Cheese soup in the Thermomix® only works when you add the cheese at the end. Added too early, it turns stringy, clumps together or burns on the bottom. We add the Cheddar and herb cream cheese only after the 8 minutes of cooking time, mix for 5 seconds at speed 3 and then cook again for 5 minutes at 100°C on reverse direction at speed 2. That keeps the soup creamy and the cheese combines evenly with the liquid.
We fry the mince in a pan alongside. In the Thermomix® it would technically just steam, but in the pan it gets crispier and develops a proper sear. The soup itself only needs 20 minutes of active time in the Thermomix®, while the mince cooks alongside.
Cheese Soup with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 10 ✓
- 200 g Cheddar
- 1 carrot
- 1/2 dried chilli
- 1 stalk leek
- 10 g coconut oil
- 100 g white wine
- 600 g vegetable stock
- 400 g beef mince
- 10 g oil
- 250 g herb cream cheese spread
Instructions 0 / 7
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1
Grate the cheese.
Add the Cheddar in pieces to the mixing bowl, chop for 6 sec / speed 6 and transfer to a bowl.
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2
Chop the carrot and chilli.
Peel the carrot, add in pieces to the mixing bowl. Add the chilli and chop for 7 sec / speed 5.
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3
Prepare the leek and sweat it.
Trim the leek, slice into rings, set a few rings aside for garnish, then add the rest with the coconut oil and cook for 3 min / Varoma / reverse direction / speed 1.
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4
Cook the soup.
Add the white wine and vegetable stock and cook for 8 min / 100°C / reverse direction / speed 1.
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5
Fry the mince.
Meanwhile, fry the mince in a frying pan with oil until crumbly and browned.
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6
Cook the soup with the cheese.
Add the Cheddar and herb cream cheese to the soup, mix for 5 sec / reverse direction / speed 3 and cook for 5 min / 100°C / reverse direction / speed 2.
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7
Serve.
Ladle the soup into bowls or soup cups, top with the mince and serve garnished with leek rings.
Tip: Serve your soup with fresh, crusty baguette.
Video
Nutrition per serving
Why Cheddar and herb cream cheese
We combine 200 g of Cheddar with 250 g of herb cream cheese spread. The Cheddar brings the distinctive cheese flavour, the cream cheese gives it the creamy consistency. Only Cheddar would be too dense, only cream cheese too mild. The combination of both gives a soup that tastes properly cheesy and still stays smooth.
The Cheddar is grated first at speed 6, 6 seconds is enough. It then comes out of the mixing bowl and is only added back in right at the end. This stops the cheese melting too early and settling on the bottom.
Slice the leek into rings and set some aside
Trim the leek and slice into rings. Set a few rings aside straight away for the garnish. The rest goes into the mixing bowl with 10 g of coconut oil and steams for 3 minutes at Varoma on reverse direction at speed 1. The reserved leek rings stay raw and are scattered over the finished soup at the end. They give a fresh contrast to the creamy base.
The carrot and half a dried chilli are chopped beforehand for 7 seconds at speed 5. The carrot gives the soup a gentle sweetness, the chilli a subtle heat. Half a chilli is enough. More would overpower the cheese.
Deglaze with white wine, then add stock
After sweating, add 100 g of white wine and 600 g of vegetable stock to the mixing bowl. The soup cooks for 8 minutes at 100°C on reverse direction at speed 1. Reverse direction stops the vegetables being chopped too finely. The soup should keep a little texture, not be blended smooth.
While the soup cooks, fry the mince in the pan. Brown 400 g of beef mince with 10 g of oil until crumbly and coloured. This takes about 5 to 7 minutes. The mince does not go into the soup. It is spooned over the top at the end.
Add the cheese only after cooking
After the 8 minutes, add the grated Cheddar and the herb cream cheese to the soup. Mix for 5 seconds on reverse direction at speed 3, then cook again for 5 minutes at 100°C on reverse direction at speed 2. In those 5 minutes the cheese melts completely and combines with the liquid. The lower speed 2 stops the soup being churned too vigorously and the cheese settling again.
If you add the cheese earlier, this happens: the cheese melts too quickly at high heat, the protein curdles and the soup turns stringy. Or the cheese sinks to the bottom and burns on. Both ruin the texture. The 5 minutes at 100°C after mixing are the difference between creamy and lumpy.
Mince with a crispy sear, not just crumbled
Fry the mince in a separate pan. In the Thermomix® it would only steam, not fry. In the pan the meat gets a proper sear and goes crispy on the outside. You need medium to high heat and let the meat brown before stirring. If you stir too early, the meat releases liquid and stews instead of frying.
The fried mince does not go into the soup. It is spooned on top at the end so it stays crispy. If you stirred it into the soup, it would go soft and the texture would be lost.
Serving with contrast
Ladle the finished soup into bowls or soup cups. The crispy mince goes on top, then the raw leek rings. The leek rings give a fresh, slightly sharp contrast to the creamy, warm soup. Without that raw element the soup would be too one-note.
Fresh baguette or rustic bread rolls go well alongside. The bread soaks up the soup and adds substance.
Storing and reheating
The soup keeps in the fridge for 2 to 3 days in a sealed container. Reheat gently on the hob or in the Thermomix® at a low temperature, stirring throughout. Do not overheat or the cheese will separate again.
Freezing does not work well with cheese soup. The cheese separates on thawing and the texture turns grainy. If you want to make a larger batch, freeze the soup without the cheese and stir in fresh cheese when reheating.
More soups from the Thermomix®:
- Goulash Soup Thermomix®
- Spinach Soup with Croutons
- Pea Soup with Mint
- Parsnip and Carrot Soup
- Lentil and Coconut Soup
Goes well with: farmhouse bread, bread rolls and baguette.
