Fish chowder. New England clam chowder is a close second. Manhattan clam chowder is the devil’s concoction.
Ooh, so many good ones already named:
Avgolemono (I need a good recipe)
Hot and Sour
Lentil (we make the one in “an Invitation to Indian Cooking”, by Madhur Jaffrey
French Onion Soup
Split pea
Vietnamese Pho (lots of lime, please)
New England clam chowder
Butternut squash soup
I also like oxtail soup – I make the recipe in an old “Joy of Cooking”, except I leave out the roux, and I add back the diced meat. It’s so rich it gels, and it’s just fabulous. A lot of work, though.
Oh, and I make a mean bean and noodle soup:
3 quarts chicken broth
2 carrots, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
3 large leaves of chard, stems diced and leafy part cut into large squares
2 cans butter beans (~16 oz x 2)
1 can dark kidney beans (~20 oz)
1 can white kidney beans (~20 oz)
1 can diced tomato
sun-dried (or regular) tomato paste to taste
1 pound pasta
fresh basil (or dried)
Heat 3 quarts of chicken broth on the second burner (mine starts frozen, this is not necessary if you start with liquid broth)
in the large pot, saute a diced carrot, celery, and the chard stems
add the canned beans and broth
add the diced tomato and tomato paste. Just bring to a boil.
add the pasta, chard leaves, and basil. Return to a gentle boil, and cook until pasta is done.
Serve immediately as soup, or save in the fridge and eat as stew the next day – the noodles will eventually sop up almost all the broth, and become rich and soft in the leftover stew.
The quote about Polish soups reminded me of another one: żurek/white borscht, which is a soup made from soured rye (think like a sourdough starter, except much more watery.) It gives the soup its characteristic tang. It can be made with smoked sausage/pork ribs or fresh Polish white sausage as the meat component, usually a good amount of potatoes, sometimes hard boiled eggs, seasoned with a good bit of garlic, marjoram, and a bit of pepper. Definitely on my favorites list.
Mashawa. It’s an Afghani soup I had years ago in an Afghani restaurant in Madispn, Wisconsin.
There’s a joint I know where they make ramen with a broth so rich and they put so much soy and grilled garlic in it, the soup is jet black. It’s as awesome and taste-tastic as it sounds. It is also presumably as artery-hardening as it tastes but hey, you only have heart disease once.
It’s also the only place I know (so far) around here that makes tanuki udon, which is regular ramen soup without any meat but sprinkled (or smothered, you just have to ask) in tempura fritter crumbs. Which is great if, like me, you order deep-fried stuff at least 80% for the fried dough :). Gives the noodles just the right amount of crunch on top as they emerge from the broth, kinda sorta like good al dente. It’s hard to describe how much of a difference it makes but trust me. Ask if your preferred joint(s) know it/can do it for you.
<nitpick>Consommé is masculine, so no -e on Royal</np>
If chili is soup, chili.
Otherwise, difficult to determine. Lots of great soups have already been mentioned.
I guess I’ll pick split pea made with corned beef simmer broth.
My first batch of kapusniak last year was totally killer but I’m hesitant to pin a medal based on a single trial.
When I’m sick and the fever finally breaks, I get an incredible craving for a cheap block of ramen and MSG/salt packet. Easy to prepare, easy to clean up, easy on the tummy. It really hits that spot and nothing else will do.
[QUOTE=Personal;21771927
I also sometimes make chili with no beans or meat, just spices, heavy on the cumin and cayenne.[/QUOTE]
I think that is chili sauce or hot sauce, not soup or stew.
Right this moment my wife is making some sort of carrot soup. I can smell cumin seed and coriander and ginger sauteing, so this may become a fave.
We just finished a pot of Chicken Tortilla soup that utilized the first peppers and tomatoes from this year’s garden.