Need Alternative Ways to Get Greens into Diet
August 11, 2020 12:39 PM Subscribe
After a string of majorly gross incidents with take out salads, I need to find another way to get my greens so my diet doesn't consist solely of brown, yellow, and orange foods. So far I have been putting spinach and spirulina into my smoothies. Now I'd like to expand into soups. Vegetarian recipe recommendations, please? (No kale. I will not eat it ever.)
sorry, to be clear, that recipe would still be delicious without the chicken. I used orzo instead of rice but close enough.
posted by brilliantine at 12:46 PM on August 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by brilliantine at 12:46 PM on August 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
Seconding "throw some chopped-up greens into soups". I often make a catch-all vegetable soup out of "whatever needs using up", and usually throw some greens in. Add a can of beans or some crumbled-up sausage and a handful of elbow macaroni for more heft.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 12:51 PM on August 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 12:51 PM on August 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
I've just begun making this recipe, and it's easy and delish. I use kale and spinach and throw in some cauliflower, too, to up the veggies.
posted by swheatie at 1:09 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by swheatie at 1:09 PM on August 11, 2020
Buy heftier greens - delicate young lettuces don't travel well, especially in takeout salads. I like romaine lettuce best for salads, and it lasts a week at least in your fridge, longer if you get it at a farmer's market.
Instead of kale, try red chard sautéed with a clove of garlic in some good olive oil.
Roasted veg is also delicious. Try broccolini or regular broccoli - you can sear it in a cast iron pan if you don't want to turn on the oven, again with olive oil, garlic, and salt.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 1:10 PM on August 11, 2020
Instead of kale, try red chard sautéed with a clove of garlic in some good olive oil.
Roasted veg is also delicious. Try broccolini or regular broccoli - you can sear it in a cast iron pan if you don't want to turn on the oven, again with olive oil, garlic, and salt.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 1:10 PM on August 11, 2020
Response by poster: Are Swiss chard and kale similar in texture? How do I cook them so that they become nice and soft in a soup? Do I need to sautee them first or add them last? I have this problem with spinach, too, where it doesn't wilt and then I spend time picking it out of my bowl instead of eating it.
posted by Kitchen Witch at 1:16 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by Kitchen Witch at 1:16 PM on August 11, 2020
Swiss Chard or Rainbow Chard is (to me) the tastiest of the hardy greens (much better flavor than kale, beet greens, collard greens, etc.).
You can chiffonade it and place it into a soup bowl, then ladle any broth-based soup over it. A white bean soup, for example, works great with it. Like this one, for example. They cook the chard longer, but it's not necessary. Swap the chicken stock for veggie broth.
I personally prefer my greens to be less cooked. YMMV.
posted by hydra77 at 1:16 PM on August 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
You can chiffonade it and place it into a soup bowl, then ladle any broth-based soup over it. A white bean soup, for example, works great with it. Like this one, for example. They cook the chard longer, but it's not necessary. Swap the chicken stock for veggie broth.
I personally prefer my greens to be less cooked. YMMV.
posted by hydra77 at 1:16 PM on August 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
I think swiss chard cooks down softer than kale. If you really want your greens cooked down, definitely saute them first then add the liquids. Chopping them more finely will also help them cook down more - baby spinach I basically throw in whole, but if I'm cooking kale I would cut it into quarter inch strips. Fully-grown spinach would be somewhere in the middle. You could also pre-cook greens to the level you like and just throw them in at the end of a dish.
posted by brilliantine at 1:24 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by brilliantine at 1:24 PM on August 11, 2020
For the record: "Chiffonade" means "cut into bite-sized ribbons", like this.
You say that spinach doesn't wilt down for you when you cook it - that's surprising. How exactly are you cooking it? It doesn't take long, but it does need a little time - it's not like an "add it at the last minute" kind of thing. If I'm adding it to a soup I just add it, but I let it simmer away for a while with the rest of the vegetables. I also cut it into bite-sized pieces beforehand.
