Cauliflower soup with the Thermomix® is ready in 30 minutes and makes 4 servings. The most important decision is about the creaminess: We thicken the soup with 100 g of floury potato rather than a roux. The starch from the potato naturally thickens the 800 g of cauliflower and 900 g of vegetable stock on its own, so the soup never tastes floury.
Goes well with: soured cream.
Many Thermomix® cauliflower soup recipes use a roux and fried onions. That works, but it takes two extra steps. Our approach is leaner: one mixing bowl, one pass, done. We still give the soup depth by briefly sweating the onion and garlic in butter beforehand. That is the one point where the Thermomix® really pays off here.
Cauliflower Soup with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 9 ✓
- 800 g cauliflower
- 100 g potato
- 900 g vegetable stock
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 2 pinches nutmeg
- 100 g double cream
- 20 g butter
- 2 sprigs parsley
Instructions 0 / 4
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1
Prepare the cauliflower.
Cauliflower: wash and place the florets into the mixing bowl. Potatoes: peel, cut into pieces and add.
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2
Cook and blend the ingredients.
Add the vegetable stock, salt, pepper and nutmeg, cook for 20 min / 100°C / speed 1 and then blend for 20 sec, gradually increasing to speed 8.
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3
Add the cream.
Add the double cream and butter and mix for 20 sec / speed 3.
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4
Serve.
Wash the parsley and pick the leaves. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve garnished with parsley.
Tip: You can adjust the blending to suit your taste. If you prefer a slightly chunkier soup, blend in step 3 for only 6 sec / speed 4.
Video
Nutrition per serving
Floury potato thickens better than any roux
The creaminess in this soup comes not from extra cream or a roux, but from 100 g of floury potato. Varieties such as Maris Piper or King Edward break down during cooking, and their starch thickens the soup completely naturally. This saves flour, saves fat, and makes the soup more filling at the same time. Waxy potatoes do not work as well here because they hold their shape and do not blend smooth.
If you want a roasted flavour, fry 1 onion and 1 garlic clove for 3 minutes at 120°C / speed 1 in the 20 g of butter first. On the TM31, use the Varoma temperature for this step as it has no 120°C setting. Only then add the cauliflower, potato and stock. Simply cooking them together will not produce those roasted notes. Freshly grated nutmeg is essential with cauliflower: 2 pinches lift the mild flavour without overpowering it. Ground nutmeg will do in a pinch, but freshly grated makes a noticeable difference.
If you like a little more spice, add a pinch of cayenne pepper at the end. This gives the soup a gentle heat that works well with the mild cauliflower. We use the white pepper from the recipe for the base seasoning and cayenne only as an accent, otherwise it can quickly become too hot.
Blending: why increase speed gradually rather than starting at full speed
After the 20 minutes of cooking at 100°C / speed 1, it is time to blend: 20 seconds, gradually increasing to speed 8. The slow ramp-up is not a minor detail. It prevents hot soup from splashing up against the lid. Starting directly at speed 8 risks a surge of hot liquid under the mixing bowl lid. Always keep the measuring cup in place.
The double cream and butter are added only afterwards and stirred in for just 20 sec / speed 3. This is important: the cream is not cooked with the soup and not blended with it. It is folded in gently at the very end. No more than speed 3 is needed, otherwise the cream will whip up and the soup will turn frothy rather than velvety.
Common pitfalls with cauliflower soup
The soup tastes watery and bland
This is almost always down to the stock. Plain water makes for a flat soup. Our fix: use a good vegetable stock, or even better, dissolve 1 tsp of vegetable paste in 900 g of water. If you have homemade stock to hand, you will notice the difference straight away. Chicken stock makes the soup richer if it does not need to stay vegetarian.
The cauliflower smells too strong during cooking
Cauliflower develops sulphurous aromas during prolonged cooking. Our fix: do not cook for longer than the 20 minutes stated and keep the lid on throughout. Fresh, firm cauliflower smells noticeably milder than old, yellowing florets. When buying, look for white, compact heads.
