This creamy vegan wild rice soup is perfect for warming up on a chilly autumn day. It’s my favorite kind of comfort food: satisfying and full of flavor, but unexpectedly packed with nutrition!
I decided to create this vegan wild rice soup after suffering from a very bad hangover after my cousin’s wedding in North Dakota. I was driving back through Minnesota on my way home the next day, splitting headache and everything, and it seemed like wild rice soup was everywhere, and it sounded AMAZING, but I knew it would never be vegetarian and dairy-free.
I had to take matters into my own hands to finally close the loop on my hangover and the dairy-free wild rice soup that I came up with is something that I’d prefer over the original any day.
- It’s packed with nutritious ingredients to create a creamy, dairy-free base
- There are no mushrooms anywhere to be found (I’m really not a fan)
- You can even add cauliflower to create a creamy cauliflower wild rice soup and it will be undetectable!
Wild rice is kind of an odd food, as it’s not actually a “rice” (like brown rice, etc.). It’s a grass that grows on water. Most of the United States’ wild rice crop is grown in and around Minnesota. I found a small box of it in the rice and beans aisle at my regular grocery store, and it should be at most natural grocers. Sometimes you’ll find it sold mixed with other forms of (actual) rice. It is a bit pricey per pound, but a little goes a long way flavor-wise and so it’s common to use it as part of a rice mix.
In this soup I use 50/50 wild rice and regular brown (or white) rice. If a wild rice blend is what you have, simply substitute it for the full quantity of rice in the recipe.
Wild rice is high in protein, fiber, lysine, and several vitamins and minerals. So it’s a great option for vegan diets.
This vegan creamy wild rice soup starts with the classic aromatics (onion, garlic and celery). The rice is then gently toasted in the oil and cooked until tender, before stirring in a luscious cashew cream base made with white beans and potatoes. Because the wild rice has such a unique, nutty flavor that I wanted to let shine, I held back with the spices and just used salt, pepper, and a couple of ingredients to add umami. The result is an absolutely addictive, rich soup. Every time I make it, it seems to be EXACTLY what I was craving. 🙂
Creamy Vegan Wild Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup raw cashews soaked for 2 hours to overnight
- 1 small potato cooked
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp white or yellow miso
- 1 and 1/2 cups cooked white beans rinsed and drained (equal to 1 standard can)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 rib celery diced
- 1/2 cup wild rice soaked for 2 hours to overnight
- 1/2 cup brown rice soaked for 2 hours to overnight
- 1/4 cup white wine (optional)
- 4 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
- 2 tsp vinegar or lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp freshly-ground black pepper
- salt to taste
- fresh parsley and soup crackers (optional, for serving)
Instructions
- Before making the rcipe, soak the cashews in a bowl of water. In another bowl, soak the brown and wild rice. Soaking the cashews softens them so they can blend to a smooth consistency, and soaking the rice helps it cook more quickly. Leave the bowls soaking for 2 hours to overnight.
- In a blender or food processor, combine the cashews, cooked potato (feel free to leave the skin on), miso, nutritional yeast, and white beans until completely smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed. This may take a few minutes. Add water as needed to blend.
- In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and celery, along with a sprinkle of salt, and stir. Continue cooking until softened, about 3 minutes.
- Add the wild rice and brown rice and stir. Cook for another 1-2 minutes. Stir in the white wine if using, and cook for a couple of minutes or until starting to dry out.
- Add the vegetable broth, and bring the mixture to a boil. Cover the pot, reduce to a simmer, and cook while stirring occasionally, until the rice is nearly tender (15-30 minutes, depending on how long you soaked the rice for and your rice chewiness preference).
- Stir in the cashew cream mixture. If you're not using a high-speed blender, you can pour the mixture into a mesh sieve first, using a spatula to push it through, to get rid of any lumps.
- Simmer the soup on low until the mixture is heated through and the rice is fully cooked to your liking. Add water or broth to thin out the soup if desired. Add the vinegar and black pepper.
- Season the soup to taste with salt. For me, this soup needs plenty of salt because it's so rich.
- Serve hot, with fresh parsley and crackers if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
If you loved this creamy wild rice soup, then you’ll love these other recipes:
Originally published in 2014. Updated in 2021 with new step-by-step photos and improved recipe instructions.
I'm Shannon, the writer and photographer of Yup, it's Vegan! I'm a morning person based in Baltimore, USA. My mission is to create healthy plant-based recipes that anyone would enjoy, using seasonal produce with inspiration from global flavors.
Malissa says
Not ever try any recipe with rice like this. Well, look so great taste. I will try this soon. thank you much for sharing!
Nicole says
My mouth has been watering since I found this recipe and I finally made it! I cooked my wild rice ahead of time in my Instant Pot to save time and I omitted the brown rice. I made it without oil or salt to be Nutritarian and I added mushrooms and water chestnuts. I am from MN and wild rice soup must have mushrooms! I was going to add some carrots too but I forgot. I use Trader Joe’s organic low sodium vegetable broth which is very yellow so my soup is very yellow in color. I didn’t have the miso either. It was delicious and I added a little low sodium soy sauce to my bowl for a salty taste. I will definitely make this again and will try the broccoli variation next! Thanks!