I suspect you're thinking of curly kale when you're thinking of kale; if that's the case, swiss chard and rainbow chard are a lot more like spinach in texture. It won't take much to make it soft - it wilts down pretty quick. Same too with most greens, actually. The stems of chard can be eaten too, and have a texture a little like celery; those maybe need just a minute more in cooking. There's also another kind of kale you may find you like better - lacinato kale (which is sometimes also called "dinosaur kale", and I don't know why). It's like kale and spinach had a baby. There's also broccoli rabe, or rapini, which is a cousin to broccoli except it's more tender and leafy. (If you have....er, digestive issues with broccoli, like I do, this is a good replacement; similar taste without the indigestion.)
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 1:27 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
You say that spinach doesn't wilt down for you when you cook it - that's surprising. How exactly are you cooking it? It doesn't take long, but it does need a little time - it's not like an "add it at the last minute" kind of thing. If I'm adding it to a soup I just add it, but I let it simmer away for a while with the rest of the vegetables. I also cut it into bite-sized pieces beforehand.
I suspect you're thinking of curly kale when you're thinking of kale; if that's the case, swiss chard and rainbow chard are a lot more like spinach in texture. It won't take much to make it soft - it wilts down pretty quick. Same too with most greens, actually. The stems of chard can be eaten too, and have a texture a little like celery; those maybe need just a minute more in cooking. There's also another kind of kale you may find you like better - lacinato kale (which is sometimes also called "dinosaur kale", and I don't know why). It's like kale and spinach had a baby. There's also broccoli rabe, or rapini, which is a cousin to broccoli except it's more tender and leafy. (If you have....er, digestive issues with broccoli, like I do, this is a good replacement; similar taste without the indigestion.)
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 1:27 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
I'm not sure if you are looking for suggestions or recipes (although Recipes are generally easy to find.)
I'm in the US, and this time of year, Fresh tomatoes and other veg are everywhere. So maybe a nice gazspacho - pick any recipe and whatever you can find at the local market (it's a particulalry forging soup.)
Also Tabouleh which we make at least once a week and eat on eveything from bread and Hummus, to tossing a fresh batch on our (not vegetarian) baked fish filets. (Parsley, tomato, red onion, olive oil, lemon juice, a little soaked bulgur wheat (although you could skip it) salt and pepper.) Very tasty and your breath smells great afterward!
I'm very fond of zuchinni roll ups (I like the cooked one but the raw ones can be super nice.) this sliced zuchini, a little cream cheese, salt & pepper and alittle fresh squeezed lemon juice.(Or you can slice them thicker and make little zuchini oreos.)
Cold broccoli/cauliflower salad with raisins and carrots and nuts and red onion (and mayo or yogurt for the dressing, your call) We actually call it Crack Salad around here.
posted by allandsome at 1:44 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
I'm in the US, and this time of year, Fresh tomatoes and other veg are everywhere. So maybe a nice gazspacho - pick any recipe and whatever you can find at the local market (it's a particulalry forging soup.)
Also Tabouleh which we make at least once a week and eat on eveything from bread and Hummus, to tossing a fresh batch on our (not vegetarian) baked fish filets. (Parsley, tomato, red onion, olive oil, lemon juice, a little soaked bulgur wheat (although you could skip it) salt and pepper.) Very tasty and your breath smells great afterward!
I'm very fond of zuchinni roll ups (I like the cooked one but the raw ones can be super nice.) this sliced zuchini, a little cream cheese, salt & pepper and alittle fresh squeezed lemon juice.(Or you can slice them thicker and make little zuchini oreos.)
Cold broccoli/cauliflower salad with raisins and carrots and nuts and red onion (and mayo or yogurt for the dressing, your call) We actually call it Crack Salad around here.
posted by allandsome at 1:44 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
Herbs are also greens. I don't have any specific recommendations (I usually just put whatever I have in a pot) but there are definitely parsley soups, cilantro soups, soups heavy on dill, a German soup called "seven herb soup" which sounds promising, an so on.
I wasn't sure if you're asking specifically about leafy greens or any green vegetable. If the latter, searching for "green soup" will get you a lot of variations on pureed soup, often with broccoli. And zucchinis are great in soup. If you don't like zucchini you can just grate it into any broth-type soup and it'll kind of melt into the background. If you do like it, then spiralize or cut it lengthwise into soup "noodles".
