Equipment
Ingredients
Aromatics
- 50 g unsalted butter
- 400 g leeks, white and light green parts only, sliced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
Body
- 450 g yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced
- 1000 ml chicken stock
- 5 g kosher salt
- 2 g white pepper, ground
Finish
- 250 ml heavy cream
- 10 g fresh chives, finely chopped
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 457 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbohydrates
- 34 g
- Fat
- 34 g
- Fiber
- 5 g
- Sugar
- 8 g
- Sodium
- 1463 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 21 g
- Trans Fat
- 1 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 9 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 1 g
- Cholesterol
- 103 mg
- Potassium
- 805 mg
- Calcium
- 152 mg
- Iron
- 6.1 mg
- Magnesium
- 65 mg
- Phosphorus
- 136 mg
- Zinc
- 0.9 mg
- Vitamin A
- 484 mcg
- Vitamin C
- 29 mg
- Vitamin D
- 1.0 mcg
- Vitamin E
- 1.0 mg
- Vitamin K
- 3 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.3 mg
- Vitamin B12
- 0.2 mcg
- Thiamin
- 0.11 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.33 mg
- Niacin
- 1.8 mg
- Folate
- 29 mcg
- Water
- 410 g
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
Cut the roots and tough dark green tops off the leeks. Slice the white and light green parts into half-moons. Place the sliced leeks in a mixing bowl filled with cold water and agitate to remove dirt. Lift the leeks out of the water and drain on the cutting board. Peel and dice the yellow onion and potatoes using the chef knife.
Place the Dutch oven over medium-low heat and add the butter. Once melted, add the drained leeks and diced onion. Sweat the vegetables, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until they are very soft and translucent, about 10 to 15 minutes. Do not let them brown.
Add the diced potatoes, chicken stock, kosher salt, and white pepper to the Dutch oven. Increase the heat to bring the mixture to a boil at 100°C / 212°F, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer until the potatoes are completely tender and fall apart easily when pierced, about 30 to 35 minutes.
Remove the pot from the heat. Working in batches if necessary, transfer the soup to the blender and puree until completely smooth. Pass the pureed soup through the fine mesh strainer into a clean mixing bowl to ensure a velvety, lump-free texture.
Stir the heavy cream into the strained soup. To ensure food safety and prevent bacterial growth, place the mixing bowl into a larger bowl filled with ice water to rapidly cool the mixture down to at least 4°C / 40°F. Once cooled, cover and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours.
Once completely chilled, taste the soup and adjust the seasoning if necessary, as cold temperatures dull flavors. Ladle into chilled bowls and garnish with finely chopped chives.
Chef's Notes
- Always use only the white and light green parts of the leeks to maintain the pure, pale color characteristic of a classic Vichyssoise.
- Washing leeks thoroughly is critical as they trap sandy dirt between their layers. Always slice them first, then agitate in a large bowl of cold water, lifting the leeks out rather than pouring the water over them.
- Passing the blended soup through a fine mesh strainer or chinois is the secret to a restaurant-quality, velvety mouthfeel. Do not skip this step.
- White pepper is used instead of black pepper to provide warmth without leaving black specks in the pristine white soup.
- Cold temperatures mute flavors. Always taste and adjust your seasoning right before serving the chilled soup, as it will likely need an extra pinch of salt compared to when it was warm.
Storage
Refrigerator: 3 days — Keep tightly covered to prevent absorption of refrigerator odors.
Reheating: Do not reheat. Serve chilled.
Troubleshooting
Soup has a gluey or gummy texture
Cause: Overworking the starches in the potatoes by blending at high speed for too long.
Fix: Cannot be fixed
Prevention: Blend just until smooth and rely on the fine mesh strainer to remove lumps, rather than excessive blending.
Soup tastes bland despite adding salt earlier
Cause: Cold temperatures mute flavors, meaning the seasoning level drops once chilled.
Fix: Stir in additional fine salt incrementally until the flavor blooms.
Prevention: Always perform a final seasoning check after the soup is completely chilled.
Cultural Context
Vichyssoise was famously created by French chef Louis Diat at the Ritz-Carlton in New York City in 1917. Inspired by a hot leek and potato soup from his childhood, he added cold milk to cool it down during the summer. He named the elegant, chilled dish after Vichy, a town near his birthplace in France, cementing its status as a transatlantic classic.
