Beer Cheese Soup Recipe Inspired by EPCOT’s Biergarten Cuisine – The Ultimate Comfort Food
Learn everything you need to know about the Biergarten Beer Cheese soup found in Germany in EPCOT!
Who doesn’t love beer? Who doesn’t love cheese? Combine the two and you have a killer, rich and hearty soup straight out of Germany. If you love beer and you love cheese, then this recipe for EPCOT‘s Biergarten Beer Cheese soup is just for you! Read on to learn more about this divine, velvety soup.
If you are familiar with the infamous EPCOT festival Canadian Cheddar Cheese soup (and like it!), then you will absolutely love this! These beer & cheese soups are very similar in both preparation and taste. The Canadian version adds bacon, a Canadian beer (such as Moosehead, Labatt, or Molson), and scallion (or sometimes chives), these two variations are extremely alike. If you like one, you are bound to like the other.
This Beer Cheese soup recipe inspired by the one served in EPCOT’s Biergarten is also similar to the beer cheese dip often found served with pretzels at your local bar. The ingredients are identical. If you visit Walt Disney World, you can find this at Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar in Disney Springs and Baseline Tap House in Hollywood Studios. It’s delicious and not to be missed!!
History of the German Beer Cheese Soup
As is well known, Europeans certainly love their beer, so it comes as no surprise that beer soup was actually served as breakfast, often over bread, during the middle ages. Anything to drink a favorite brew at any time of day!
During the middle ages, the soup consisted mainly of just beer and not cheese. It wasn’t until the beer soup was brought to the US’s mid-western region, mainly in Wisconsin’s state, by groups of German settlers during the 19th and early 20th centuries that cheese was added to the original beer soup recipe. And since Wisconsin is the home of all things cheese, it’s fitting that this beer cheese soup would begin its US residence and popularity in this state. What is the result? A rich, creamy and decadent soup!
What is the Best Cheese to Use?
The most common and recommended cheese to use for this recipe is sharp white cheddar cheese. So, why is cheddar suggested? There are two main reasons.
- Cheddar melts so perfectly into a creamy, rich goodness
- The sharpness of the cheddar cheese balances out nicely with the bitterness of the beer
I highly recommend buying already grated cheddar cheese. You can find this in most dairy aisles at the grocery store. Not only does this save you a significant amount of time, since you don’t have to grate it yourself, but it also will melt faster and more evenly.
What is the Best Beer to Use?
Beer is such a complex drink, and one of the most popular after water and tea (believe it or not!). Depending on the type of beer you use when cooking meals, beer will elevate the texture and flavor of the food you are eating. Much like cooking with wine, I always recommend using something you enjoy drinking. If you don’t like it to drink, you won’t like it in your food either!
Using a light beer, like a German Hefeweizen, will add a light depth of flavor to your food – the taste will be faint, but you’ll know it’s there. If you are looking for a deeper, richer taste, choose a dark layered beer such as a stout, malt, or full-bodied ale. The complex layers of the beer will add a strong and full flavor to the soup.
You can also choose to leave the beer out completely if you are serving those who don’t drink or even children. While the depth of flavors will change slightly without beer, the soup overall is just as yummy.
Biergarten Beer Cheese Soup
Equipment
- 1 Stockpot
- 1 Spoon
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Soup Ladle
- 1 Hand Mixer
Ingredients
- 1 lb butter
- 2 1/2 lbs onions, diced
- 1 lb all-purpose flour
- 4 ounces chicken stock
- 2 gallons water
- 3 lbs sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 12 ounce bottle dark german beer such as Octoberfest
- 1 pinch white ground pepper
- 3 dashes hot sauce such as Tobasco
Instructions
- Saute the onions with the butter in a kettle, cooking until translucent.
- Add flour to make a roux, cooking for 5 minutes until the flour starts to turn blonde.
- Add chicken stock and water, whisking vigorously. Cook until the roux is thickened, about 10 minutes.
- Add cheese slowly to the roux mixture, blending with a hand blender until smooth. Note: When adding the cheese, lower the heat or take off it off of the heat completely. You do not want the cheese to reach its boiling point, it will curdle in your soup. Also, don’t over stir the soup. While stirring frequently will ensure all the ingredients are mixed and the cheese is melted through, over stirring could cause clumping and lumps in the soup. And no one wants that!
- Season with pepper and Tabasco.
- Garnish with chives and serve with pretzel croutons to serve. Enjoy!
Reheating Directions
- Place the beer on the stove to reheat just to break the chill. DO NOT BOIL! Slowly whisk the warmed beer into the pot of soup and whisk vigorously to combine. Note: I have served this from a crockpot set on low to keep warm. It is good for chilly winter days.
Cover and Recipe Images
Photo: MouseEars TV Creative Team
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