Lemon is generally great with greens and makes most kinds of soup more interesting imo.
posted by trig at 1:49 PM on August 11, 2020
I wasn't sure if you're asking specifically about leafy greens or any green vegetable. If the latter, searching for "green soup" will get you a lot of variations on pureed soup, often with broccoli. And zucchinis are great in soup. If you don't like zucchini you can just grate it into any broth-type soup and it'll kind of melt into the background. If you do like it, then spiralize or cut it lengthwise into soup "noodles".
Lemon is generally great with greens and makes most kinds of soup more interesting imo.
posted by trig at 1:49 PM on August 11, 2020
This may be something you're completely uninterested in, but I've started growing microgreens from a kit in my house. I throw them on top of soup a lot. The flavor is much milder than that of full-size greens.
Also, do you like cabbage at all? Cabbage lasts much longer than pretty much any other kind of green and is also good thrown into soups (of course, it's possible you just don't like it). I pulse it in a food processor so I end up with very small pieces.
posted by FencingGal at 2:03 PM on August 11, 2020 [3 favorites]
Also, do you like cabbage at all? Cabbage lasts much longer than pretty much any other kind of green and is also good thrown into soups (of course, it's possible you just don't like it). I pulse it in a food processor so I end up with very small pieces.
posted by FencingGal at 2:03 PM on August 11, 2020 [3 favorites]
I make a broccoli and pea soup that is basically fresh or frozen veg, an onion, vegetable or chicken stock, a clove of garlic and lots of freshly milled pepper. Boil until veg seems done and blend. If you like your soup to have more body add a cubed potato or a bit of rice. May take a bit longer to soften than the other veg. It’s not scientific wrt to proportions but it is easy to use too much water/stock and have to reduce down the soup a bit unless you also add the aforementioned starch.
posted by koahiatamadl at 2:05 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by koahiatamadl at 2:05 PM on August 11, 2020
Here’s a really great and pretty easy vegetarian (accidentally vegan) soup from Moosewood’s Simple Suppers book- uses one large bunch of greens.
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups red lentils
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons black mustard seeds (optional)
1 1/2 teaspoons fennel seeds or anise seeds
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon ground ginger or 2 tablespoons grated, peeled ginger root
1 garlic clove, pressed or minced
4 cups rinsed, drained, and chopped fresh mustard greens, Swiss chard,
or spinach (swiss chard makes the prettiest soup)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup coconut milk
Directions
Rinse the lentils and drain. In a soup pot, bring 5 cups of water, the
lentils, and salt to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and
cook until tender, about 30 minutes.
While the lentils cook, warm the oil in a saucepan on medium heat, add
the black mustard seeds, and cover until they pop. Stir in the fennel
(or anise), red pepper flakes, ginger, and garlic and cook for a
minute, stirring constantly. Add the greens and the salt and cook,
stirring frequently, until the greens are just wilted. Stir in the
coconut milk and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from the heat.
When the lentils are soft, stir in the greens and coconut milk mixture
and add salt to taste.
posted by charmedimsure at 2:07 PM on August 11, 2020 [4 favorites]
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups red lentils
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons black mustard seeds (optional)
1 1/2 teaspoons fennel seeds or anise seeds
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon ground ginger or 2 tablespoons grated, peeled ginger root
1 garlic clove, pressed or minced
4 cups rinsed, drained, and chopped fresh mustard greens, Swiss chard,
or spinach (swiss chard makes the prettiest soup)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup coconut milk
Directions
Rinse the lentils and drain. In a soup pot, bring 5 cups of water, the
lentils, and salt to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and
cook until tender, about 30 minutes.
While the lentils cook, warm the oil in a saucepan on medium heat, add
the black mustard seeds, and cover until they pop. Stir in the fennel
(or anise), red pepper flakes, ginger, and garlic and cook for a
minute, stirring constantly. Add the greens and the salt and cook,
stirring frequently, until the greens are just wilted. Stir in the
coconut milk and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from the heat.
When the lentils are soft, stir in the greens and coconut milk mixture
and add salt to taste.
posted by charmedimsure at 2:07 PM on August 11, 2020 [4 favorites]
As someone who likes most dark greens fine but ends up wearing them down the front of my shirt if I put them in soups/stews, I can confirm you can pre-steam, saute, microwave, whatever and then puree them with a jar, stick blender, and a bit of your soup and then return the whole puree to the soup. That is, if the soup you're making isn't conducive to stick-blending in the first place, which is even easier.
