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Cozy Autumn Wild Rice Soup

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This Cozy Autumn Wild Rice Soup is made with fresh seasonal vegetables and greens, hearty wild rice, and a deliciously zesty, creamy broth (made with either coconut milk or cream). Instant Pot and stovetop options included!

Who’s ready to warm up with a bowl of wild rice soup? ♡

This cozy autumn wild rice soup has become one of our readers’ favorite recipes here on Gimme Some Oven these past few winters and is also hands-down one of my personal all-time faves on the blog as well. It’s loaded up with lots of my favorite fresh seasonal produce, from sweet potatoes to kale, mushrooms, carrots, celery and onions. It’s made nice and hearty with the addition of wild rice, which just so happens to be lower in calories and higher in protein than many other rices. But best of all, it is made with the most irresistible broth, seasoned with garlic and “the bays,” as I call them, and made creamy with either the addition of coconut milk, cream or a roux-based cream sauce.

After having originally written this recipe with the cream sauce, I have to say that I — as well as so many of you readers — have become much more partial to the coconut version over the past few years, which I think adds the perfect hint of sweetness to the broth to balance out all of those savory flavors, and just so happens to make this recipe vegan too. So for any of you who haven’t tried that version yet, or this soup in general, I thought I would bump it back to the top of the blog today while we’re right in the heart of cozy comfort food season. I’ve included instructions below for how to make either the dairy or vegan versions, as well as instructions for how to make this soup in either the Instant Pot (my fave), Crock-Pot, or on the stovetop. And of course, if you’re craving some nostalgic chicken and wild rice soup, you’re always welcome to toss some shredded chicken in here as well.

More than anything, though, I just wanted to pop in and say how happy I am that so many of you have tried and loved this soup! It always means so much to me to read your comments and see photos of your dinner online. So cheers to the cozy recipes that keep us all warm this time of year…and now let’s make some soup!

Autumn Wild Rice Soup Recipe (Vegan Version) | 1-Minute Video

Wild Rice Soup Ingredients

Before we get to the full recipe below, here are a few quick notes about the ingredients you will need to make this wild rice soup recipe:

  • Wild rice: I love using 100% wild rice in this recipe, which is different than a wild rice blend or black rice (which, look out, will turn your soup purple!). That said, though, you are welcome to use whatever type of rice you prefer in this soup. Just note that different varieties of rice will require different cooking times.
  • Vegetable stock: You could use either vegetable stock or chicken stock as the base for this soup.
  • Autumn veggies: A seasonal blend of sweet potato, carrots, celery, onion, mushrooms and garlic.
  • The “bays”: I’m a big fan of using Old Bay seasoning and a bay leaf to season this soup. But if you don’t have Old Bay on hand, I have included some alternate seasoning options below.
  • Coconut milk or cream sauce: I prefer the vegan version of this soup made with coconut milk, which I believe adds the perfect touch of creamy sweetness to balance out all of those savory flavors. But alternately, you could choose to make a cream sauce (made from milk and thickened with a flour/butter roux), or you could just add in some half and half or heavy cream to taste.
  • Greens: I love adding lots of fresh kale to this soup, but baby spinach, collard greens, or any other soup-friendly greens that you have in the crisper drawer would do.
  • Salt & pepper: As always, for seasoning!

How To Make Wild Rice Soup

As mentioned, I have included detailed instructions below for how to make this wild rice soup recipe either in the Instant Pot (pressure cooker) or on the stovetop. But in general, the method is to…

  1. Cook the base of the soup. Whichever cooking method you choose, we will simmer the veggies and rice in the broth (sans cream) until the rice is completely tender.
  2. (Optional) Make your cream sauce. If you choose to use the cream sauce method, you can prepare the cream sauce in a separate saucepan while the soup cooks by melting the butter, whisking in the flour, stirring in the milk and cooking the mixture until thickened. (Or you can skip this step and add in a can of coconut milk or some half and half instead.)
  3. Add in the coconut milk (or cream sauce) and kale. Once the rice is ready to go, stir in the coconut milk (or cream sauce) and kale until combined. Then taste and season with salt and pepper.
  4. Serve. And serve it up nice and warm! I love serving this soup with some crusty bread and a simple green salad. Also, note that the soup will continue to thicken as it cools. So if it gets too thick, feel free to add in extra broth and Old Bay, to taste.

