Vegan wild rice soup is creamy and comforting like the Minnesota classic, only made with whole-food, plant-based ingredients. It's easy to prepare in an Instant Pot or on the stove.
When I first visited Minnesota in my 20s, I could not wait to try wild rice soup. It's basically the unofficial state soup. I wasn't vegan yet, but I was lactose intolerant, so discovering it was cream based was a letdown.
Now I know how to make traditionally creamy soups dairy free, like my vegan potato corn chowder and potato leek soup, by blending raw cashews instead of adding heavy cream. Swap the chicken for chickpeas and you get all the cozy flavors and textures you love, no dairy required.
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I can't believe I haven't rated this soup yet! I've made it at least 10 times now and it's a full 5 stars, for sure. I grew up in Minnesota and adore wild rice. If I'm making this soup for company, I prefer to cook it on the stove as I feel like the rice stays intact better, and the total cooking time really isn't that much longer. When I make it in the Instant Pot, I'll let the pressure release naturally for about 20 minutes, and then quick-release the rest. Either way, it's an amazing cozy fall soup that couldn't be easier to prepare. Pure wild rice (instead of blends) can be tricky to find out west, but it's worth searching out. Trader Joe's and Sprout's sells it if you have those stores in your area.
- Kristen
Ingredients for making vegan wild rice soup
- Raw cashews: For a nut-free version, use canned full-fat coconut milk, pureed white beans, or pureed silken tofu in place of the cashew cream. You will need about ½ cup.
- Wild rice: If you can't find 100% wild rice, substitute a wild rice blend made with a mix of wild rice, brown rice, white rice, and/or red rice.
Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the complete ingredients, measurements, and instructions.
Instant Pot instructions
Even though wild rice soup takes 25 minutes to cook, keep in mind that it takes additional time for the Instant Pot to come up to pressure and to release the pressure. Allow approximately 90 minutes from starting to when it's ready to eat. Use the Keep Warm function in case you want a second helping.
- Select the Saute function. Saute the onions in a splash of water until they are softened and slightly translucent.
- Add the garlic, carrots, and celery and saute for a few minutes more until the vegetables are softened.
- Add the chickpeas, wild rice, bay leaf, thyme, vegetable broth, and water and stir to combine.
- Close the lid and set the timer for 25 minutes high pressure using the Pressure Cook/Manual function. Allow the pressure to release naturally.
- Meanwhile, in a high-speed blender, prepare the cashew cream by blending the raw cashews with water until very smooth.
- Open the lid once the pressure has released. Pour in the cashew cream and stir well. Add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy.
Stovetop instructions
To make vegan wild rice soup on the stove, you can use cooked chickpeas or canned. You will need 3 cups cooked (from 1 cup dried) or 2-15 ounce cans.
- Cook the wild rice by adding it to a saucepan with and 4 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes. Check the rice. It should be chewy, and some of the grains will have burst open. Continue cooking 10 to 15 more minutes, as needed. When done, drain off the excess water using a fine mesh strainer.
- Saute the onions in a little water in a large pot over medium heat until soft and slightly translucent.
- Add the garlic, carrots, and celery and saute for a few minutes until tender.
- Add the cooked chickpeas, cooked wild rice, bay leaf, thyme, and vegetable broth.
- Simmer until heated through.
- Meanwhile, in a high-speed blender, prepare the cashew cream by blending the cashews and water until very smooth.
- Discard the bay leaf. Pour in the cashew mixture and stir well. Add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy.
Leftovers
Store any leftover wild rice soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. It will thicken, so you may want to add a little water when reheating it on the stove or in the microwave. For best results, do not freeze.
Made this recipe? Have a question? Please leave a comment below. 💙 And for even more recipes, join my email list for community, inspiration & to chat directly with me!
Love and Veggies,
Amy
📋 Recipe
Vegan Chickpea Wild Rice Soup (Instant Pot + Stovetop)
Equipment
- high speed blender
Ingredients
- 1 cup diced onion
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup diced carrots
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked for a few hours or overnight, then rinsed
- 1 cup wild rice, rinsed
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 4 cups vegetable broth , or water
- 1 cup water
- salt and pepper, to taste
For the cashew cream:
- ½ cup raw cashews, (soaked for 30 minutes in hot water if you don't have a high speed blender)
- ½ cup water
Instructions
Instant Pot instructions:
- Using the Saute function, saute the onions in a splash of water until they are softened and slightly translucent.1 cup diced onion
- Add the garlic, carrots, and celery and a few more splashes of water, as necessary, if the pot is dry. Saute for a few minutes until the vegetables are softened. Hit the cancel button.2 cloves garlic, 1 cup diced carrots, 1 cup diced celery
- Add the chickpeas, wild rice, bay leaf, thyme, vegetable broth, and 1 cup water and stir to combine.1 cup dried chickpeas, 1 cup wild rice, 1 bay leaf, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, 4 cups vegetable broth, 1 cup water
- Close the lid and set the timer for 25 minutes high pressure on the Pressure Cook/Manual function. Allow the pressure to release naturally.
