Recipe: Nettle Soup

Written by

Every Thursday on the Good Food Blog we share a recipe from our archives.

Barbara Kafka‘s book, Vegetable Love, contains both notes and recipes all about vegetables.  She first shared this recipe for Nettle Soup on March 25, 2006.

220px-Illustration_Urtica_dioica0
Photo: Wikipedia (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)

Keep reading for the full recipe…

Nettle Soup
Makes 6 1/2 cups
  • 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil
  • Leaves from 1/4 pound nettles, cut across into 1/4 inch strips (about 1 1/2 cups packed)
  • 3 medium floury potatoes (1 1/4 lbs), peeled and cut into 1/4 inch dice (about 3 cups)
  • 5 cups chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tsp Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Melt the butter or heat the oil in a large pot. Add the nettles (leaves only). Cook, stirring, over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally; the water will be almost evaporated.

Add the potatoes. Pour in the chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 8 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Stir in the cream.

Pass the soup through a food mill fitted with a medium-coarse disc. Season with the salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.