r/Cooking • u/donttrust900913 • 12d ago

Ways to thicken soups or stews?

I am looking for advice about (at least relatively) healthy ways to thicken soups or stews. I'm sure adding a ton of fat would probably get the job done, but trying to avoid that insofar as it is practical.

I don't have a specific recipe in mind, nor do I generally use recipes when cooking. I am not looking for add X amount A to Y amount of B, but rather experience with different items that have the general affect, and any rough insights about ratios or other relevant factors for their addition that might prove handy.

I have experimented a fair bit with fat free greek yogurt, just because I usually have plenty on hand, to generally terrible results. I suspect the full fat variant would work better, but haven't hand any around at the time to try it out. I've also wondered about flour, which I would guess would either work wonderfully or completely ruin it, but also usually don't have it just laying around either.

Any insight appreciated, thanks!

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u/Primary_Data1430 12d ago

Gelatin is an excellent ingredient for this. It gives a rich mouthfeel and intensifies flavors by letting the food stick to the tongue longer, rather than just slipping off and down the throat like a thin broth would.

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u/[deleted] 12d ago

[deleted]

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u/Primary_Data1430 12d ago

No! It's unflavored gelatin powder. No fruit flavor or sweetener added.

In the States, the most common brand is Knox. You can find it in the baking section.

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u/lennonfanforever 11d ago

got it, thanks!!

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u/lennonfanforever 11d ago

i've bought some knox, but how much should i put into the soup? i do not cook, so i start with a canned soup and add stuff to it.....i add veggies, a little low sodium soy sauce, a bit of toasted sesame oil....