- Meanwhile, in a high-speed blender, prepare the cashew cream by blending the cashews and ½ cup water until very smooth.½ cup raw cashews, ½ cup water
- Remove the lid once the pressure has released. Discard the bay leaf. Pour in the cashew cream and stir well. Add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy!salt and pepper
Stovetop instructions (Use cooked chickpeas or canned. You will need 3 cups cooked (from 1 cup dried) or 2-15 ounce cans.):
- Start by cooking the wild rice. Add the rice and 4 cups water to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes. Check the rice. It should be chewy, and some of the grains will have burst open. Continue cooking 10 to 15 more minutes, as needed. When done, drain off the excess water using a fine mesh strainer.1 cup wild rice
- Saute the onions in a little water in a large pot over medium heat until soft and slightly translucent.1 cup diced onion
- Add the garlic, carrots, and celery and saute for a few minutes until soft.2 cloves garlic, 1 cup diced carrots, 1 cup diced celery
- Add the cooked chickpeas, cooked wild rice, bay leaf, thyme, and vegetable broth. (You won't need the extra cup of water.)1 bay leaf, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, 4 cups vegetable broth
- Simmer until heated through.
- Meanwhile, in a high-speed blender, prepare the cashew cream by blending the cashews and ½ cup water until very smooth.½ cup raw cashews, ½ cup water
- Discard the bay leaf. Pour in the cashew mixture and stir well. Add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy!salt and pepper
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Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only.
Jin says
Amy, can we sub the wild rice with any other kind of rice (I don't have wild rice blend either so...). Fab reviews, I'm looking forward to making this tomorrow! Thank you
Amy Katz says
Hi Jin, Unfortunately other types of rice won't work for this recipe because they will become too soft.
lena rose says
what about forbidden rice? (aka black rice)
think it might withstand this recipe since it’s a bit heartier than other rice options?
Amy Katz says
Another reader commented that she tried using it, but it was too soft and turned the soup into more of a porridge.
LAURIE Brown says
This a great soup. It is tasty, easy to make and perfect for colder weather!!
Amy Katz says
Thank you, Laurie! I appreciate you coming back to leave a review. 🙂
Sylvia says
Can this be frozen?
Amy Katz says
I don't recommend freezing this soup.
Ann says
YUM!! I always try to test recipes as is, but had to make a few substitutions for what we had on hand. Turned out AMAZING. Used fresh oregano instead of thyme, used plain cashew yogurt that needed to be used up (only about 2/3 cup) in place of the cashew cream, used canned garbanzos and soaked the rice overnight so only pressure cooked 12 minutes. Garnished with parsley.
Amy Katz says
Fantastic, Ann! Thanks for sharing your modifications. I'm sure they will help others.
Bethany says
This recipe is a family favorite. I will be making it throughout the cold season. We do not use celery so I left that out. I did add cubed potatoes. Also, I was out of garbanzo beans so I used cannellini beans. Worked very well. I have shared this recipe with friends and neighbors. It was very well received.💖😋
Amy Katz says
Thanks so much, Bethany!
Anna says
Can I use canned garbanzo beans in the instant pot too? Or do they have to be raw?
Amy Katz says
Yes, many readers have used canned with success.
Alan says
Very yummy and easy to make. Pretty much followed your stove top instructions, but added extra onions, carrots and celery and added 2 potatoes, 1/2 tsp each of cumin and turmeric. However, forgot the garlic and bay leave. I wasn’t very excited until I added the cashew cream, then the whole thing came together very nicely!
Deborah says
A very easy and fairly tasty soup. I will have to play with some additions like mushrooms, spices, or leafy greens. The flavour was pretty good, but seemed like it was missing something that would have taken it from good to excellent.
Kathy says
This was the first thing I made in my Instant Pot and I really enjoyed using it. Unfortunately I accidentally bought Black Pearl rice, and although I read that it would not be a good substitution, I used it anyway. The result was a tasty purplish stew. I will try it again with wild rice and mushrooms. It's a good use of dry garbanzo beans. Do you have any recommendations for black pearl rice? It's supposed to be very good for us.
Amy Katz says
Hi Kathy! Black rice is nice for serving with stir fry. You can also mix it with white or brown rice. I hope you try the soup again when you get some wild rice.
Taylor says
could you do this in a crock pot?
Amy Katz says
I'm not a slow cooker user, but I imagine so. Maybe someone else has tried and can chime in here.
Bethany says
I’ve made this soup several times and it is an absolute winner! I do not eat celery so I left it out. Also added some leftover cubed potatoes and loved that option. I will have to add mushrooms next time (saw that in a previous comment). I’ve shared the recipe on this site with several friends. I’ll have to try other recipes. Thank you.❤️🌱
Cindy says
What bean would be good to use other than garbanzos?
Amy Katz says
You can use a different bean or just leave them out.
Michele says
This is my absolute favorite soup! I do add about 2 cups of kale or spinach to the finished soup and a touch of chipotle chili powder for a bit of a smoky spice.