Broccoli soup

Broccoli soup at its best is vivid green, smooth and gently sweet, and the secret is timing: the broccoli goes into the pot only for the last few minutes, is blended straight away and cooled fast. One potato gives it a velvety body without a drop of cream.

Pot calculatorOrder Broccoli soup

VeganGluten freeDairy freeParve

Updated

Broccoli soupIllustration
Time45 minCook 30 min
Pot6 bowls2.1 litres
Per bowl142 kcal5.3 g protein · a 350 ml bowl
Cost of the pot₪32for the pot, about ₪5.4 a bowl

The story of Broccoli soup

Broccoli is the same species as cabbage, cauliflower and kale, all bred over centuries from one wild cabbage. The broccoli we know took shape in Italy, and its name comes from the Italian for a sprout or small flower head. From there it reached the rest of Europe and America and became an everyday vegetable.

In Israeli homes broccoli soup is the quick winter weeknight soup: a bag of frozen florets, an onion, a potato and a stick blender. It sits in the family rotation of blended soups next to cauliflower and pumpkin, and many kosher kitchens make it parve so it fits any meal.

What makes Broccoli soup itself

Unlike other blended vegetable soups, broccoli soup has a fragile colour. Pumpkin stays orange after an hour on the stove, but broccoli green fades after a few minutes at the boil. So this recipe runs the other way round: the base cooks fully first, then the broccoli goes in briefly, is blended and cooled.

Broccoli soup for any number of people

Change the number of people and the bowl size, and every ingredient updates in grams, with the cost, calories and protein per bowl.

Bowl size
Units
2.1litres in the pot
3Pot to use, litres
₪32Cost of the pot
₪5.4per bowl
142kcal per bowl
5.3g protein per bowl
IngredientAmountCost
The base
Olive oil30 ml₪1.6
Onion, chopped200 g₪1.2
Garlic, sliced15 g · 3 pcs₪0.5
Potato, in small cubes300 g₪1.8
Water1.3 l
The green
Broccoli, florets and peeled stems800 g₪27
Seasoning
Salt12 g₪0.0
Black pepper, ground1 g₪0.1
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Shelf prices at a large Israeli chain and specialty shops, October 2026. Nutrition from the ingredients in grams, before cooking.

How many calories in Broccoli soup? Nutrition facts and calorie calculator

Change the amount of any ingredient, drop one, or pick a lighter version, and the numbers per serving update at once: calories, fat, carbs, protein, sodium and fibre.

Broccoli soup has 41 calories per 100 ml. A 350 ml bowl made with our recipe has 142 calories: 5.3 g protein, 5.2 g fat and 17.5 g carbohydrates. A 250 ml cup has 101 calories.

Lighter

Ingredients, for the whole recipe

  • 30 ml41 kcal per serving
  • 200 g13 kcal per serving
  • 3 pcs4 kcal per serving
  • 300 g39 kcal per serving
  • 800 g45 kcal per serving
  • 12 g0 kcal per serving
  • 1 g0 kcal per serving

What each add-on adds to Broccoli soup

Values for the amount in the row, from the national food database.

Add-onCaloriesProtein, gFat, g
A tablespoon of oil122013.8
A slice of white bread792.50.5
A slice of challah12641.1

How to make Broccoli soup

In cook mode the screen stays on, tap a step when it is done, and the timers run next to each step.
  1. Break the broccoli into florets. Peel the stem with a vegetable peeler down to the pale green core and slice it thinly.
  2. Heat the olive oil in a pot over medium heat, add the onion and a pinch of the salt, and sweat for 8 minutes until soft and translucent, without browning.
  3. Add the garlic and stir for 1 minute.
  4. Add the potato cubes and the water, bring to a boil and cook for 15 minutes over medium heat, until the potato breaks when pressed with a spoon.
  5. Add the sliced stem and cook for 3 minutes. Add the florets, turn the heat to high and cook uncovered for 4 to 5 minutes, until they are bright green and a fork slides in easily.
  6. Take the pot off the heat at once and blend with a stick blender until smooth, in short pulses and no longer than needed.
  7. Season with the rest of the salt and the pepper, taste and adjust.
  8. If you are not serving straight away, stand the pot in a sink of cold water and ice and stir for about 10 minutes until lukewarm, then refrigerate.

