Creamy, easy homemade stinging nettle soup recipe with Feta Cheese, rice and crunchy walnuts. If you are a fan of nettle, this soup might become a favorite. It’s an old family recipe everyone loves around spring/fall time.
Have you ever tried cooking with nettle? In Eastern Europe (and the UK, Ireland) it’s pretty common to cook nettle soup especially in spring when this healthy plant starts to grow again. We even get it at the supermarket, yum! Growing up, I didn’t like nettle soup as much as I do now.
This creamy nettle soup recipe is one handed down generations. It’s healthy, green, easy really easy to make. Make sure to add Feta Cheese at the end, together with walnuts to make an extra delicious spring soup.
FAN OF SOUPS, CHECK OUT MY BELOVED Polish Pork and Sauerkraut Soup RECIPE.
INGREDIENTS & SUBSTITUTIONS
- Fresh nettle leaves – tops only
- Butter – or any type of vegetable oil
- Spring onions – or regular onion, if not in season – just like the recipe photos below
- Chives – chopped
- White rice – a quick cooking variety
- Flour – all-purpose flour for thickening soup
- Water for cooking nettles
- Seasoning: salt, pepper and sweet paprika
- Toppings: Feta cheese and walnuts
Note: Nettle leaves are not suitable for raw consumption (e.g. in salads). They have to be sautéed/ blanched first. Once cooked, nettle leaves reduce their size to ¼ of original volume. Therefore, in general I tend to stick to 1:4 ratio to get creamier results – one cup sautéed & chopped nettle leaves to 4 cups water.
How to cook nettle at home:
1st: Cook cleaned nettle in cold water until almost cooked. Drain well from water and cut in small pieces.
2nd: Sauté onions and chives in butter, mix in the flour and sweet paprika. Add the chopped nettle, water from boiling nettle. Simmer until cooked, season with salt and pepper.
Serve warm with Feta cheese and chopped walnuts.
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST NETTLE SOUP AT HOME – tips
NETTLE-PICKING TIPS: If you decide to go out in the ‘wild’ and pick your own nettle leaves, consider the following:
- Pick the youngest nettle leaves from tips – as they are most fresh and tender once cooked.
- Use gardening gloves to avoid getting stung.
- Choose a region away from city traffic – as any other plant, nettle absorbs dust and dirt from the roads.
Creamy Nettle Soup Recipe (with Feta Cheese)
Equipment
- 1 cutting board & knife
- 1 collander
Ingredients
- 100 g spring onions, chopped
- 1/4 cup chives, chopped
- 2 tbsp. melted butter optional
- 200 g stinging nettle leaves, picked and washed
- 2 tbsp. whole wheat flour
- 4 cups of water (broth), or more as needed
- 4 tbsp. white rice
- 100 g Feta cheese, crumbled for topping
- 50 g walnuts chopped, for topping
Seasoning
- 1 tbsp. sweet paprika
- sea salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
Nettle leaves
- Soak nettle leaves in cold water and let sit for 15 min. That way most of the dirt comes off on its own. Then, wash nettle leaves carefully to avoid getting stung (I use rubber gloves).
- Place leaves in a soup pan with lid and cover with cold water. Boil for 10 minutes, until leaves start to change color (become darker, softer and shrink down).
- Remove from water and strain well (using a colander) and press with fork until well strained. Preserve nettle water for the soup.
- Place compressed leaves on wooden cutting board and cut in smaller pieces. The smaller the pieces, the tastier soup will be. Set aside and prepare the soup.
Soup
- Sauté spring onions and chives in butter in the soup pan with lid until tender (on medium heat).
- Add paprika & flour and sauté for 1-2 min while stirring to prevent mix from burning. Add 1/2 cups of water if needed.
- Then, combine with remaining water, rice, chopped nettle leaves. Bring to a boil and let simmer until fully cooked. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
- Serve warm with crumbled Feta Cheese and chopped walnuts on top.
Notes
Nutrition
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