How To Make Nettle Soup

If you think your guests will be completely turned off by the thought of eating stinging nettles, tell them this is watercress. The two are so similar they’ll probably be none the wiser. Just remember you can’t use sprigs of fresh nettle as a garnish, and wear your rubber gloves for the first part, the nettles don’t lose their sting till they’re cooked. Obviously you really can make the soup with watercress instead, but it’s always good to try something a bit different and nettles cost nothing so give them a go … Nettles (the equivalent of an average bag of watercress)

1. Step 1:

   Wearing your rubber gloves, pick the youngest, bright green, nettles you can find (after all, they’re

2. Step 2:

   Wash the nettles thoroughly in a big bowl of salty water and rinse them under the cold tap to be sure they’re clean.

3. Step 3:

   Warm some butter in a large saucepan while you peel and roughly chop the onion and crush the garlic, then put both in the pan together and cook gently for a few minutes until the onion has softened.

4. Step 4:

   Squeeze excess water from the nettles – still wearing the rubber gloves – and add them to the pan with a teaspoonful of vinegar. Cover the pan with a lid and simmer gently for about 5 minutes before adding the chicken stock, milk and nutmeg.

5. Step 5:

   Stir well and bring the soup to the boil; meanwhile put 2 heaped tablespoons of plain flour, 1 tablespoon of butter and a couple of teaspoons of dried parsley in a cup or small bowl and mash together till smooth.

6. Step 6:

   As soon as the soup has started to boil, turn the heat right down and add the parsley, butter and flour mixture, stir until dissolved then leave to simmer gently for about 5 minutes.

7. Step 7:

   Blend the soup, and if you want it thicker, whisk in a couple of spoonfuls of instant mash.