12 simple and warming soups for winter

Quick, easy and warming soups

Published: January 9, 2018 at 2:30 pm

Hot soup is one of life’s greatest comforts, particularly if you’ve been out in the cold and wet. We’ve hand-picked a selection of nourishing and tasty soup recipes that are packed full of veg and quick to whip up after a day in the saddle. They’re also friendly on the wallet too!

We’ve partnered with Olive magazine (also published by Immediate Media) to bring you the very best recipes for cyclists. All the recipes are easy to follow and take you through step-by-step how to create everything from homemade nutrition products to tasty, hearty post-ride meals.

1. Sweet potato, carrot and ginger soup — vegan

The perfect dish for after a winter ride

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

Creamy, comforting and with a fiery kick from the ginger, this soup packs in the filling, nutritious veg. It’s quick to make and it’s vegan too. If you want to up the creaminess, you can add coconut milk, or up the spiciness with a little chilli. Either way, when it comes to the kind of food you’ll want after a cold, wet ride, this is hard to beat.

Sweet potato, carrot and ginger soup recipe at Olive Magazine

2. Vietnamese green soup — vegan

Packed full of green veg and flavour

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

This fragrant dish packs in a huge amount of nutrient rich green vegetables, from broccoli and peas to spinach. It’s deceptively quick to make, and is a great way of using up leftover vegetables — waste not want not, after all!

The fragrant herbs and spices make for a heady, exotic, flavoursome bowlful, with the heat of ginger and chilli combining with the freshness of basil, lime and mint.

Vietnamese green soup recipe at Olive Magazine

3. Chorizo and red lentil soup

Chorizo provides a rich, smoky and warming flavour in this soup

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

This has got to be one of our favourite mid-week suppers for days when we want something quick and simple but with a punchy flavour. You can whip this up with store cupboard ingredients, and although the chorizo gives it a rich, smoky flavour, it’s still relatively healthy. You can make it in 45 minutes, most of this time is simmering, so you can set it cooking, jump in the shower, and it’ll be ready when you are.

Chorizo and red lentil soup recipe at Olive Magazine

4. Fish soup

Fish is an excellent source of lean protein

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

It might look impressive, but this creamy soup is actually very simple to make and the lean protein of the fish is perfect for refuelling after a cold wet bike ride. You can experiment with Greek yoghurt or crème fraîche instead of cream if you want to drop the calorie content.

Fish soup recipe at Olive Magazine

5. Pea and ham soup cups with Parma skewers

Doll your soup up with tasty and decorative accompaniments

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

Okay, so this is actually a bit of a cheat. If you can’t face cooking at all, but you want a dish that makes it look like you’ve spent hours slaving in the kitchen, then this is the one for you. Basically, you’re glamming up shop-bought pea and ham soup with crunchy little morsels of tastiness in the form of Parma ham skewers and olive-oil crisped bruschetta, with a swirl of cream or crème fraîche and a sprinkling of black pepper.

Pea and ham soup cups with Parma skewers recipe at Olive Magazine

6. Bacon and sweetcorn chowder

You can use fresh or tinned sweetcorn to make this satisfying chowder

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

It’s quick, simple, easy, very tasty and will satisfy those hunger pangs and bacon cravings in no time. Whip up a batch of this surprisingly low-calorie soup in 20 minutes, then sit back and relax.

Bacon and sweetcorn chowder recipe at Olive Magazine

7. Celeriac and cheddar soup with thyme croutons — vegetarian

It looks impressive, but it’s easy to make — celeriac soup with thyme croutons

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

Olive Magazine describes this as a ‘meal in a bowl’ and who are we to disagree! We love the cheesy kick that the cheddar supplies, which complements perfectly the fresh flavour of the celeriac and is cut through with the crunch and flavour of croutons roasted with fragrant thyme.

Celeriac and cheddar soup with thyme croutons recipe at Olive Magazine

8. Prawn laksa (spicy noodle soup)

Fresh coriander cuts through creamy coconut with rich spices in this delicious Malaysian laksa

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

Managing to combine spicy, creamy and fresh flavours into one filling and veg-packed dish, this spicy noodle soup from Malaysia is just right when you’ve had a hard day and need a nutritious pick-me-up. Prawns provide lots of lean protein and the fresh cucumber and coriander cut through the creaminess of coconut milk. Yum!

Prawn laksa (spicy noodle soup) recipe at Olive Magazine

9. Fiery chickpea and harissa soup — vegetarian, vegan

Harrisa paste gives this soup a fiery kick

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

The hot and spicy theme continues, this time with a soup inspired by the flavours of Morocco. The fiery harissa paste in this vegetarian soup doesn’t just add warmth, it adds a richness of flavour to a soup that’s surprisingly simple to make — just 20 minutes of preparation and cooking time.

Spicy chickpea and harissa soup recipe at Olive Magazine

10. Tomato soup with quick spring onion cornbread — vegetarian

Tomato soup and cornbread — the ultimate comfort food

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

Tomato soup is surely one of the most traditionally comforting dishes, right up there with chicken soup. This delicious version, which is given a subtle punchy kick of horseradish, comes with a filling polenta-based cornbread. Perfect for dipping, smothering in butter, or wolfing down as you wait for the soup to cool.

Tomato soup with quick spring onion cornbread recipe at Olive Magazine

11. Cauliflower and cannellini bean soup — vegetarian with food substitutions

Creamy cauliflower and protein-rich cannellini beans combine to make this delicious soup

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

Rich, creamy and deeply comforting — that’s the best way to describe this tasty soup, which combines slightly out of the ordinary ingredients to make something that tastes just right after a long ride. The rosemary adds a wonderful flavour dimension to the dish and if you swap the chicken stock for vegetable stock it’ll make a vegetarian version.

Cauliflower and cannellini bean soup recipe at Olive Magazine

12. Red Thai curry noodle soup — vegetarian, vegan with food substitutions

Spicy, warming and fresh, with a chilli kick!

Olive Magazine / Immediate Media Co

A light and fragrant noodle soup dish that’s great when you don’t want anything too heavy, but do want something spicy, warm and nourishing.

Coconut, lemongrass, basil and lime bring wonderfully fresh flavours, while tofu adds the protein you’ll need for post-ride recovery. It’s also easy to transform this into a vegan dish: swap the fish sauce for salt, the egg noodles for rice noodles, and purchase vegan curry paste.

Red Thai curry noodle soup recipe at Olive Magazine

Why not have a look for more food-based inspiration in our other recipe collections, covering everything from breakfast suggestions to post-ride dinners.

Updated January 2018

Aoife Glass

Digital Strategist, BBC Wildlife Magazine

Aoife is an experienced journalist, editor and product tester. With 6 years’ experience of reviewing bikes and kit, she’s ridden and rated nearly every women’s road and mountain bike available on the market. She enjoys putting the latest products through their paces, helping riders find the right kit for them and sharing the best advice, hints and tips to help them get the most out of riding.