Recipe Variations

This recipe is quite flexible, so feel free to experiment with whatever ingredient variations sound good! For example, you could…

  • Add chicken: To make chicken and wild rice soup, you can either add pre-cooked diced or shredded chicken to the soup. Or you can poach a raw chicken breast in the soup while the rice cooks, then remove, shred, and add it back into the soup before serving.
  • Use a different seasoning: This soup would taste delicious with a variety of different seasoning blends (in place of Old Bay), such as Cajun seasoning, Italian seasoning or herbs de Provence.
  • Make it milder. Old Bay seasoning is mildly spicy, so if you prefer your soup with less heat, I would begin with just 2 teaspoons of Old Bay. Then you can always add more to taste later, if you would like.
  • Make it gluten-free: The vegan version of this soup is naturally gluten-free. But if you are making the dairy version and would like to thicken the broth a bit, I would recommend adding a cornstarch slurry (equal parts cold water and cornstarch mixed together) to the soup until it reaches your desired consistency.

More Vegetarian Soup Recipes

Looking for some more simple, cozy, vegetarian soup recipes this season? Here are a few more of our faves… ♡

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Cozy Autumn Wild Rice Soup

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 978 reviews
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 8 servings 1x

Description

This Cozy Autumn Wild Rice Soup features fresh seasonal produce, hearty wild rice, and a zesty creamy broth. The vegan version of the soup is listed here in this recipe, or see options below for the cream sauce version.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 6 cups vegetable stock (or chicken stock)
  • 1 cup uncooked wild rice*
  • 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, sliced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 medium carrots, diced
  • 2 ribs celery, diced
  • 1 large (about 1 pound) sweet potato, peeled and diced
  • 1 small white onion, peeled and diced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning
  • 1 (14-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk (or see cream sauce option below*)
  • 2 large handfuls of kale, roughly chopped with thick stems removed
  • fine sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper

Instructions

Instant Pot (Pressure Cooker) Method:

  1. Combine base ingredients. Combine vegetable stock, wild rice, mushrooms, garlic, carrots, celery, sweet potato, onion, bay leaf and Old Bay seasoning in the bowl of an Instant Pot pressure cooker.  Stir briefly to combine.
  2. Pressure cook. Cover and cook on manual (high pressure) for 25 minutes.  Let the Instant Pot rest and naturally release the pressure for 10 minutes.  Then carefully open the vent and quick release the remaining pressure.  Remove lid and discard the bay leaf.
  3. Add final ingredients. Add the coconut milk and kale to the soup, and stir gently until combined.  Taste and season with salt and pepper (plus any extra Old Bay seasoning, if you would like) as needed.
  4. Serve. Serve warm and enjoy!

Stovetop Method:

  1. Sauté the veggies. Heat (an extra) 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat.  Add onion and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent.  Stir in the garlic and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until fragrant.
  2. Add base ingredients. Add in the vegetable stock, wild rice, mushrooms, carrots, celery, sweet potato, bay leaf and Old Bay seasoning.  Stir to combine.
  3. Simmer. Continue cooking until the soup reaches a simmer.  Then reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes until the rice is tender, stirring occasionally.
  4. Add final ingredients. Add the coconut milk and kale to the soup, and stir gently until combined. Taste and season with salt and pepper (plus any extra Old Bay seasoning, if you would like) as needed.
  5. Serve. Serve warm and enjoy!


Notes

Wild rice: I used 100% wild rice which I love and recommend for this soup.  Cooking time may vary if you use a wild rice blend or a different type of rice.

Alternate cream sauce recipe: In place of the coconut milk, you can either add 1 1/2 cups half and half.  Or you can make a cream sauce by melting 3 tablespoons of butter in a (separate) saucepan over medium-high heat, whisking in 1/4 cup flour for one minute, and then whisking in 1 1/2 cups milk until the mixture is smooth.  Let the sauce cook until it nearly reaches a simmer, at which point it will thicken, then remove from heat and add the sauce to the soup once the rice has completely cooked.

Crock-Pot (Slow Cooker) Option: I decided to remove the Crock-Pot option from the recipe instructions because we have unfortunately found slow cookers to be too inconsistent in making this recipe. Different brands/models have proven to vary dramatically in terms of the cooking time required to fully soften the rice and vegetables, and too much of the broth can evaporate if the lid is not fully secure. I recommend the Instant Pot or stovetop options instead. But if you want to cook this soup in a slow cooker, just follow the Instant Pot method and slow cooker (instead of pressure cook) the soup as directed in Step 2 until the rice and veggies are tender.

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1,471 comments on “Cozy Autumn Wild Rice Soup”

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  1. This is fantastic! Thank you so much for this recipe. I made it for my family the other night and they literally ate it all before I could even add the cream in. This is a keeper, and it’s going into the regular rotation around here.






