← Nouns Cooking · Soup Pot

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp Olive oil
• 40 g Butter
• 1 Onion, chopped
• 1 Carrot, diced
• 1 Leek, sliced
• 1 large floury potato, thinly sliced
• 1 l vegetable stock
• 400 g Young stinging nettles, leaves picked (wear gloves)
• 50 ml double cream
• 1 lemon, a squeeze (optional)
• Salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Wearing gloves, wash the nettles well in a sink of cold water and pick the leaves from the tough stalks.
2. Heat the oil and half the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Cook the onion, carrot and leek for 8 min, until soft.
3. Add the potato and stock, bring to a boil and simmer for 10 min, until the potato is tender.
4. Add the nettle leaves and simmer for 2–3 min, until wilted and dark green; cooking removes the sting.
5. Blend until smooth, then stir in the remaining butter and the cream. Season with salt, pepper and a squeeze of lemon, and serve with a drizzle of olive oil.

Tips

• Pick only the young top four to six leaves in spring, away from roads and sprayed fields.
• No nettles? Spinach or watercress makes a very similar soup. Check the stock is gluten-free if you need it to be.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

BBC Good Food Great British Chefs