If so, what was it like?
2006-09-13 04:45:37 · 22 answers · asked by Anonymous in Food & Drink ➔ Cooking & Recipes
Nettle Soup
Don't worry - they don't sting when cooked! Nettles are very nutrient rich and of course - free! Don't gather them beside a busy road where they will have been contaminated by traffic fumes. If you keep cutting them from springtime you get a regular supply of fresh leaves, though they can get a bit insect infested during the summer!
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of vegetable margarine or oil
2 tablespoons of white flour
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Freshly picked and washed young nettles (several good handfuls - picked with gloves and caution!)
2 cups soya milk (tesco value is cheap and organic too)
1 cup water or stock
salt and pepper to taste
Fry the onion and garlic in the oil or marg. for a few minutes then stir in the nettles (no need to chop or remove stalks) until they soften. Stir in the flour and gradually add the soya milk and water or stock, stirring all the time. Add seasonings and liquidise. Delicious...
2006-09-13 08:34:05 · answer #1 · answered by catherinemeganwhite 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, and it's lovely! Here's a recipe, if you want to try it out:
Wash and chop 100-150 grams of nettles (leaves only, and preferably from young shoots, not those huge overgrown things you see this time of year).
Prepare a base of white sauce (bechamel or velouté) by melting ca. 3 tablespoons of butter, then stirring in 3 tablespoons of plain flour and cooking for a minute or two without letting it brown. Whisk in (in small batches) ca. 1.5-2 pints (depending on how thick you want it to be) of milk or vegetable stock or a mixture of both, and the chopped spinach.
Cook gently for 10-15 mins, and season with salt, freshly ground pepper (preferably white) and nutmeg.
A nice way to serve it is to cut a hard-boiled egg into four and float them on top of the soup on the plate.
A couple of points to note:
- Do not collect the nettles from the side of the road, or near a farm (where they may have been sprayed with pesticides etc.) or anywhere other than clean, natural meadows etc.
- Don't feed this to babies or very young toddlers.
- It's best to wear rubber gloves when picking and handling the nettles.
- There are two schools of thought regarding whether the nettles need to be blanced before adding to the sauce base: if you do, this reduces the nitrate levels slightly, but also destroys most of the vitamin C.
The same soup can also be made with spinach.
Enjoy!
2006-09-13 06:04:58 · answer #2 · answered by had enough of idiots - signing off... 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Use any recipe for spinach or sorrel soup, and you will get something similar.
Only use young leaves - the older ones tend to be stringy, and only pick your nettles away from roadsides, where they are likely to be contaminated by exhaust fumes and dust.
The recipe I would use is:-
1 stick celery, chopped
1 onion chopped
1clove garlic chopped
good handful of young nettle tops chopped
Pint of well seasoned chicken stock seasoned with light soya sauce (or use stock powder)
Cream and Black pepper to taste
Saute the chopped vegetables in a little olive oil until they have wilted, add the boiling stock and cook for about 5 minutes.
Puree in a blender, or use a stick blender, add cream and black pepper to taste and serve with a little grated Parmesan or crumbled blue cheese and lots of crusty bread.
It is really nice - much better than it sounds, quite healthy and cheap.
2006-09-13 06:06:59 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, yet i did attempt to fairly some circumstances to devour soup with a spoon, exceedingly if a soup is thick (you could thicken the soup effectively by ability of including some flour). It takes greater time, so I get excitement from it longer
2016-10-14 23:14:16 · answer #4 · answered by mctaggart 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I haven't tried soup, but I drink nettle tea every day and its lovely!!
2006-09-13 04:48:03 · answer #5 · answered by Trix 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have. I am from Lithuania and nettle soup is one of the dishes of our national cuisine. Not my favorite, but I am not big on soups overall, so...
2006-09-13 04:51:00 · answer #6 · answered by Kaytee 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It sounds awful and I think nettles are a diuretic too. I'll send you a tin of Scotch Broth, that will be nicer.
2006-09-13 04:51:41 · answer #7 · answered by Gone 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes i did and i got a nasty reaction from it,all my teeth fell out and i went deaf in my left ear!something to do with the type of nettle used and its reaction to my blood type....be carefull
2006-09-13 07:44:03 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
The definition of fresh fruit has different meanings depending on context.
2017-02-16 17:15:28 · answer #9 · answered by RobertS 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Its ok, a bit like cabbage or lettuce soup but then again I supose it depends on the chef
2006-09-13 04:48:30 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