I do tend to do this with baby spinach and/or de-stemmed chard, as the stems will remain pretty fibrous.
I like to do this specifically with groundnut soup, as the greens help cut the sweetness in a good way. But it's a great way to sneak in iron-rich greens to other foods.
posted by Lyn Never at 2:12 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
I do tend to do this with baby spinach and/or de-stemmed chard, as the stems will remain pretty fibrous.
I like to do this specifically with groundnut soup, as the greens help cut the sweetness in a good way. But it's a great way to sneak in iron-rich greens to other foods.
posted by Lyn Never at 2:12 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
I like this soup with spinach, chard, etc. I also like dumping greens in ramen.
posted by pinochiette at 2:19 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by pinochiette at 2:19 PM on August 11, 2020
Response by poster: I promise to stop threadsitting after this.
One of the main issues with the salads and such that I was getting delivered had to do with incompatible textures. Kale and other hearty greens majorly screw with a dish's texture for me, making them unpalatable and, unfortunately, vomit inducing.
(I got a Caesar salad that normally has romaine but got kale instead and I am still recovering. Dry heaves. God.)
I do like the idea of pureeing heartier greens to avoid that scenario. Does pureeing greens reduce their nutritional value a lot?
posted by Kitchen Witch at 2:35 PM on August 11, 2020
One of the main issues with the salads and such that I was getting delivered had to do with incompatible textures. Kale and other hearty greens majorly screw with a dish's texture for me, making them unpalatable and, unfortunately, vomit inducing.
(I got a Caesar salad that normally has romaine but got kale instead and I am still recovering. Dry heaves. God.)
I do like the idea of pureeing heartier greens to avoid that scenario. Does pureeing greens reduce their nutritional value a lot?
posted by Kitchen Witch at 2:35 PM on August 11, 2020
Agree with pinochiette, add greens to ramen or other East Asian soups and noodle soups. You can get a tub of good miso or doenjang (Korean soybean paste, I get the kind that is specifically for soups and stews) that will last forever in the fridge and just make a quick soup with baby spinach or soybean sprouts.
posted by spamandkimchi at 2:45 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by spamandkimchi at 2:45 PM on August 11, 2020
So long as you're not straining anything out the puree, there shouldn't be a difference.
I found that discovering new favourite salad dressings made me eat a lot more salad (I like cubed cucumbers and halved drained cherry tomatoes, but that's probably not green ehough for you) - Japanese style salad dressings (ctirus based, soy based, sesame based, miso based, etc.) are very diverse and tends not to be as acidic as Western style dressing.
posted by porpoise at 2:46 PM on August 11, 2020
I found that discovering new favourite salad dressings made me eat a lot more salad (I like cubed cucumbers and halved drained cherry tomatoes, but that's probably not green ehough for you) - Japanese style salad dressings (ctirus based, soy based, sesame based, miso based, etc.) are very diverse and tends not to be as acidic as Western style dressing.
posted by porpoise at 2:46 PM on August 11, 2020
Peas are delicious and surprisingly healthy, to the point where I eat a pea-based supper if I'm feeling a bit off. It always works! Here's a pea soup that looks a lot like what I make without looking at a recipe.
I make a cream of broccoli soup as well, on the same principle.
The classic potato and leek soup is a great thing as well, cold in the summer, and hot in the winter.
I haven't made nettle soup, but I have eaten it, and it is good. I'd imagine this recipe can be used with any form of greens, wild or cultivated. Even the horrible kale.
Minestrone is a thousand different things, depending on the time of year and what you have in your fridge. It is an all year favorite in our household, and it is never the same. The Guardian's Felicity Cloake explores it here. In summer I use string beans in my minestrone, for a fresher taste.
I too hate kale, but the traditional Danish way of cooking it is chopping it all up into microscopic pieces and then stewing it in a bechamel sauce. I can eat it then, as a side. I still don't really know why I should make the effort. There are so many vegetables I like. However, my sister in law makes a salad where she rubs and marinates the kale for a while in oil and vinegar and other stuff, and I can politely eat a few bites. Well, I shouldn't even be posting this...
Back to edibles:
Not a soup, but very easy to make and goes well with a soup: spanakopita, mentioned in another recent ask.
