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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. What gives this soup the yellow color? Mine didn’t look at all like the picture.

    • You can add a pinch of tumeric for color it will not change the flavor if you want it to be more golden. Most people add it to broth based soups such as chicken noodle etc. In this recipe I like to saute my mushrooms in butter and garlic with parmesan before adding. I also saute some of the other vegetables because I feel it gives a stronger better flavor or I roast them with olive oil and seasonings. That’s just me. : )

  2. SO YUMMY! I missed the note about the coconut milk and I’m SO doing that next time to save calories/ fat.
    I couldn’t find wild rice so used a blend – it made it thicker since the rice absorbed alot of the broth. It certainly didn’t ruin it, but I wont repeat that. As for those who say something is missing I think it’s just the spicing. I only used some seafood seasoning from my fish monger that has a kick to it since I didn’t have old bay. I thought it was perfectly spiced. I followed the stovetop method & will definitely put this on heavy rotation for the winter (even my husband ate it and he isn’t crazy about kale).






    • Just a heads up- coconut milk won’t save fat or calories. 1/4 a cup of REAL coconut milk- the author references the full fat, canned variety not the janky watery stuff Starbucks made popular- is 140 calories with 14grams of fat. If you use the carton stuff, you won’t get a creamy consistency because it’s mostly water.

  3. do you have nutritional value on this recipe?

  4. This soup was delicious!
    My family really enjoyed, thanks!

  5. Everyone who tried this loved it! And I actually made and froze the entire pot *before* I read your suggestion not to…but thankfully, it worked! The rice was a little mushy but it made the soup a bit creamy and still super delicious. Thanks for the great recipe!






  6. Hi! I made your soup tonight. I’m eating “Whole Food, Plant Based” and am SOS (salt, oil & sugar) free. Your soup was DELICIOUS! It was really easy to adapt. I used Ras El Hanout instead of the Old Bay seasoning and 2 cans of whole fat Coconut Milk, and of course, no salt. This will be a favorite this winter for me and my family! THANKS!






  7. Can’t wait to try this! Can you also freeze it?

  8. This soup is DELICIOUS. I used 8 cups of broth as the veggies really took over and I wanted more liquid, and I used a small can of coconut milk so it wouldn’t be too creamy. I also cooked the rice separate as other people suggested so that it didn’t get overcooked/soggy and added some cajun chicken. We didn’t have Old Bay so I used some oregano, rosemary, thyme, s&p and cajun seasoning and it was divine. Absolutely loved it and will make it again for sure!!






  9. The soup was delicious are use my turkey left over from Thanksgiving that works out great






  10. Fabulous! I used chicken broth, added chicken, italian seasoning instead of Old Bay, and coconut milk, extra pepper at the end. I will definitely make this again just like this. Perfect!






  11. Made this last night and it is so yummy! I did not have sweet potatoes so I used a couple of regular potatoes. And I opted for the coconut milk option. (It did not give it a coconut flavor, just nice a creamy) Just before serving I puréed about 2 cups in the food processor and added back in the pot and it added a nice thickness to the broth. Will definitely make again!
    Thank you!






  12. This is a great recipe! Made it tonight and my husband and I both loved it! We added chicken and used broccoli. This is a saver.






  13. This was really good. First meal in my instant pot. Followed the recipe with the exception of added a cap full of liquid smoke and used coconut milk for the rue. I love coconut milk ?. Definitely would make it again.






  14. This soup is everything!! I followed the to the T and the results were AMAZING!






  15. My family referred to this soup as a gourmet soup. It was delicious. Staple ingredients, simple to follow instructions, and delicious as is! Thank you for sharing this deliciousness with us!






  16. What is the serving size on this?

  17. Love, love, love this soup. Made the cream sauce with vegan butter and cashew milk to make it vegan. Also added a can of chickpeas. Yum!






  18. I have made this. It is SOOO GOOD. I did substitue unsweetened almond milk for the regular milk and didn’t have any bay leaves on hand. I will make this again and again. I used the stove top method this time, my sister is borrowing my insta pot. Will try that it next time. Thanks for the wonderful recipe.






  19. I made it and found the missing flavor! I added a splash of Sherry at the end and it really enhanced the mushroom flavor. Much richer flavor now.

  20. This soup is seriously delicious, like restaurant-quality good. I used frontier brand “seafood seasoning”, which seems to be a similar blend to old bay, same ingredients. I used 1 Tb and that was plenty for my taste. This recipe will definitely be made again!!!!






  21. I made this for a soup party I went to with a few modifications and cooked it in the slow cooker. It was a hit!
    I used a russet potato vs sweet, for the rice, I had rice a roni wild rice and I added the seasoning packet as well as the old Bay which I think helped with the something ‘s missing that you all are referring to. Lastly, I needed to use the 8 cups of the Vegetable Broth because the Roux was very thick. I think next time I will use cream or just milk and see how that works.
    Overall, it was very flavorful.






  22. Just made this exactly how the directions suggested, using the crockpot method. Turned out so delicious! Ultimate vegetarian comfort food for this chilly weather.