The science of Broccoli soup

Kitchen science

Why broccoli soup turns grey

The green comes from chlorophyll, a molecule with a magnesium atom at its centre. With heat, and especially with acid, the magnesium is replaced by hydrogen ions and chlorophyll becomes pheophytin, an olive grey pigment. Broccoli cells release their own acids into the liquid as they cook, so the longer the boil, the faster the change.

Kitchen science

Why it looks brighter at first

In its first minute in a hot pot, broccoli turns more vivid. Heat drives out the air trapped between the cells, light stops scattering off the tiny bubbles, and the chlorophyll shows clearly. That is the moment to stop cooking and blend.

Kitchen science

The cooked cabbage smell

The cabbage family carries compounds called glucosinolates. With long cooking they break down into sulphur compounds that give the heavy smell of boiled cabbage and a bitter taste. Short cooking keeps the flavour sweet and clean.

Kitchen science

The heat left in the pot

With the burner off, a full pot stays very hot for a long time and the chlorophyll keeps changing. An ice bath stops it. Baking soda is no shortcut: it neutralises acid and keeps the green, but it breaks down cell walls and leaves the soup mushy and slightly soapy.

Kitchen science

A potato instead of cream

A cooked potato releases starch that swells with heat and holds water, and that is the velvet in this soup. A small amount is enough. Too much potato, or blending for too long, makes the texture gluey.

Broccoli soup in every kitchen

Parve with potato

The recipe on this page: the potato thickens, olive oil adds depth, and the soup can open a meat meal.

With cream

A dairy version: stir in 200 ml of cream after blending and heat without boiling. You can halve the potato.

With coconut milk

Parve and creamy: swap 300 ml of the water for coconut milk and finish with lemon zest and a little grated fresh ginger.

Broccoli cheddar

The American dairy version: a thick soup with butter, milk and grated cheddar melted in at the end.

Broccoli and cauliflower

Half and half gives a paler green soup with a milder taste, good for children who distrust anything green.

Roasted broccoli

Roast the florets in a hot oven until the edges brown, then blend them with the base. Darker in colour, nutty and deep in flavour.

Common Broccoli soup problems and how to fix them

Why is my broccoli soup grey?

The broccoli cooked for more than 7 minutes, the soup sat hot for a long time, or lemon went into the pot. Cook the florets only at the end, 4 to 5 minutes, blend at once and cool fast. Add acid in the bowl.

Broccoli soup tastes bitter or smells of cabbage

Long cooking broke down the sulphur compounds. If the soup is already bitter, good olive oil, a pinch of salt and a few drops of lemon in the bowl will balance it. Next time, shorten the broccoli's time in the pot.

Broccoli soup is stringy, not smooth

The stem's outer skin is tough and will not blend. Peel it before cooking and blend long enough. A jug blender is smoother, but fill it only halfway and hold the lid down with a towel, because hot soup expands as it blends.

Broccoli soup is watery and bland

Too much water for the amount of vegetables, or too little salt. Start with less water and thin at the end as needed. Salt in two stages: a pinch with the onion and the rest after blending.

My broccoli soup went dark the next day

Long reheating carries on the chlorophyll change. Heat only what you will eat, over medium heat, until it steams, and do not keep it boiling.

Storing, freezing and reheating

3 days

In the fridge

3 months

In the freezer

2+4

To cool

Bring it from 60 to 21 °C within two hours and down to 5 °C within four more. Split a big pot into shallow boxes.

75 °C

Reheating

Heat one portion at a time over medium heat, stirring, until it steams. Do not keep it boiling, or the colour darkens. Stir thawed soup well or blend it again for a few seconds.

Nutrition of Broccoli soup

From our recipe, per bowl and per 100 g, next to the national food database.