Someone above mentioned that herbs are greens too. If you have a salad spinner, cleaning a large bunch of parsley isn't that big of an effort and then a parsley soup is a delicious reward. We don't often eat that many herbs, but the nutritional value of parsley is really good. I eat a lot of middle eastern style salads where the herbs play a central part. You have to get used to chopping a lot, but apart from that I recommend.
posted by mumimor at 3:05 PM on August 11, 2020
I make a cream of broccoli soup as well, on the same principle.
The classic potato and leek soup is a great thing as well, cold in the summer, and hot in the winter.
I haven't made nettle soup, but I have eaten it, and it is good. I'd imagine this recipe can be used with any form of greens, wild or cultivated. Even the horrible kale.
Minestrone is a thousand different things, depending on the time of year and what you have in your fridge. It is an all year favorite in our household, and it is never the same. The Guardian's Felicity Cloake explores it here. In summer I use string beans in my minestrone, for a fresher taste.
I too hate kale, but the traditional Danish way of cooking it is chopping it all up into microscopic pieces and then stewing it in a bechamel sauce. I can eat it then, as a side. I still don't really know why I should make the effort. There are so many vegetables I like. However, my sister in law makes a salad where she rubs and marinates the kale for a while in oil and vinegar and other stuff, and I can politely eat a few bites. Well, I shouldn't even be posting this...
Back to edibles:
Not a soup, but very easy to make and goes well with a soup: spanakopita, mentioned in another recent ask.
Someone above mentioned that herbs are greens too. If you have a salad spinner, cleaning a large bunch of parsley isn't that big of an effort and then a parsley soup is a delicious reward. We don't often eat that many herbs, but the nutritional value of parsley is really good. I eat a lot of middle eastern style salads where the herbs play a central part. You have to get used to chopping a lot, but apart from that I recommend.
posted by mumimor at 3:05 PM on August 11, 2020
I would expect puréed greens to be just as nutritious and more digestible when fresh, but to lose nutrients more rapidly - you break cell walls and expose complicated molecules to the harsh world.
(This is only a vaguely informed guess, and maybe the nutrients you need will be stable. I’d put aside a serving in the fridge and one in the freezer and explicitly compare them to something fresh to see if any of them seemed blander or bitterer.)
posted by clew at 3:23 PM on August 11, 2020
(This is only a vaguely informed guess, and maybe the nutrients you need will be stable. I’d put aside a serving in the fridge and one in the freezer and explicitly compare them to something fresh to see if any of them seemed blander or bitterer.)
posted by clew at 3:23 PM on August 11, 2020
We've been putting the spinach and kale pesto from this recipe on everything, and it could just as easily be a spinach pesto (although I imagine the pesto format would neutralize texture issues).
You asked for a soup, though! This recipe for minted pea and spinach soup, from the Silver Palate, is not especially healthy but very delicious and definitely green.
posted by babelfish at 3:28 PM on August 11, 2020
You asked for a soup, though! This recipe for minted pea and spinach soup, from the Silver Palate, is not especially healthy but very delicious and definitely green.
posted by babelfish at 3:28 PM on August 11, 2020
We get a sealed box of salad greens mixed 50/50 with spinach at the grocery and make our own salads every week.
posted by Thorzdad at 3:30 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by Thorzdad at 3:30 PM on August 11, 2020
Both of these summer squash/zucchini soup recipes do well with a bunch of greens thrown in before pureeing!
posted by quatsch at 3:43 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by quatsch at 3:43 PM on August 11, 2020
Soup en Zo in Amsterdam introduced me to a pureed spinach and coconut milk soup. It's stunningly simple, fast, and delicious. To reduce the amount of fat in it, I've made this with both light coconut milk and a simple vegetable broth as a replacement and it's delicious either way. Here's the simplified recipe from their cookbook, Soep:
Pittige Spinaziesoep met Kokos
50 ml olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, sliced
1/2 small jalapeno or other pepper, chopped
1.5 tsp sea salt
1 kg spinach
150 ml water
200 ml coconut milk
juice of 1/2 lemon
(cilantro to garnish if you like it)
In a large sauce pan or stock pot, saute the onion, garlic, and pepper over medium heat to your liking or until the onion becomes translucent. Add the spinach in batches, stirring to help the leaves wilt. Once all the spinach is in the pan and is wilted, add the remaining ingredients. While the soup is heating, puree the soup in batches in a blender (or all at once with an immersion blender). Garnish.
