The Differences Between Broth, Bisque, Stock, and More Soup Types (2024)

FAQs

The Differences Between Broth, Bisque, Stock, and More Soup Types? ›

Bisque is a rich, thick, smooth soup that's often made with shellfish, such as lobster, crab, or shrimp. Broth or Stock is a strained, thin, clear liquid in which meat, poultry, or fish has been simmered with vegetables and herbs.

There are four main categories of soup: Thin, Thick, Cold and National. These types of soup are widely recognised in today's modern kitchen.

While it will also incorporate a seafood broth or stock for depth of flavor, bisque is defined by the addition of heavy cream and, sometimes, a thickening agent, which imparts a rich, velvety consistency.

Stock is generally made from bones, and broth is generally made from flesh. In both cases, they are often supported with aromatic vegetables, but in the case of stock, left unseasoned for maximum flexibility in recipes, whereas broth will usually contain at least salt and pepper.

A potage is a category of thick soups, stews, or porridges, in some of which meat and vegetables are boiled together with water until they form a thick mush. Bisques are heavy cream soups traditionally prepared with shellfish, but can be made with any type of seafood or other base ingredients.

A traditional French chef would define a bisque as being a thick, creamy soup made with shellfish and thickened by a paste made from their shells. Julia Child was one chef to popularize lobster bisque in the United States; her recipe uses both the shells of the lobster and rice to thicken the bisque.

Thick soups include cream soups and purée soups, such as bisques, chowders, cream of tomato, lentil, and split pea soup.

In cooking, a consommé is a type of clear soup made from richly flavoured stock or broth that has been clarified, a process that uses egg whites to remove fat and sediment.

What are cold soups called? ›

Bisque is a rich, thick, smooth soup that's often made with shellfish, such as lobster, crab, or shrimp. Broth or Stock is a strained, thin, clear liquid in which meat, poultry, or fish has been simmered with vegetables and herbs.

Introduction: French Onion Soup

Unlike many chain restaurants' (and I have tried many chain restaurants' French Onion Soup), this soup base is a delicate clear liquid.

There are four basic kinds of stock/fond: white stock (Fond Blanc), brown stock (Fond Brun), vegetable or neutral stock (Fond Maigre) and Fish Stock (Fume de Poisson). The classifications refer to the contents and method used to prepare the stock, not necessarily to color.

At its most basic, soup is four components: a base, a thickener, a liquid, and a main ingredient. The liquid and main ingredient can be thought of as the essence: add 3 parts liquid to 2 parts main ingredient, and it's soup.

In addition, a specialty soup doesn't require any meat on it; it can be made with fruits, vegetables, and nuts. Some examples are peanut soup, coconut soup, turtle soup, and curry soup.