Creamy, silky broccoli feta soup blended smooth and finished with tangy feta, toasted pine nuts and golden-seared florets. Ready in under an hour, it looks restaurant-quality but is made from a handful of cheap, basic ingredients.
Broccoli feta soup turns one broccoli crown, a few potatoes and a block of feta into a smooth, velvety bowl that tastes far more expensive than it is. The base is built by sautéing onion and garlic, simmering potatoes and broccoli until tender, then blending everything until silky.
Pine nuts get toasted and a few florets seared golden for garnish, so every spoonful has crunch and a tangy hit of feta. It is cheap, filling and easy enough for a weeknight, yet smart enough to serve to guests.
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Ingredients for Broccoli Feta Soup
- Broccoli crown – The base of the soup; the florets blend silky-smooth while the stems add body, so nothing goes to waste.
- Potatoes – They thicken the soup naturally and give it a creamy texture without any cream.
- Onion – Sautéed first to build a soft, savoury background flavour.
- Garlic – Adds depth and aroma to the flavour base.
- Dried oregano – A gentle herby note that lifts the broccoli without overpowering it.
- Salt and black pepper – Basic seasoning; go light on salt as the feta brings plenty of its own.
- Vegetable oil – For sautéing the veg and searing the broccoli garnish.
- Feta – Crumbled on top for a tangy, salty finish that cuts through the creamy soup.
- Pine nuts – Toasted for nutty crunch and a touch of richness on top.
- Fresh parsley – Stirred in at the end for freshness and a clean, green flavour.
How to Make Broccoli Feta Soup
Step 1: Peel and finely slice the onion, then peel and mince the garlic. Heat vegetable oil in a heavy-based pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for around 5 minutes until softened and aromatic, stirring regularly so nothing browns. Season with salt, black pepper and dried oregano.
Step 2: Peel and dice the potatoes into small cubes. Add them to the pot and pour in water or stock until the vegetables are covered by roughly 5cm (about two fingers' width). Bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, separate the broccoli florets and chop the stems. Add the stems to the pot first, as they need a little longer to soften.
Step 3: While the soup simmers, toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium-high heat. Stir after 30 seconds, toast for another 30, then tip them out straight away so they don't burn. Set aside. In the same skillet, heat a touch of oil. Thinly slice a few reserved florets and sear them cut-side down for 2 minutes until they take on a golden-brown edge. Don't flip them. These are for garnish.
Step 4: Add the rest of the broccoli florets to the pot and cook for another 5 minutes. Keep an eye on the time, as overcooking dulls the vibrant green. Once the broccoli is tender, taste and adjust the seasoning, remembering the feta will add saltiness later. Stir in the chopped parsley, then blend the soup with an immersion blender until smooth and silky.
How to Serve and Store Broccoli Feta Soup
Serve broccoli feta soup hot, ladled into bowls and topped with crumbled feta, toasted pine nuts and the golden-seared florets. A final twist of black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil finishes it off. It is lovely with warm crusty bread or a toasted sourdough slice for dipping, and a light salad alongside turns it into a proper lunch.
To store, let the soup cool fully, then keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat gently on the hob over low heat, adding a splash of water or stock if it has thickened. It freezes well too, for up to 3 months, though it is best to add the feta and pine nuts fresh after reheating rather than freezing them with the soup. Defrost overnight in the fridge before warming through.
More Easy Soup Recipes You Might Enjoy
If you've enjoyed this one, here are a few more blended soups from the blog worth a try.
For another smooth, creamy bowl, have a look at my Celeriac Soup Recipe — nutty, mellow and naturally thickened with potato, no cream needed.
If you fancy something with natural sweetness, my Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup Recipe is velvety, warming and gently spiced with garlic and ginger.
For a deeply savoury, caramelised option, try my Roasted Root Vegetable Soup Recipe — golden carrots, parsnips and soft roasted garlic blended silky and ready in under an hour.
If you love a fresh green soup, my Asparagus Soup Recipe is light, comforting and comes together in a single pot.