To your question about stringiness: leaves are stringy, fibrous things. If you don't want stringy, you need to puree (and possibly sieve) your greens. Or, better yet--so you don't lose the fiber, get yourself a high-powered blender. Spinach, though, purees easily with even the weakest blender. This recipe works great with just an immersion blender.
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 3:48 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
Pittige Spinaziesoep met Kokos
50 ml olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, sliced
1/2 small jalapeno or other pepper, chopped
1.5 tsp sea salt
1 kg spinach
150 ml water
200 ml coconut milk
juice of 1/2 lemon
(cilantro to garnish if you like it)
In a large sauce pan or stock pot, saute the onion, garlic, and pepper over medium heat to your liking or until the onion becomes translucent. Add the spinach in batches, stirring to help the leaves wilt. Once all the spinach is in the pan and is wilted, add the remaining ingredients. While the soup is heating, puree the soup in batches in a blender (or all at once with an immersion blender). Garnish.
To your question about stringiness: leaves are stringy, fibrous things. If you don't want stringy, you need to puree (and possibly sieve) your greens. Or, better yet--so you don't lose the fiber, get yourself a high-powered blender. Spinach, though, purees easily with even the weakest blender. This recipe works great with just an immersion blender.
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 3:48 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
I don't have a recipe but frozen pre-chopped spinach goes very well in dal (I add it almost every time) and isn't noticeably rougher than the lentils. You could also blend it to make it even smoother. As a bonus it's very easy to make.
posted by randomnity at 3:50 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by randomnity at 3:50 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
Kale is super hearty and chewy even cooked down. Chard melts down considerably. My kids hate greens with a passion but consume chard in all kinds of soups.
posted by gryphonlover at 3:58 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by gryphonlover at 3:58 PM on August 11, 2020
I finally got greens into my diet by discovering the instapot. It is capable of removing all sorts of texture and turning everything into an easily-chewable moosh.
posted by aniola at 5:38 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by aniola at 5:38 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
Seconding that frozen chopped spinach will essentially disappear into almost any soup or stew and all you have to do is toss it in. I make this chickpea pasta a lot, and toss in a lot of frozen chopped spinach with it. Vegetarian chili, lentils, etc should all be about the same. I think a chunky stew would work a little better than something lighter.
posted by notheotherone at 6:39 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by notheotherone at 6:39 PM on August 11, 2020 [2 favorites]
Kale and other hearty greens majorly screw with a dish's texture for me, making them unpalatable and, unfortunately, vomit inducing.
So, not a soup, but.. A few months ago, I bought a large bag of chopped fresh kale for a recipe that turned out to be awful and, worse, hardly used any of the kale in the bag. So then I wondered what I would do with all this kale, because I didn't want to throw it out but I also don't really like kale. Then I learned about crispy baked kale chips. And it turns out I like those a lot. Once I started making those, I had no trouble using up the rest of the bag. So if you're up for trying kale as a tasty crispy oven-baked snack, I recommend that.
So I'm not avoiding your request for vegetarian soup recipes, this is one of my favorite vegan soup recipes: Mexican Red Lentil Stew
If the greens and other veggies in the recipe aren't enough, a little frozen chopped spinach would go well in it too. I also add a carrot or two.
posted by wondermouse at 7:47 PM on August 11, 2020
So, not a soup, but.. A few months ago, I bought a large bag of chopped fresh kale for a recipe that turned out to be awful and, worse, hardly used any of the kale in the bag. So then I wondered what I would do with all this kale, because I didn't want to throw it out but I also don't really like kale. Then I learned about crispy baked kale chips. And it turns out I like those a lot. Once I started making those, I had no trouble using up the rest of the bag. So if you're up for trying kale as a tasty crispy oven-baked snack, I recommend that.
