Nettles have always been looked at as a weed that can sting you, so to make it into soup sounds crazy. Making nettle soup is to show that you can forage and cook your our meal in the woodland. This allows children to better understand nature, their environment and develop a foundation of culinary skills.
Resources
- Chopping Board/Knife
- Cooking Pots/Sieve/Bowls/Spoons
- Bag/Deep Tray
- Scissors
- Fire Kit /Water/Gloves/Bucket
- Oil
- A Bag of Nettles
- A Large Onion, Diced
- 3 Potatoes, Diced
- 4 Celery Sticks, Diced
- 2 Garlic Cloves, Diced
- 2 Veg Stock Cubes
- Almond Milk
Explanation
Collect a bag of nettle tops (just the first 4-6 leaves) in your carrier bag or tray using the scissors. Remember to wear gloves or you could get stung. Wash the nettles and remove the leaves away from the stems (dice up the stems, and maybe leave some diced up nettle leaves for final step).
Slice and Dice
Chop up a large onion and cook in the pan with a bit of oil until soft (In a separate pan start heating up some water). Add in potatoes, celery, garlic cloves, and nettle leaves/stems to your pan and cook for a few minutes.
Pour boiling water in
Add in some boiling water and crumble in the vegetable stock cubes. Cook for about 20 minutes then push the mixture through a sieve.
Add the milk and serve
Stir in some almond milk, bring back to the boil frequently stirring it, you could then either serve or by adding diced nettle leaves, cook for a further 2 minutes.
Safety Tips
Make sure your adhering to best practise with regard to fire management and group management around a fire, nettles lose their sting once cooked, and also make sure you are aware of boiling water.