Coconut Wild Rice Soup

When the weather turns rainy, I start making soup. It must be one of those "settling in for the winter" tendencies that I have, along with pulling out the flannel sheets and walking around in sweaters and stocking caps. Though this fall has been so mild we've primarily had beautiful sunny days with a few rainy ones scattered about. Maybe I'm wishing for fall more than experiencing it.



Anyways, back to the soup. I've made several lentil versions, a hearty chicken and sweet potato chowder, and a couple weeks ago this delicious coconut wild rice version. It was hearty and used basic ingredients that I have in the pantry so was thankfully pretty easy to pull together.




This recipe was adapted from one of my favorite cookbooks, Super Natural Cooking, and one I find myself turning to more often then not. I love the simplicity of the recipes, and yet the layers of flavor built in to each one. And wild rice is so hearty and distinct its hard not to try anything that highlights this ingredient.



Reading up about wild rice in my handy Food Lover's Companion, I learned that it is "known for its luxurious nutty flavor and chewy texture, and actually isn't rice at all but rather a long-grain marsh grass native to the northern Great Lakes area, where it is harvested by the local Indians. Though it is also producing commercially in California, as well as several Midwest states." I love learning little random facts about what I eat.


Coconut Wild Rice Soup
adapted from Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson

Serves 4

1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 1/2 teaspoons red curry paste
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
1 medium white onion, chopped
1 medium potato, chopped
1 cup wild rice, rinsed
4 cups water
1 14-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon soy sauce (low-sodium if possible)
1 14-ounce can coconut milk
salt

Heat the coconut oil in a heavy soup pot over medium-high heat, then add the curry paste, garlic, and onion and saute for 3-4 minutes, until the onion begins to soften. Ensure everything is well coated in coconut oil and curry paste before adding the next ingredients.

Stir in the chopped potato, wild rice, and 3 cups of water. Bring to a simmer and add the garbanzo beans. Stir well then lower the heat a bit, and cook, covered for about 40 minutes, or until the rice starts to soften, and split.

When the wild rice is tender, stir in the sugar, soy sauce, coconut milk, and remaining cup of water. Stir, return to a simmer and add salt to your taste. Cook for another 5 minutes to meld the flavors. Remove from the heat and add any additional salt or pepper as desired.

When serving, be sure to ladle from the bottom of the pot to make sure each bowl gets a good helping of wild rice, potatoes, and beans.

Alison's Notes:
*I served this soup with crackers on the side, sliced baguette would also be good.