And for something chunkier and more filling, give my Chunky Lentil Soup Recipe a go — earthy red lentils and root veg in a golden, satisfying broth.
What Broccoli Feta Soup Costs Around the World
This is genuinely one of the best-value bowls you can make.
- In the UK, a broccoli crown, a few potatoes, an onion and a block of feta come to roughly £4.50–£5.50 for the whole pot, working out at around £1.10–£1.40 per serving across four bowls. Pick up the broccoli and feta at Tesco, Aldi or Lidl, where own-brand feta keeps it cheap.
- In Ireland, the same shop runs to about €5.50–€6.50 in total, or roughly €1.40–€1.65 a serving, with Dunnes, SuperValu and Lidl the easiest spots for fresh broccoli and feta.
- In the USA, expect around $6–$8 for the dish, near $1.50–$2 per serving, with broccoli and feta both stocked at Walmart, Kroger or Trader Joe's.
- Over in Australia, it lands at roughly AU$8–$10 total, about AU$2–$2.50 a bowl, with Woolworths and Coles carrying everything you need.
- And in Greece, the natural home of feta, the soup is a steal at around €4–€5 for the pot thanks to cheap local feta from any neighbourhood store or laiki market.
Wherever you make it, broccoli feta soup stays a cheap, filling meal that stretches a single broccoli crown a long way.
Tips and Notes for the Best Broccoli Feta Soup
- Don't waste the stems. The broccoli stems are just as useful as the florets, and chopping them in means you blend a whole crown into the pot rather than binning half of it. They take slightly longer to soften, which is why they go into the simmering liquid before the florets. Peel any tough, woody outer layer first if the stem is thick. Blended smooth, they add body and a mild sweetness you'd never notice was there.
- Add the florets late to keep the green vibrant. Broccoli loses its bright colour fast once it overcooks, turning a dull army green that makes the whole soup look tired. Adding the bulk of the florets in the final 5 minutes keeps that fresh green showing through after blending. Set a timer rather than guessing, as even a couple of extra minutes makes a visible difference. You want them just tender enough to blend, not mushy.
- Toast the pine nuts carefully. Pine nuts go from golden to burnt in seconds because of their high oil content, so they need constant attention. Keep them moving in a dry skillet and pull them off the heat the moment they smell nutty and look pale gold. Tip them straight onto a cold plate, as leaving them in the hot pan keeps them cooking. Burnt pine nuts taste bitter and there's no rescuing them, so it's worth the focus.
- Sear the garnish florets without flipping. Searing a few thin broccoli slices cut-side down gives you a golden, slightly charred edge that adds texture and a roasted flavour on top of the smooth soup. Leaving them undisturbed for the full 2 minutes is what builds that colour, so resist the urge to move them around. Flipping them loses the crust and steams them instead. These are purely for garnish, so a handful is plenty.
- Go easy on salt before the feta. Feta is a salty cheese, and it gets crumbled on at the end, so over-salting the soup base leaves the finished bowl too sharp. Season lightly while cooking, then taste again only after blending. You can always add more salt at the table, but you can't take it out once it's in. This is especially worth remembering if you're using a salty stock cube rather than water.
- Blend it properly for a silky finish. An immersion blender is ideal because it stays in the pot and gives you full control over the texture. Blend longer than you think you need to, as a quick whizz leaves a grainy, bitty soup rather than a smooth one. If you're using a jug blender instead, work in batches and never fill it past halfway with hot liquid. A truly smooth blend is what gives this soup its restaurant-quality look.
Broccoli Feta Soup FAQ
What kind of feta works best in this soup?
A standard block of brined feta is ideal, as it crumbles cleanly and brings that signature tangy, salty edge. Greek feta made from sheep's or sheep-and-goat's milk has the fullest flavour, but a budget supermarket block works perfectly well here. Avoid the pre-crumbled tubs if you can, as they're often drier and less flavourful. You want it for crumbling on top rather than blending in.