  2. I’ve been making this soup for 2 years at least once a month 😂 it’s THAT good! I’ve added more veggies and it doesn’t change the calories much, or subbed potatoes for sweet potatoes. That will make it a little less sweet but both are so good! It’s super easy and super tasty and healthy! 10/10!






    • My daughter made this last night and sent a bowl home with me. Even more delicious the day after! YUMMY!

  3. My husband and I did not care for this soup. Will not make it again

  4. This is now one of our household’s favorite soups! It tastes wonderful with all the different veggies, it also has a small touch of spiciness that warms you up just right. So hearty, so easy, and so healthy… LOVE it!






  5. This soup is excellent. Layered with flavors!! I did it on stove top and used chicken stock. I prepped all of the veggies first, which made it an easy, stress-free process. It seriously exceeded my expectations and I can’t wait to make it again. Wouldn’t change a thing!






  6. Sorry to be the one guy out…but stovetop did not work for me. The recipe says 30-40 mins for the soup. After an hour and a half cooking, the rice was still hard. I gave up and ordered food. I have no idea what the problem is. It smelled great but I couldn’t eat it. Not sure I would try again without an instapot. Wish I had everyone else’s experience.






  7. So disappointed. Really wanted to like this. Not sure what went wrong, but this has no flavor except for the Old Bay (which thankfully I only used 2 tsp instead of the entire amount). Used half and half to thicken, and it didn’t even after cooling.

  8. This soup!!! I made it tonight as I’m on the final day of low FODMAP. So excellent. I made minimal changes to suit the plan I’ve been on…simple changes make it very fodmap friendly!






  9. This soup is healthy, absolutely delicious, and so flavorful. My husband and I both love it and have been making it for almost a year! Thank you.






  10. This was one of the top soups I’ve made! It’s a perfect blend of the savory and the coconut milk was a nice addition. It’s going in my laminated recipe book as a favorite!

  11. Making my second batch in one week. Absolutely a family favorite. Added a can of Veg All and a little more old Bay. So so so good!!






  12. Loved this recipe, but add in the coconut milk bit by bit! If I had added the full two cans (I doubled the recipe) it would’ve tasted like straight coconut with not much else going on. I only ended up using one can.






    • Overall, a decent soup. Next time I’ll skip the coconut milk or cream and cut back on the Old Bay. I think the broth just tasted better before the creaminess.






  13. Do you have nutrition info and per serving calorie calculation for this recipe? It was tasty and I’d like to use it again.






    • Try soaking the wild rice in water for about 30 minutes prior to adding it to the soup. I have to do that for another soup recipe that I cook alot and I think it is to help soften the rice. I am making this tonight and will be doing the same thing.

  14. Such a cozy soup. I can imagine eating it in front of a roaring fire in the fireplace. I would suggest prepping all veggies before starting the soup. I went the coconut milk, chicken stock, chicken breast route. I omitted the old bay spice and substituted Italian seasoning and a little cayenne. Made some cheddar bay biscuits to go with it. We will be making it again!






  15. Love love this soup imix up the veg. Once i a while and add season butter with a little old bay to shrimp saute till pink then add at the end you don’t wan’t to over cook shrimp they will cook more once you add to pot just before serving

  16. Love love this soup imix up the veg. Once i a while and add season butter with a little old bay to shrimp saute till pink then add at the end you don’t wan’t to over cook shrimp they will cook more once you add to pot just before serving

  17. First cold Autumn day and made this to make us happy. Success! Delish. My cast iron pot is ready to spend time in its winter home, right on top of the stove!!!! Ready for anything, this soup will be made again and again! Thanks

  18. Has anyone tried making this with cream cheese, instead of the coconut milk, roux, or cream?

  19. LOVE this soup! I made one substitution, I made some cashew cream in place of coconut milk. So delicious! Will be a regular at our house






  20. one of my all-time favorites, & have shared this recipe with many who love it as well. Thanks!






  21. The vegetables and rice were way too mushy using the pressure cooker. I’ll try cooking it on the stove next time so I can control the cooking time. The flavor was fantastic though!






  22. Enjoyed the flavors, cooked it stovetop. Big problem for me was that the wild rice turned the soup a dark purple/black shade. Next time I’ll cook the rice separately 😳😳😳






  23. First time making this and loved it! I added some smoked paprika, garlic powder, and red chili flakes (to the top). Also used spinach since that is what I had and although I used my InstantPot, I sautéed the onions and garlic in a little bit of butter first in the IP. So delish!






