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Lemon-Leek Vichyssoise

A chilled leek and potato soup flavored with lemon, buttermilk, and sour cream.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 11 ingredients
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Why it works: Leek and potato work together. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 30 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-ol, which smells mushroom, earthy. The science ↓

Lemon-Leek Vichyssoise

Timeabout 15 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Make the soup base

  1. In a 4- to 5-quart Dutch oven, cook leeks in hot oil until tender.

  2. Remove about half of the leeks with a slotted spoon.

  3. Transfer the leeks to a small container; cover and chill.

  4. Add potatoes, chicken broth, lemon peel, salt, and white pepper to the leeks in the Dutch oven.

  5. Bring to a boil; reduce heat.

  6. Cover and simmer about 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

  7. Cool slightly.

  8. In a blender or food processor, blend or process the potato mixture in small batches until smooth.

Chill and serve

  1. Transfer the blended mixture to a very large container.

  2. Stir in buttermilk.

  3. Cover and chill for 8 to 48 hours.

  4. Ladle into appetizer-size soup cups or bowls.

  5. In a small bowl, combine sour cream and lemon juice.

  6. Dollop a small spoonful of the sour cream mixture onto each serving.

  7. Top with chilled leek slices.

  8. If desired, serve with lemon wedges.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

756Calories
62 gProtein
26 gFat
70 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 9 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Chicken100g cooked165
Potato1 medium (173g) baked161
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Yogurt170g plain Greek100
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Leek + potatotop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together30 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).

  2. Olive + potatotop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together6,458 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

  3. Olive + lemontop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together11,922 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  4. Potato + chickentop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,756 recipes

    Shared aroma: (z)-4-decenal (green, must).

  5. Leek + lemontop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together162 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Leeks
Soften into a mild, sweet aromatic base that gives the soup its flavor.
Potatoes
Break down when cooked and blended to give the soup its thick, creamy body.
Buttermilk
Adds tang and a smooth, creamy texture to the chilled soup.
Sour cream
Adds richness and a cool, tangy topping that balances the soup.
Chicken broth
Supplies the liquid that cooks the potatoes and carries the savory flavor.

The step that matters

Blending the potato mixture until smooth. Cooked potatoes turn gluey if overworked, and the mixture must be fully smooth to give a silky texture. Blend in small batches and avoid over-processing starchy potatoes.

Swap the white pepper

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (leek, olive, potato, chicken, lemon, buttermilk, cream):

  1. Garlicfits better
  2. Thymefits better
  3. Parsleyfits better
  4. White pepperthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against leek, olive, potato, chicken, lemon, buttermilk, cream. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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