Don’t stint on the stock.

There is simply no comparison between homemade stock and canned broth, and though making stock yourself does take time, it is simple to do, and the results freeze very well. “Stock is the essence of soup making,” David Ansel says.

Use the right tool.

Ansel opts for a Dutch oven because of its heft and relatively wide, shallow shape: “It’s my pick for a desert island pot.”

Think like an artist.

“Jackson Pollock would have been a great soup maker because he paid attention to texture, timing, layering and color,” Ansel says. Don’t be afraid to experiment and always keep thinking.

Published November 2003