Is broccoli feta soup healthy?
It's a nourishing, vegetable-packed bowl with no cream, thickened naturally by potato, so it's lighter than most creamy soups. Broccoli brings fibre and vitamin C, while feta adds protein and calcium, albeit with some salt. Using water rather than stock and going easy on the feta keeps it lower in sodium if that's a concern. As blended vegetable soups go, it's a genuinely wholesome option.
Can I use frozen broccoli?
Yes, frozen broccoli works fine in the blended base, and it's often cheaper and just as nutritious as fresh. Add it straight from frozen and give it a couple of extra minutes to cook through before blending. The one thing frozen broccoli won't do well is the seared garnish, as it releases too much water to crisp up. Keep a little fresh broccoli aside if you want those golden florets on top.
Why is my broccoli soup a dull green colour?
This almost always comes down to overcooking the broccoli, which breaks down its bright pigment and turns it a flat khaki. Adding the florets late and blending as soon as they're tender keeps the colour fresh and vivid. A very long simmer or letting the soup sit on the heat after blending will dull it too. Speed is your friend once the broccoli goes in.
What can I use instead of pine nuts?
Pine nuts can be pricey, so toasted flaked almonds, chopped walnuts or sunflower seeds all make good budget swaps. Toast whichever you use the same way, watching closely so they don't catch. Each brings its own character: almonds stay delicate, walnuts add a richer bite, and seeds keep it nut-free. The point is crunch and a little richness against the smooth soup.
How do I make the soup thicker or thinner?
For a thicker soup, use less liquid when simmering or add an extra potato to the pot. For a thinner one, simply blend in more water or stock until it pours the way you like. Because potato does the thickening, you've got plenty of control without needing flour or cream. Adjust after blending, when you can see the true consistency.
Related:
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
- Easy Chilled Carrot Soup Recipe for Hot Summer Days
- Easy Pea Soup with Bacon and Vegetables
- The Best Creamy Roasted Root Vegetable Soup with Roasted Garlic
- The Best Roasted Carrot and Ginger Soup Recipe
Broccoli and Feta Soup
Creamy broccoli feta soup blended smooth from broccoli, potato and onion, then finished with tangy feta, toasted pine nuts and golden-seared florets. A budget-friendly, restaurant-quality bowl that's ready in under an hour and made from a handful of basic ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 large broccoli crown
- 3 medium potatoes
- 1 onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch of black pepper
- Vegetable oil (for sautéing and searing)
- 200g (7 oz) feta
- 50g (1¾ oz) pine nuts
- A bunch of fresh parsley (leaves only)
Instructions
Prepare the veggies: peel and thinly cut the onion, peel and mince garlic cloves.
Peel and finely slice the onion, then peel and mince the garlic. Heat vegetable oil in a heavy-based pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for around 5 minutes until softened and aromatic, stirring regularly so nothing browns. Season with salt, black pepper and dried oregano.
Peel and dice the potatoes into small cubes. Add them to the pot and pour in water or stock until the vegetables are covered by roughly 5cm (about two fingers' width). Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, separate the broccoli florets and chop the stems. Add the stems to the pot first, as they need longer to soften.
While the soup simmers, toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium-high heat. Stir after 30 seconds, toast for another 30, then remove immediately to prevent burning. Set aside. In the same skillet, heat a touch of vegetable oil. Thinly slice a few reserved broccoli florets and sear them cut-side down for 2 minutes until they take on a golden-brown edge. Don't flip them. These are for garnish.
Add the rest of the broccoli florets to the pot and cook for another 5 minutes, watching the time so the green stays vibrant. Once the broccoli is tender, taste and adjust the seasoning, keeping in mind that the feta will add saltiness. Stir in the chopped parsley, then blend the soup with an immersion blender until smooth and silky.
Ladle into bowls and top with crumbled feta, toasted pine nuts and the seared florets. Finish with black pepper and serve hot.
[…] Crumble some feta cheese on top, like in this recipe of Broccoli Soup […]