So I'm not avoiding your request for vegetarian soup recipes, this is one of my favorite vegan soup recipes: Mexican Red Lentil Stew
If the greens and other veggies in the recipe aren't enough, a little frozen chopped spinach would go well in it too. I also add a carrot or two.
posted by wondermouse at 7:47 PM on August 11, 2020
If you're not looking specifically for leafy greens, I love sneaking pureed steamed broccoli into stuff. It works especially well for, like, spaghetti marinara. It adds a little heft to the sauce, but it doesn't compete with the other flavors.
posted by girlstyle at 8:10 PM on August 11, 2020
posted by girlstyle at 8:10 PM on August 11, 2020
Seaweed!
We buy dried seaweed from Asian groceries. You can rehydrate, and make Japanese/Korean seaweed salad.
We also make miso soup with hella seaweed, tofu, broth, brown rice.
The necessary seasonings, also found in Asian groceries, are lower-sodium miso paste, toasted sesame seed oil, soy sauce, and brown rice vinegar.
posted by ohshenandoah at 9:53 PM on August 11, 2020
We buy dried seaweed from Asian groceries. You can rehydrate, and make Japanese/Korean seaweed salad.
We also make miso soup with hella seaweed, tofu, broth, brown rice.
The necessary seasonings, also found in Asian groceries, are lower-sodium miso paste, toasted sesame seed oil, soy sauce, and brown rice vinegar.
posted by ohshenandoah at 9:53 PM on August 11, 2020
I don't know if they're easily available in your area, but dandelion greens are absolutely delicious* and have a great texture. And if you can get stinging nettles...YUM. They're both delicious pan fried, or in soup. We eat tons and tons of both, because they grow like weeds (they are weeds!) in the field next door.
*they're bitter when raw, but cook up nicely.
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 2:37 AM on August 12, 2020
*they're bitter when raw, but cook up nicely.
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 2:37 AM on August 12, 2020
A general note - you could also add greens via pasta. A classic dish is pasta with sausage and broccoli rabe (also known as rapini). You just need Italian sausage, a bunch of rapini, and maybe a little chopped garlic a blob of tomato paste, and the pasta. You cut up the rapini into bite-sized pieces, then take the sausage out of its casing, and then saute the meat, then add the rapini (and the garlic and tomato paste, if you're using them) to the skillet when the sausage has been browned. Toss that with cooked pasta. That's it.
Another dish I make is almost exactly that same process, only using chard instead of the rapini, leaving out the sausage, and using cheese tortellini instead of the pasta. For chard you do need to blanch it briefly first - bring a big pot of water to a boil (ideally the same water you're going to use to make the tortellini), and chop up the stems and leaves of some chard. Throw the stems of the chard into the water when it's at a good boil, wait about 15 seconds and then add the leaves. Wait another minute, then fish them both out of the water and saute with some garlic and a blob of tomato paste while the tortellini is cooking in that same boiling water. Toss the chard with the tortellini when they're both done.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 3:53 AM on August 12, 2020
Another dish I make is almost exactly that same process, only using chard instead of the rapini, leaving out the sausage, and using cheese tortellini instead of the pasta. For chard you do need to blanch it briefly first - bring a big pot of water to a boil (ideally the same water you're going to use to make the tortellini), and chop up the stems and leaves of some chard. Throw the stems of the chard into the water when it's at a good boil, wait about 15 seconds and then add the leaves. Wait another minute, then fish them both out of the water and saute with some garlic and a blob of tomato paste while the tortellini is cooking in that same boiling water. Toss the chard with the tortellini when they're both done.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 3:53 AM on August 12, 2020
Not an exact recipe - I cook "greens" for my family's Thanksgiving dinner every year. I make a huge amount, but it is easily downscaled. I don't follow a recipe but in general I do this:
Grab bags of these Greens: Collard (mostly), Kale (some), Mustard(some), Turnip (if they have it)
Throw these in a very large pot with some water, diced up garlic, 2-3 pieces of smoked turkey (necks or butts), vinegar, hot sauce, black pepper and some salt and cook them for HOURS until they are completely cooked down. Checking in for flavoring and whether some more liquid needs to be added, but the important part here is that I cook them a REALLY LONG TIME.
I have no interest in raw kale, I think it is gross. I cook the crap out of it and love it. I assume this is a holdover from when my family was actually Southern 3 generations back.