  23. I usually make chicken soup of a sort,Chicken noodle, Italian wedding, Chicken and dumplings…last may not count as a soup but oh well. Anyway, I was looking for something different. This is it!! I was skeptical. OMG Delicious! Glad I tried this. I did the stove top version with the roux and add chicken. Will defiantly keep this recipe! Thank you very much!






  24. I just finished making this. I followed the recipe exactly for the stove top method and used the Coconut milk method. WOW this is my new FAVORITE soup! It is so good, I made it for tomorrow just in case it didn’t work out Id have time to put something else together but its so good I can’t stop eating it. Thank you so much for sharing this.






  25. Soup was amazing. I did make some changes though to make it vegan:
    -I used homemade almond/walnut milk instead of dairy milk.
    -I used vegan butter
    -Added green peas






  26. I made this tonight in my Instant Pot and it was good but my sweet potatoes and rice were mushy and blended in. Not what I expected or wanted. Next time I will either use the crock pot or stovetop, or maybe try again in the instant pot but reduce the cook time.






  27. I absolutely love this soup! I made mine vegan and gluten free. I used plain soy milk, vegan butter and almond flour. Turned out superb!






  28. I made this soup and loved it so much I shared with my friends, who loved it so much they shared with their friends! Thank you for this fall staple for me and my gal pals.






  29. Your soup recipe is so very yummy! Been keeping some on hand since I found it for quick meals. I added double measure of Old Bay.






  30. I just made this soup and I have to say, absolutely delicious. I used 1/2 the rice and didnt end up adding the milk or coconut milk but the broth was so good I didn’t want to change.






  31. This soup is cozy, flavorful, bursting with vegetables. Delicious!






  32. Incrediblely tasting soup!! I added the coconut milk at the end as you suggested instead of the milk, butter and flour. It was most delicious! This will be made often this winter!! Very very tasty!

  33. Incrediblely tasty soup!! I added coconut milk as you suggested as an alternative to the flour milk and butter version. Let me tell you… phenomenal! The richness of the coconut milk with the veggies and chicken added! Plus kale at the end! I served it with crusty toasted sourdough and butter! My family loved it!!






  34. Thank you for this amazing recipe and especially for including a stovetop-method! I just made this for the second time and I love it! It’s such a comfort food and I’m really not a fan of soups but this one is great! Instead of wild rice, I just use regular one and instead of sweet potato, just regular ones as well :)






  35. Didn’t use the flour and opted for extra water and coconut milk. Way too thick. Sorry, maybe my mother’s cooking spoiled me but this wasn’t worth it.






  36. How do convert the time from an instant pot recipe to a slow cooker or a stove top? Im just not sure how much longer to cook it.

  37. I made this soup last night and WOW! It was absolutely delicious. My wife and I both loved it. The only thing I added was about a cup of butternut squash I had leftover from another recipe. Since I added that, I added a cup of water as well.






  38. I made this soup with coconut milk it is very tasty but a little too salty for my taste I’m thinking because of my vegetable broth and old bay Seasoning which I’ve never used before. Any suggestions on how to “unsalted” it?






  39. Hi Ali – I randomly found this recipe of yours on Pinterest the other day. I usually end up being disappointed in my cooking skill when trying out any recipe, but yours gave me hope again (LOL)! I love this soup so much, it’s delicious & cooking fool proof! I’ve made it basically every week in this colder moth. Thanks so much for sharing, I can’t wait for trying your other recipes!

  40. Most delicious and savory soup!! We substituted the sweet potato for diced turkey. The whole family enjoyed young and old! Thank you!






  41. I made this last night and it is absolutely delicious! My wife and I both loved it and it is very easy in the Insta-Pot. I added about a cup each of broccoli and cauliflower, and made a note that I could have added another 1/4 cup or so of wild rice. Will certainly make this again; thank you very much!






  42. I loved the flexibility of this recipe. I like to use the crockpot the best because you get to smell it cooking all day long. I added chicken breasts to mine, as suggested, and it is soooooo good! Also used Lundberg’s Wild Rice Blend. Definitely a keeper for year round! Thank you !






  43. Made just one change: substituted unsweetened almond milk for the regular milk to cut down on the dairy. Delicious!!






  44. What a great soup. When I first shopped for supplies I used the ingredients list at the top of the web page on Pinterest, before you click on “Make It”. Vegetable stock isn’t listed there, so I had to make another trip to the store. Could you add that?

  45. I praise you for this ! A-mazing! I did it with coconut milk and mine isn’t as pretty as the picture but booooooy is this my go to soup ! So yummy thank you






  46. I made this in the Instant Pot and it was an instant hit! I’m wondering if it can be doubled and if so what changes there might be to the time. I’ve got an 8qt pot too. YUMMM!






  47. We added chicken to ours. Delicious! Definitely one to make again & again & again….






  48. I LOVE THIS RECIPE! And have shared the heck out of it. Was wondering if u have nutritional info on it so I can add it in my calorie counting app?

  49. I forgot to rate it! WONDERFUL SOUP!






  50. Making this tonight and I have to say THANK YOU for making it so easy to adjust with my allergy ridden family. Seriously… giving this mama some peace. I wish all food bloggers did this! It’s not quite finished but its already yummmmmy, can’t wait to see if the toddlers will eat the mushrooms :)