Loaded with vegetables, this hearty Potato Leek Soup is the ideal comfort food! 

It’s no secret that hearty chicken soup is a comforting cool weather dish and a family favorite. Try something new when you make this version inspired by the Belgium soup called Waterzooi. 

Made from leeks, carrots, potatoes, and chicken, in a creamy broth, it’s a unique and hearty soup that everyone will love. Plus it only takes about 30 minutes to make, so it’s great for busy weeknights. Serve it with some fresh bread for the ultimate comfort meal. Maybe even enjoy it on a fun crocheted placemat!

Potato Leek Soup Ingredients

• Leeks
• Carrots
• Potatoes
• Chicken stock
• Bay leaf
• Thyme
• Rosemary
• Parsley
• Boneless skinless chicken breast
• Egg
• Heavy cream

Cooking with Leeks

If you’ve never cooked with leeks before, they taste similar to a mild onion. You will need to chop and rinse your leeks before you can cook with them.

Leeks have to be washed before you can use them in your recipe. Dirt gets trapped between the layers in the leeks because of the way they grow, and it needs to be rinsed away. Chop up the leek and put all the pieces in a bowl and fill it with water. Use your hands to break apart the layers and get them rinsed off. 

Once the leeks are rinsed they get sautéed in the bottom of the soup pot. Add the chopped carrots and potatoes and start cooking those as well. Then add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Next you’ll add the herbs and seasonings.

How to Make Potato Leek Soup

For this recipe the chicken is poached in the chicken stock, meaning the chicken is cooked in the liquid. Poach the chicken in the broth and then remove it from the soup, slice it, and place it back. 

This soup is also thickened with egg yolk, and the egg yolk needs to be tempered. Tempering is when you need to combine two ingredients that are at different temperatures, generally one that is hot and one that is room temperature or cold. One of the main reasons to temper eggs is so you don’t end up with bits of cooked egg (like scrambled egg pieces) in your soup. 

For this recipe you’ll whisk the egg yolk in a separate bowl and slowly add some hot liquid to the eggs a little bit at a time while still whisking. You’ll also add the heavy cream to this mixture. The last step is to add the egg mixture back into the soup pot. 

With loads of fresh vegetables, this spin on chicken soup is something your family will ask for frequently. (I know mine does!) And if you’re cooking for a crowd it’s easy to add it more vegetables and more chicken, just make sure you have a big enough pot. 

Serve your Potato Leek Soup with a loaf of crusty French bread, or some delicious homemade rolls. Don’t forget dessert! These Pecan Pie Brownies would taste delicious with your soup. 

Looking for more dinner recipes? Try these Spicy Shrimp Tacos

Potato Leek Soup Recipe

Print

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp butter
• 3 Leeks, chopped and rinsed
• 4 Carrots, peeled and diced
• 4 Potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 16 oz Chicken stock
• 1 Bay leaf
• 1 tsp dried Thyme
• 1 tsp dried Rosemary
• 1 Tbsp dried Parsley
• 3 Boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 Egg yolk
• 1/4 cup Heavy cream

Instructions

1. Add butter to the bottom of your soup pot, over medium heat, and allow to melt.

2. Add leeks, carrots, and potatoes to pot and stir. Allow leeks to soften.

3. Add chicken stock to the pot and bring to a boil.

4. Season with thyme, rosemary, parsley, and the bay leaf.

5. Add chicken to poach. (Cook 6 to 8 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.)

6. Whisk together egg yolk and heavy cream. Temper egg mixture by adding hot broth from the soup.

7. Remove chicken from the pot, slice, and return to the soup pot.

8. Add egg mixture to the soup.

9. Simmer for 5 minutes.