So if the texture is a problem for you, cook it longer.
posted by Julnyes at 7:24 AM on August 12, 2020 [1 favorite]
Grab bags of these Greens: Collard (mostly), Kale (some), Mustard(some), Turnip (if they have it)
Throw these in a very large pot with some water, diced up garlic, 2-3 pieces of smoked turkey (necks or butts), vinegar, hot sauce, black pepper and some salt and cook them for HOURS until they are completely cooked down. Checking in for flavoring and whether some more liquid needs to be added, but the important part here is that I cook them a REALLY LONG TIME.
I have no interest in raw kale, I think it is gross. I cook the crap out of it and love it. I assume this is a holdover from when my family was actually Southern 3 generations back.
So if the texture is a problem for you, cook it longer.
posted by Julnyes at 7:24 AM on August 12, 2020 [1 favorite]
The Indian dish Palak Paneer is a winner. You can use other greens (I prefer Swiss chard but I have used kale, collards and various mustard greens) in that recipe to make saag paneer. The Japanese spinach salad - Gomae is good as well. Carrot tops (they are similar to parsley but much milder) can be made into a pesto. Oh... and I have dehydrated greens and crushed them to a powder to create a topping for popcorn and other snacks.
posted by Ashwagandha at 9:25 AM on August 12, 2020
posted by Ashwagandha at 9:25 AM on August 12, 2020
This is maybe an odd thing but I put salad on pizza. So when we order a pizza, we make a giant salad of only greens and dressing and then put it on top of the pizza. We wind up eating an enormous amount of greens, which in my mind helps *balance* the pizza.
posted by degoao at 2:28 PM on August 12, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by degoao at 2:28 PM on August 12, 2020 [1 favorite]
Seconding that. Especially a thin crust pizza, piping hot, piled with greens and then folded over like a taco/calzone/delight.
posted by clew at 7:35 PM on August 12, 2020
posted by clew at 7:35 PM on August 12, 2020
Kale is kind of an advanced green. Unless you have a specific need, don't bang your head against any kale walls.
Frozen spinach is notable just because it's super-available and super-easy to have on hand. If you eat eggs, you can fit a lot of spinach into a crustless quiche or a scramble. Chard also goes in these.
Frozen peas are another one that are very available and easy and who said it had to be leaves?
Bean soups, if you like beans, can bury a lot of bodies. It's how we deal with radicchio, and the greens are a help. Also seconding that you can stuff arbitrary greens in saag paneer and tabouli.
posted by away for regrooving at 1:16 AM on August 13, 2020
Frozen spinach is notable just because it's super-available and super-easy to have on hand. If you eat eggs, you can fit a lot of spinach into a crustless quiche or a scramble. Chard also goes in these.
Frozen peas are another one that are very available and easy and who said it had to be leaves?
Bean soups, if you like beans, can bury a lot of bodies. It's how we deal with radicchio, and the greens are a help. Also seconding that you can stuff arbitrary greens in saag paneer and tabouli.
posted by away for regrooving at 1:16 AM on August 13, 2020
I absolutely adore this Provencal Vegetable Soup. I usually use dried cheese tortellini in place of the pasta when I make this. yummmm.
posted by taz at 2:41 AM on August 16, 2020
posted by taz at 2:41 AM on August 16, 2020
Not a soup, but similar concept: I just made a curry with a jar of simmer sauce from Trader Joe's (lots of places have jars of simmer sauce that would work for this) -
Along with the chickpeas and carrots and bell peppers and onion I added to the curry, I tossed in a whole 1-pound box of frozen spinach. It was great - it just kind of became part of the curryish sauce, but I still got a bunch of greens.
Also not a soup, but one of the most popular recipes here on MetaFilter, and with good reason: SUPER QUICK AWESOME GARLIC SPINACH SOBA NOODLES by MeFite Nothing... and like it. They really are that good.
posted by kristi at 1:15 PM on August 16, 2020
Along with the chickpeas and carrots and bell peppers and onion I added to the curry, I tossed in a whole 1-pound box of frozen spinach. It was great - it just kind of became part of the curryish sauce, but I still got a bunch of greens.
Also not a soup, but one of the most popular recipes here on MetaFilter, and with good reason: SUPER QUICK AWESOME GARLIC SPINACH SOBA NOODLES by MeFite Nothing... and like it. They really are that good.
posted by kristi at 1:15 PM on August 16, 2020
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by brilliantine at 12:44 PM on August 11, 2020 [1 favorite]