  24. I absolutely the wild rice soup….can it be frozen? I will be making it often.

  25. literally the best soup ever. we make it all the time!!! <3






  26. What a wonderful Autumn soup! Seriously good. The coconut milk is a wonderful addition to the broth, and goes fantastically with the sweet potato flavor note. I didn’t have Old Bay, so I put in paprika and some Bragg’s liquid aminos. Turned out great! Thank you Ali.






  27. This was great! Used a mix of portobello mushrooms and wild cauliflower mushrooms. Loved it.






  28. I followed this recipe exactly (stovetop version) and it came out delicious. I will certainly be making it again. Thank you!






  29. Love this soup! It took 4 hours in my slow cooker on high for the rice to be done I added the kale and coconut milk the last 30 minutes and it turned out perfectly. I’ve already made it twice! So yummy :)






  30. My Family LOVES this soup. It hits all the feels with this one. I am allergic to coconut milk so did the rue milk the first time and just used cream the second time. It’s perfect with shredded chicken breast. I add a little more sweet potato and Roasted Garlic but other than that we stay true to the recipe. I have made it twice in 5 days. It’s a WINTER must for us now! Thanks!






  31. Delicious! I followed the ingredients list exactly. I used the stovetop method in a dutch oven and cooked the onions, carrots, and celery for 10 minutes in olive oil first before adding all the other ingredients. I also cooked the mushrooms in a separate pan in a couple of tablespoons of Smart Balance and salt and pepper, letting them brown and not moving them in the pan. Those I added at the end with the kale and can of coconut milk.






  32. Delicious! I followed the instapot instructions and it turned out perfect.






  33. So delicious!!! It’s really unbelievable! This recipe is in my forever favorites. I love it!!!! Thank you so much!






  34. Delicious! Will be making again. I cooked on stovetop with cast iron Dutch Oven. I used shiitake mushrooms instead on baby bellas. I went with an almond/coconut milk blend creamer and reduced the amount to 3/4 cup. I also cooked the rice separate so that I could freeze the left over soup and reheat with new batch of rice later!






  35. Really delicious soup. My first time cooking wild rice and first time using Old Bay Seasoning. This soup is packed with nutrition. Easy to make. Very filling. So much fun to cook on a brisk fall Sunday.

  36. Thank you for this recipe! I made it for the first time for friends on Friday evening. The next day we had an hour notice of about 8 people dropping by. I made another batch and heated up the leftovers for alight lunch for the 12 of us . Every person loved it and several asked for this recipe. It’s a standby now.

  37. Really good soup! Next time I plan to add some more seasoning, but it was pretty good. I used my instapot and it turned out.

  38. Wow. Let me add to chorus of raves for the soup. I couldn’t find wild rice so I used the Trader Joe’s rice blend I had on hand. Otherwise I followed the recipe exactly and it was perfect.

  39. I made this tonight and it was absolutely delicious!! Thank you so much for the recipe!






  40. Everything about this soup is wonderful! The fresh vegetables, carrots, mushrooms, sweet potato, & the density of the wild rice. The addition of coconut milk is what really brings this soup all together. It is the ultimate comfort soup on a Fall evening!






  41. I just love this soup, so flavorful with all the vegetables! It’s one of my fall favorites.
    Just curious though why mine never turns out to look like yours…. Golden color?






  42. I really wanted to like this recipe.

    The wild rice mix I used required nearly an hour to make suitable for eating. This cooked down a lot of the liquid in the recipe as I used the stovetop method. It also made it very salty. I will have to think about the changes I would need to make if I want to try this recipe again.






  43. Completely obsessed with this recipe! 😍






  44. I love this recipe more each time I make it. I’ve made it exactly as written, I’ve made it with a few tweaks, depending on ingredients on hand, and I’ve even accidentally served it before I remembered to add the coconut milk and kale at the end, and every single time, it is a crowd pleaser.
    Satisfying, flavorful, and beautiful.






  45. My family really enjoyed this and I will definitely make it again!






  46. We’ve made this twice…loved it. In our seventies are are not meat eaters. This is so satisfying!

  47. This is one of my favorite fall soups. The flavors are so satisfying. My family likes when I add a protein, so tonight I added a pound of sautéed mild sausage at the end. So delicious!






  48. This just become a new house fav! The addition of coconut milk was something I never knew I needed. My picky husband absolutely devoured this! Making it again for the second time this week!

  49. Sorry, but this was such a flop. More than 2 hours in the crockpot and nothing has softened. Flavorless too.

    • My family loved the soup! This will definitely go into the fall and winter dinner rotation. I followed the directions with one substitution. The grocery had a mushroom medly on sale.
      LOVE LOVE LOVE!






  50. Very delicious but watch out for how much Old Bay Seasoning you use. It’s very high in salt and can overpower the vegetables.