The soup has turned out too thin
Usually too little potato was used, or a waxy variety was chosen. Our fix: next time, add 20 to 30 g more floury potato. As an immediate rescue, stir in 1 tablespoon of cream cheese or 50 g of extra double cream, which will thicken it. A few cauliflower florets set aside and blended in at the end also add more body.
Variations that work well
Cheese and cauliflower: grate 30 g of Parmesan or a mature mountain cheese over the bowl at the end for a savoury note. Stirred directly into the hot soup, it makes it even creamier.
Curry cauliflower: toast 1 tsp of curry powder with the onion when frying, and replace 50 g of the cream with coconut milk. This gives a slightly exotic direction that suits cauliflower well.
Cauliflower and broccoli mix: replace the 800 g of cauliflower with a 50:50 mix of cauliflower and broccoli. The soup turns greener and develops a more robust vegetable flavour. The cooking time stays the same.
Vegan version: swap the double cream for oat cooking cream and replace the butter with a splash of olive oil. We barely lose anything in flavour because the floury potato provides the creaminess anyway. For extra body, blend 100 g of cashews with 100 g of water and stir the mixture in.
With crunch: set a few cauliflower florets aside, toss them in olive oil and spices, and roast in the oven until golden. Add as a topping over the finished soup. Crispy fried onions work well too.
Other Thermomix® soups we make regularly
Cauliflower soup is part of a whole series of soups we make. If you prefer something heartier, try the pumpkin soup with the Thermomix® or the classic potato soup with the Thermomix®. Similarly creamy and mild is the mushroom cream soup, and if you like leeks, the leek cream soup is worth a try. Leftover cauliflower often becomes a low-carb cauliflower pizza with the Thermomix® in our kitchen.
Preparing and storing cauliflower soup
The soup is well suited to making ahead. Stored in a sealed container, it keeps for 3 to 4 days in the fridge. It actually improves on reheating because the spices have more time to develop. When reheating, stir constantly and add the cream right at the very end, otherwise it will separate.
Freezing works without any problems. Portioned into containers, the cauliflower soup keeps for 3 months in the freezer. For best results, freeze before adding the cream and stir in fresh cream when defrosting; that way the texture stays velvety. Defrost overnight in the fridge, then reheat gently.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use frozen cauliflower?
Yes, frozen cauliflower works well, is cheaper, and is available all year round. Do not defrost before cooking; add the frozen florets directly to the mixing bowl. The cooking time may increase by 2 to 3 minutes because the cauliflower needs to cook through from frozen.
Why does the cauliflower soup include a potato?
The 100 g of floury potato thickens the soup naturally through its starch, replacing cream or a roux. It makes the soup creamier and more filling. Floury varieties such as Maris Piper break down into a smooth puree during blending far better than waxy ones.
How do I make the soup even creamier?
The potato already provides a creamy base. For more creaminess, stir in 50 g of extra double cream, a tablespoon of cream cheese, or a splash of milk. The key is to blend everything smooth: 20 seconds, gradually increasing to speed 8, is enough for that.
Can I make the cauliflower soup vegan?
Yes. Replace the double cream with oat cooking cream or soya cream, and use a splash of olive oil instead of the 20 g of butter. Because the floury potato handles the thickening, the vegan version tastes almost identical. For extra body, 100 g of blended cashews help.
Which stock works best?
Vegetable stock is the standard choice and keeps the soup vegetarian. Homemade stock made from 1 tsp of vegetable paste dissolved in 900 g of water tastes best. Chicken stock makes the soup more intense. Plain water should be avoided, as it leaves the soup flat.
Which Thermomix® models work?
All of them. The TM31, TM5® and TM6® all cook the soup in 30 minutes. The only difference: when frying the onion and garlic, the TM31 uses the Varoma temperature instead of the 120°C setting, which it does not have. Cooking, blending and stirring in the cream work identically on all models.
Can’t get enough soup? Try our tomato soup with the Thermomix® or the hearty gyros soup with the Thermomix® next.