Hanusia says
I finally made this soup last nigt and it was soooooo good!! I’ve been getting over a cold this week and it was just what the doctor ordered. I added some carrots and used a vegetarian “chicken” flavored broth but otherwise made as directed. Delicious!! My roommates loved it, too. I’ll definitely be making this one again!
Katie says
This is hands down my favorite soup. I’ve made it several times with varying portions and substitutions and you can’t go wrong. I like to use the suggested amount of cashews and a bag of steamed cauliflower rice. I also add a bit of poultry seasoning. My husband usually doesn’t think soup is filling enough but he asks for this one all the time. Thank you!!
Rachel says
I just made this, and used only cauliflower + potato for the creamy part (omitting cashews). It’s fantastic! Great recipe. Thanks!
Lindsay says
Oh great! I was just about to ask this! My daughter is allergic to tree nuts, so I wanted to see if it could be traded for something else!
Thanks for sharing!
Katie says
This looks fantastic, and gets rave reviews from my friend! But the nutrition facts would be more meaningful if you defined how much “1 bowl” is.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
I don’t have a specific volumetric measurement for the recipe, but 1 bowl in my calculations is defined as one quarter of the recipe. Hope that helps!
Wildonion says
Wow. I just made a big pot (I doubled the recipe) and it’s fab! I used 1 c of cashews, and steamed a whole head of cauliflower, and it’s very creamy and rich. I also added a good long squirt of sriracha. I think next time, I’m going to roast the cauliflower, to add even more flavor. Thank you so much for this yummy soup recipe!
Kimmie says
This recipe was amazing. I took the lazy way out and didn’t soak the cashews, but ground them up until the they couldn’t be ground any more. I used Rex Goliath Pinot Grigio wine. I also didn’t use the miso because I couldn’t find it in the store. I used a rice cooker and just added it in at the end to make sure it ended up fully cooked :). I still boiled it 15 minutes before hand so the celery would soften. I find being vegan can be be low energy sometimes. This recipe was amazing and full of protein!
Ellen says
This soup might be the best soup I have EVER had – vegan or non vegan! I got a stomach ache because I couldn’t stop eating it. I served it with fresh bread on the side. Thanks for a wonderful recipe!
Elizabeth G. says
Thank you for a great weeknight recipe! As non-vegans, my husband and I loved it! We followed your suggestion to sub cauliflower for some of the cashews in the creamy base, and it was great. (Meaning it just tasted creamy – not cauliflower-y) We had it with some fresh rye bread. Delicious!
Megan says
If I leave out the white wine.. Would it affect the flavor too much?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Megan, I think the white wine adds a nice note to the soup, but it is still great without it. It’s only 1/4 cup, so not a huge impact on the flavor.
Carolyn says
Made this for my vegan kids. Delicious! We served it in bread bowls. As a non-vegan who’s relatively new to vegan cooking, I’m always astounded at what can be done with cashews and how well it substitutes for dairy. Thanks for a wonderful “keeper” recipe.
Rachel Ward says
Made this killer soup tonight and it is addictive, I had a hard time putting the spoon down!
Only adjustment was out of necessity: used sunflower seeds and hulled hemp hearts in place of the cashews to make a cream.
Golly, this is a keeper!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
So glad you liked the soup, Rachel, and thank you for letting me know that your substitution worked well! Cheers 🙂
Sanne says
Oh, this looks like such a warming delicious autumn dish! Sounds yum!
I really like your blog, I think you have very nice recipes :).
X
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Thank you so much! That’s very sweet 🙂
rika@vm says
My comfort food right now…. this looks absolutely stunning!!!!!
Panda With Cookie says
Yes! I love wild rice but not mushrooms. Totally bookmarking this one.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Haha, I knew there were more of us out there! Hope you enjoy 🙂
Cece Leskova says
This looks so comforting and delicious!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Thanks, Cece!
Kari @ bite-sized thoughts says
I love the background story to this soup 🙂 It looks different to any soup I’ve had before – and really appealing, especially as the weather cools down!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Thank you! 😀
Kelly G. says
This looks like it’d make a great belly-warmer during the winter months!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Thank you – it definitely does!
Kallie Schaefer says
This looks amazing! I love that you use cashews, potatoes and white beans to make it thick and creamy — I would’ve never thought of something like that. Genius! I have some wild rice mix in my cabinet that I picked up a while back, not knowing what exactly I wanted to make. This is definitely going to be it! Once our second coming of summer ends too — 85 degrees today. Yuck.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Haha, yep. It was around 85 here yesterday too. I had the one perfect soup day and then it was back to the humidity… oh well 🙂
Sara says
This looks so great! I love thick and creamy soups but unfortunately my husband doesn’t, but maybe I can add some more liquid to his as you suggest 🙂
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Thank you – me too! I like a soup that fills me up. I guess I’m lucky that my partner prefers them that way too. 🙂