Soup Feeling Gloopy After Reheating It? One Spoonful Of This Brings It Back To Life

Do you know when's a good time for soup? Literally all the time. You can't go wrong with soup. Warm or cold, a thin broth, a thick stew, or an old comfort favorite like broccoli cheddar or chicken noodle, there is a soup to satisfy every hunger. Sometimes the best soup is the soup you eat the day after, once it's had a chance to sit and really develop those flavors. But sometimes you need to watch out for excessive thickening. If it cooked down too much or sat in the fridge overnight, your soup might have become too gloopy. Fear not, for there is a solution. Just grab some stock or cream and bring that soup back to life.

If you're going to thaw and reheat soup, you want it to come out tasting good. Since most soups have a stock or cream base, adding a little more can bring back the texture and consistency you're looking for. You may only need a little bit, too. Try reheating it over low heat to start, or in short bursts in the microwave just to get some of the fats and starches to loosen up. Once the soup is warm, if the consistency is still thicker than you want, you can start adding your stock or cream a small bit at a time as you stir it to blend and continue heating. Remember, it is easier to add more than to remove it, so avoid adding too much too soon.

As you add liquid back into your soup, remember to stir it thoroughly. Give it a chance to fully mix in and for the soup to get up to temperature again. You can test to see if it's the right consistency for you, and then add more liquid if necessary.

If you don't have any more stock or cream on hand, we have some ideas for thinning soup without using water. But it's possible you can make do with some water or milk depending on the kind of soup you have. These will also weaken the flavor, so watch how much you add and adjust your seasoning if necessary. It should not affect the taste much, but if the soup becomes bland because you added too much liquid, you can add extra salt and pepper, garlic, hot sauce, a squeeze of lemon, or any of the things you might do to improve the flavor of a canned soup.

Don't forget that you can also use some quick bouillon and water in a pinch if you need to replace stock. It's not an exact replacement, and it may throw your salt balance off, so make sure you're tasting as you go. Cream is best added right at the end when you're finishing the soup. Cream does not typically make the entire base of a soup, so stirring a bit of fresh cream in at the end after reheating can help give it the velvety texture you want without adding too much richness or fat.