ServingkcalProtein, gFat, gCarbs, gFibre, g
Our recipe, a 350 ml bowl1425.35.217.55.2
Our recipe, 100 ml411.51.55.01.5

What the ingredients of Broccoli soup cost

What each ingredient costs in one pot, and where to buy it.

IngredientPriceIn this potWhere to buy
Broccoli, florets and peeled stems₪34 per kg₪27Greengrocer
Potato, in small cubes₪5.9 per kg₪1.8Greengrocer
Olive oil₪53 per litre₪1.6Supermarket
Onion, chopped₪5.9 per kg₪1.2Greengrocer
Garlic, sliced₪34 per kg₪0.5Greengrocer
Black pepper, ground₪139 per kg₪0.1Supermarket
Salt₪2.1 per kg₪0Supermarket

Shelf prices at a large Israeli chain and specialty shops, October 2026, VAT included. Vegetable prices change with the season.

Make Broccoli soup a meal

Shabbat

Ready Shabbat food

Soup, hamin, mains and sides, with a quantity calculator and prices.

Plan Shabbat
Hosting

Hosting trays

9 trays to go with the soup, with a planner by number of guests.

Tray planner
Events

Catering

A whole menu in grams per guest, with a reheating table.

Menus

What to serve with Broccoli soup

Serve hot with a few drops of olive oil, small florets and toasted pumpkin seeds or croutons, with a slice of sourdough on the side.

Broccoli soup in large quantities: events, offices and communities

How much of everything by number of guests, at a 350 ml bowl. For institutional pots, catering and community kitchens.

GuestsLitres30 l potsCost of ingredients
258.81₪135
50181₪270
100352₪540
200703₪1,081
5001757₪2,702

Every ingredient for any number of guests is in the calculator above: type the number of people.

Order Broccoli soup

A ready pot for Shabbat, an event or the office, ordered ahead.

  • Cooked to order, for Shabbat, an event or the office.
  • Tell us how many people and when, and we send a quote.
  • Delivery in Tel Aviv from ₪35, free over ₪750.
Ask for a quote for Broccoli soup

Order Broccoli soup for a large event

Large orders in Israel and abroad: events, offices, synagogues, communities and institutions.

  • In Israel: cooked in Tel Aviv and delivered to events in the area, and to large events anywhere in the country on a quote.
  • Abroad: for communities, events and restaurants. Tell us where, how many and when, and we come back with a quote and options.
  • Institutional quantities and a shopping list for any number of guests, in the calculator above.
Ask for a large-order quote

Frequently asked questions

Can you make broccoli soup with frozen broccoli?

Yes, and it comes out very green. Frozen broccoli has already been blanched, so add it frozen to the boiling base and cook for only 3 to 4 minutes.

How do you thicken broccoli soup without cream?

With one potato cooked in the base. A handful of rice, soaked cashews or coconut milk also work. Blend gently, because over-blended potato turns the soup gluey.

How long should broccoli cook for soup?

4 to 5 minutes for fresh florets and 3 to 4 for frozen, with the peeled stem going in 3 minutes earlier. Beyond that the colour starts to fade.

Can you eat broccoli stems?

Yes. Once the fibrous skin is peeled off, the core is sweet and blends smoothly. One stem adds body and flavour, and nothing goes to waste.

Can you freeze broccoli soup?

Yes, for up to 3 months. Cool it quickly before freezing, freeze in portions, and blend for a few seconds after thawing to bring back the texture.

How do you clean broccoli of insects?

Break it into small florets, soak them for a few minutes in water with a little dish soap, shake well and rinse under running water. Many kosher kitchens buy frozen broccoli that was checked in advance.

How many calories are in Broccoli soup?

A 350 ml bowl of Broccoli soup made with our recipe has about 142 calories and 5.3 g of protein. Per 100 ml: 41 calories.

How much does it cost to make Broccoli soup at home?

A pot of 6 bowls costs about ₪32 at Israeli shelf prices in October 2026, about ₪5.4 a bowl. The calculator above works it out for any number of people.

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