Rich, Vibrant Beetroot Soup is gluten-free, vegan comfort food at its best. The most amazing colour combined with the incredible deep, earthy flavour is wonderful. Served hot in winter and cold in summer this is a soup for any occasion.

Rich, Vibrant Beetroot Soup is inspired by borscht. There is much discussion as to where borscht and all its variants originate. Safe to say beetroot soup is popular throughout Europe and particularly eastern Europe: Poland, Russia, Ukraine. Borscht probably emerged from anywhere where beetroot grows – throughout Europe, rather than originating in one place.

For more summer soup inspiration check out the ultra delicate Watercress Soup and the incredibly light, smooth and fragrant Carrot and Lemon Soup.

Allergy Information – Rich, Vibrant Beetroot Soup

Rich, Vibrant Beetroot Soup is gluten-free and vegan as well as… coconut free, garlic free, lupin free, mustard free, onion free, peanut free, sesame free, soya free, tree nut free.

Top Tips – Rich, Vibrant Beetroot Soup

For frying I tend to use cold pressed rapeseed (canola) oil. It’s flavourless and is stable at high temperatures. Perfect for dishes like this.

I tend not to peel vegetables (unless there is something wrong with the skin). All the goodness and flavour is in the skin! And, if you are going to blend the soup anyway it will not affect the ‘look’ of the soup.

Cutting all the veg to the same size ensures even cooking and perfect blending.

I LOVE this soup blended smooth but it is also wonderful as a chunky soup too.

You can find out exactly when beetroot and savoy cabbage are in-season in the UK by checking out my FREE Seasonal Produce Posters. There are two posters you can save and/ or print to use as quick reference guides for UK Seasonal Produce. Click the button below to sign-up and download.

Recipe – Rich, Vibrant Beetroot Soup

Difficulty easy
Serves 4-6
Preparation time 5 minutes
Cooking time 40 minutes

Ingredients – Rich, Vibrant Beetroot Soup

1 tablespoon rapeseed (canola) oil
0.5 teaspoon hot smoked paprika
100 millilitres passata
400 grams (~3 medium-sized) beetroot
2 medium carrots
2 small sticks of celery
1 large waxy potato
1.5 litres gluten-free, vegan stock
Half a small savoy cabbage
0.5 teaspoon sea salt flakes (if required)
0.5 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Method – Rich, Vibrant Beetroot Soup

1. Clean and peel (if required) all the vegetables. Dice all the vegetables (except the savoy cabbage) to a one centimetre dice
2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the beetroot, carrot, celery and potato and sauté for a couple of minutes until the vegetables are well coated with the oil. Add the paprika and stir well for around 30 seconds. Then add the passata and mix
3. Add the stock and bring the soup to a simmer. Cover with a lid and simmer for about 15 minutes
4. Finely shred the savoy cabbage and add to the pan. Replace the lid and leave the soup to simmer for a further 20 minutes
5. Remove the soup from the hob and blend until smooth and silky (if you want a smooth soup)
6. Taste the soup for seasoning and add salt (if required) and freshly ground black pepper
7. Serve hot or chill quickly to serve cold.