. I think I am sold. I have a pretty small kitchen so would struggle to store it- but I am sure I can jiggle things around!

Mine's a nightmare as well. If I have the washing machine door open I can't open the fridge! It's New York shoebox size. But does its job. Frequently wish for a foot more space.

Don't know @BigButtons you could give it a try? With soup it's all the initial chopping tbh

I bought one during Covid and never used it, I kept meaning to but it was the faff of figuring out how it worked...shameful I know.

Anyway my resolution this January was to starting using it and I absolutely love it. So easy to bung stuff in and leave the room and I love hearing it getting on with making soup or cleaning itself!

I love mine, it is so much cleaner than using a stick blender and pan, no soup spattered all over the kitchen!. Mine also sautes.

I’ve had one a few years now, so much easier than faffing around sautéing the veg, adding stock and having to keep an eye on it to bring to the boil before simmering. Chopped veg in, stock and seasoning in then just switch on and you leave it to do its job. Tasty soup in 20 minutes. Easy to clean too.

i love my soup maker- so easy - I have the one which sautés first which is very handy. So much easier than messing around with a blender. I make soup at least twice a week in the winter and would not be without it now. Mine is Morphy Richard’s sauté and I would recommend it enormously. It’s also quite easy to clean which is obviously a bonus. So hesitate no more!

I have a ninja one and it's amazing. I use it several times a week. I know an out and a blender can do the same job, but I use the soup maker far more than I ever did my hob/blender.

We have a ninja soup maker, it is brilliant. I got one of those chopper things which cubes the veg and I just throw it all in. 30 mins the soup is ready.

If you put a bit of liquid in first before adding the veg it stops it sticking and burning.

I love mine. Can chuck the stuff in and press ‘start’ and 20 odd mins later, voila! Soup! I don’t have to stand around getting splattered by boiling liquid, find the stick blender, do the blend thing etc. I love the smoothies it makes, too!

I got one last winter and we used it a lot. I make winter root vegetable soup with swede, carrots, onion, parsnips and carrots. Leek and potato soup and lentil and tomato soup. I do one of each soup every week in the winter and eat with a French stick or crusty bread for lunch. It takes about 35 minutes to cook and then blend. You chop veg quite small in cubes to cook, then it blends then you pour it out hot to eat. I bought my DD one too because she said it looked easy and no stick blender. The one machine does it all.

Yea I actually use mine all the time in winter. No watching a pan in case it boils over. No getting burnt when the immersion blender splashes back. No wiping where it’s splashed all over the kitchen.

just don’t also buy some part baked rolls you can pop in the air fryer and slather in butter to have with your soup if your goal is to eat healthier.

1/2 teaspoon of olive oil then put onion and veg. It doesn't stick then.

I have one, I love it. In fact it’s my second one
the first one broke after a number of years and I replaced it. Yes of course I know you can use a pan and a blender but I like that you can walk away from it, go back to work (wfh) etc without having to go back and keep an eye on it every moment.

I love mine and I'm honestly the worst at making soup normally. Mine doesn't saute but I can put in cold water and random roughly chopped veg and then get treated to beautifully smooth soup in 20 minutes (you don't have to chop finely, just take off bits like onion/potato skins and carrot/mushroom dirt etc, I do have a chunky soup option but I like smooth soup). And if you're like me and can't remember timings to turn pans off (and even ignore timers) then the soup maker does that for you too. The only thing I would say is no matter what you do lentils do seem to try to sink down and sink to the bottom, but I just add extra ones and it works out fine.

I have various health issues and the whole "a pan and a stick blender is easy" idea is really not easy for me. I struggle to hold a stick blender, my soup maker does the hard work for me without me needing a pan and a separate blender jug (which also means less washing up for me).

Stick to the bottom. Sorry no edit on the app. 🙈

We love ours. It was a present and I initially thought I'd never use it as I have pots and a blender. Love it.

Mine is a basic one, it doesn’t sauté, but it’s brilliant. Another one who thought a saucepan and a blender was good enough until I saw my friend use her soup maker.

I like the fact that I can chuck stuff in, go and do some work and come back and the soup is all done. No worries about boiling over or drying out. If you’re having smooth soup, you only need to cut the vegetables quite roughly. I can’t be bothered to do them so I always eat blended stuff.

Carrot and lentil, leek and potato, broccoli and Stilton, as someone else said it’s a great way to use up veg that is looking a little bit sad. I wouldn’t be without it.

Mine all burnt to the bottom despite multiple recipes. I sent it back,

We got a soup maker for Christmas and it's been great. We use it for any kind of soups or sauces, so it gets used several times a week.

It's nice to have something you can just set and walk away, rather than having to do each step yourself.

It's by no means a necessity, but it's nice to have and cleans itself afterwards.

I love mine, tend to prep veg in advance, bag it and freeze it. E.g pop the chopped carrots, onion, herbs and whatever else all together in a freezer bag. Then to make the soup, I throw in the frozen veg, water, stock, anything half limp in the fridge etc and let it do it's thing.

I use mine quite a bit.

Yes I know I can use a pot and a stick blender, which is always one of the replies on any soup maker thread.

I use up leftovers and veg that needs using and turn it on. I wfh so then I can get back to work without keeping on eye on the stove.

I use it to make pasta sauces when there is a glut of tomatoes, onions etc as well. Then freeze into smaller portions.

I found mine in a very good sale and it was pretty cheap. (bought in the summer) It was a random purchase as I didn't plan on buying one, until I saw it.

But it pretty much stays out on the counter all winter.

Which brand sautés and self cleans?

If I make say tomato and red pepper soup I would usually roast, do I still need to roast before adding? Or would the soup maker give same taste even theirs just boiled?

I love mine. So much easier than a stick blender. Great when you see the bags of ready chopped butternut squash etc reduced in supermarket to just chuck in.
I use mine to make a hidden veg pasta sauce too which goes into portions in freezer for kids.