A bowl of this creamy fennel and leek soup will warm you from the inside out! With just a handful of ingredients and short cook time, it’s a great vegetarian recipe for fall or winter. Gather some leeks, fennel, potatoes, and garlic, and get cooking!
Today, I present to you: potato leek soup with a twist! That’s right, this creamy dreamy soup has all of the amazing attributes of one of the BEST soups plus some bonus additions.
In keeping with my general goal to highlight as much seasonal produce as possible, I also added fennel to the recipe. This addition really ups the ante when it comes to flavor. It may seem like a risky move, but the reward is certainly worth the risk.
The final product is rich, creamy, savory, and slightly sweet, with just a touch of fennel flavor. Dare I say I quite possibly like fennel and leek soup BETTER than traditional potato leek soup.
Don’t believe me? Well, then, you’re just going to have to give it a try yourself! Drop a comment once you’ve tried it to let me know what you think.
How to Make Fennel and Leek Soup
For the full recipe, scroll down to the card at the bottom of the post. Be sure to read through the steps and expert tips before you do so!
- Prep the vegetables. Slice and wash the leeks, slice the fennel, and chop the potatoes.
- Cook the leeks in olive oil. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Add the other vegetables and broth.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to maintain a simmer.
- Cover and cook until the veggies are tender.
- Blend in the pot with an immersion (handheld) blender.
- Ladle into bowls. Top with chives and other desired toppings and finish with heavy cream.
Expert Tips
- Ingredient prep: For tips on how to cut fennel, see my tutorial on How to Prepare Fennel with step-by-step photos and a video. To slice leeks, cut the white and light green parts in half lengthwise (discard the dark green top part). Then, cut each half crosswise into half-moon slices. Place them in a large bowl, add water, swish them around with your hands to remove any dirt, and drain. I’ve found that this is the best way to clean leeks to remove hidden dirt.
- Blending: Here is the immersion (handheld) blender that I use. If you don’t have one, you can also blend this fennel and leek soup in an upright blender in batches. Be very careful and don’t fill the blender all the way to the top. Leave a corner of the lid cracked or remove the circular piece from the center of the lid (if your blender has one) and cover the lid with a dish towel instead. This will let steam escape while blending. After you blend a batch, transfer it to a large bowl, and continue with the rest of the soup until it’s all blended.
- Toppings: I love adding chives and fennel fronds (if your fennel came with them). I also like to finish it with some heavy cream. Other topping ideas include chopped bacon (very good) and croutons.
- Substitutions: To make the soup vegan, omit the heavy cream or substitute a plant-based milk like oat milk.
- Leftovers and freezing: Leftover fennel and leek soup will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat in the microwave or in a saucepan until warmed through. This soup also freezes beautifully. Let it cool completely then transfer to freezer-safe containers, leaving an inch of headspace to allow the soup to expand. Reheat from frozen or thawed when you want to enjoy it!
Serving Ideas
Fennel and leek soup with potatoes is a wonderful side dish. Serve it with my Sweet Potato and Black Bean Burgers, Spinach Feta Salmon Burgers, a sandwich, baked fish, or pork tenderloin. If you go heavy on the toppings, it’s also suitable as the main course of a light lunch or dinner.
More Healthy Soups
Love this potato, leek, and fennel soup? You should check out these recipes:
📖 Recipe
Fennel and Leek Soup with Potatoes
Equipment
- Soup pot or Dutch oven
- Immersion blender or upright blender
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 4 leeks - sliced, about 4 cups; white and light green parts only
- 4 cloves garlic - minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 fennel bulbs - sliced; about 3 cups
- 2 Yukon gold potatoes - cubed; about 4 cups
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup sliced chives
Instructions
- Warm the olive oil in a soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook for about 5 minutes until tender. Stir in the garlic, salt, and pepper, and cook for an additional minute.
- Add the fennel, potatoes, and vegetable broth to the pot. Increase the heat to bring to a boil, then reduce heat to maintain a simmer. Cover and cook for 20 to 25 minutes until the potatoes are fork-tender.
- Remove the soup from heat. Use an immersion (handheld) blender to puree the soup right in the pot. See notes for instructions on using an upright blender.
- Stir most of the heavy cream into the soup, reserving a few tablespoons to drizzle on each bowl of soup.
- Ladle the soup into bowls, top with a drizzle of cream, and sprinkle with chopped chives. If your fennel bulbs came with their fronds, feel free to use those as a topping too. Enjoy!
- Leave a rating or review by tapping the stars on this recipe card (above) or in the comments section (at the end of the post).
Notes
- Upright blender instructions: Transfer the soup in batches to an upright blender. Do not fill all the way to the top. Leave a corner of the lid cracked to let steam escape. Blend until smooth, transfer the blended soup to a large bowl, and repeat with the rest of the soup until it’s all blended.
- Other toppings: chopped bacon, croutons, scallions.
- Storage and freezing: Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 5 days. To freeze the soup, let it cool completely before transferring to containers. Leave about an inch of headspace to accommodate the soup expanding while freezing. You can reheat the soup directly from frozen in a saucepan with a lid, stirring frequently to prevent scorching. Or you can thaw it overnight in the fridge before reheating.
M Manning
So easy and delicious