Tri-Colour Sweet Pepper Soup

The_Swedish_Chef's Note:

I have been making this sweet pepper soup for over 20 years. There are two different versions that we enjoy: the recipe, as posted, with NO sour cream or tomatoes. The other version has added Dijon mustard, sour cream and a 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes. It is a delightfully different soup that I used as the base for my Tri-Colour Stuffed Pepper Soup. But, this soup is so good, it can stand alone, just as it is. For quantities to change out the soup, see the NOTE at the top of the directions.

• Total Time: 1 hrs
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Yield: 8 cups

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 Spanish onion (chopped fine, mine was about 3-inch diameter)
• 2 red peppers (cut into 1/2 inch wide by 1.5 inch long strips. My peppers were about 4 inch across)
• 2 green peppers (see above)
• 2 yellow peppers (or orange peppers, see above)
• 6 cups chicken stock (I use Swanson brand)
• 1 teaspoon paprika

Directions:

1. NOTE: Directions are for the original Sweet Pepper Soup. Sometimes, however, I like to "mix things up". For my second version, I reduce the chicken broth to 4 cups, add 1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes (I use Del Monte Petite Diced Tomatoes), 1-2 teaspoons of Dijon Mustard, and 1 cup of sour cream. It is a thicker, heartier soup that is equally enjoyable, just different.
2. Melt one tablespoon of the butter over medium heat in a large Dutch Oven.
3. Sweat the onions for 5 minutes until translucent and slightly yellow. I keep them covered during this process. If necessary, add additional tablespoon of butter so the onions do not burn.
4. Add the three different coloured peppers, stirring well, to mix the soft onions and butter with the peppers. Set timer for 15 minutes; every 5 minutes, stir the peppers and onions and "taste test" the peppers to YOUR degree of doneness. We really enjoy a very soft pepper so it takes the full 15 minutes to achieve that texture.
5. Add the six cups of chicken broth and the teaspoon of paprika and stir well, until combined. ( if using the can of diced tomatoes, use FOUR cups of chicken broth and the can of diced tomatoes).
6. Bring the soup to a boil, reduce down to a simmer and cover. Every 5 minutes, gently stir the soup. Simmer for 30 minutes.
7. If you choose to make this a richer soup, use an immersion stick blender to blend up the soup until it is coloured flecks of the peppers. Add the sour cream and Dijon mustard, stir well until heated. DO NOT BOIL!
8. Serve immediately.

Reviews

[Domestic Goddess]

Bee, I LOVED this soup, and so did my husband, but I did make some changes when preparing it. When I made the meat balls, I had to work with 1-1/4 lbs of ground beef, so I used 1/4 cup (plus 1 tablespoon) of the long grain rice, I added 1 extra large size egg, a 3/4 tablespoon of the dried parsley, about 3 tablespoons of diced red onion, the 1/2 teaspoon of salt, an 1/8 teaspoon of pepper, and the teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce. I DID NOT add any of the tomato soup to the meatball mix tho. And when I made the meatballs, I rolled each into 1-1/8 inch in size, and that made 28 meatballs. I cooked the meatballs in a skillet which I sprayed it w/a no-stick cooking spray. Since I did not add any of the tomato soup to the meatball mix, I decided to add the whole can of soup, as well as a 1/2 cup of tomato sauce, a 3/4 cup of water, and 2 teaspoons of the Worcestershire sauce to the large pot that I was simmering the meatballs in for the 40 minutes. When I was saute'ing the onion and peppers, I used what peppers I had on hand, which was...1 large green bell pepper, 1/2 of a large red bell pepper, and 1/2 of a large yellow bell pepper, which I diced them into 1/4-inch pieces, and I only saute'd the onions and peppers for exactly 10 minutes over medium heat. After adding the onion and peppers to the meatballs and tomato liquid in the pot, I then added 2-(14 oz.) cans of reduced sodium broth, a 3/4 teaspoon of paprika, 1-(14.5 oz) can of diced tomatoes with green chilies, plus I added a 1/2 cup of long grain white rice. I simmered the soup as directed (for 30 mins) but DID NOT remove the lid to stir the soup, so the rice would cook through throughly. After the 30 minutes were up, I then checked the soup and saw it had thickened slightly, so I added another (14-oz.) can of chicken broth, and finished heating the soup, which only took a couple minutes. Mmm, the soup tasted great!! Thank you Swedish_Chef for posting this recipe. I have never made a stuffed pepper soup, but always wanted to, and your recipe helped me off to a good start.