Watercress and Vegan Chestnut Soup
Starting around December 1st, holiday carols become a staple in my life- I turn them on for my drive to and from work, and then again every evening to cook dinner. It only took about a week of listening to carols to feel the need to start roasting chestnuts- although unfortunately not over an open fire. I wanted to do something a little different with the rich and sweet nuts, so I decided to combine it with bright, peppery watercress in a smooth, creamy watercress chestnut vegan soup.
That was written years ago, in 2017. It is now 2024, and time to revisit this recipe. I love the combination of the chestnuts and the watercress, but we’ve given it a bit more umami with chopped mushrooms, and improved the creamy texture with coconut milk. The last bit that puts this peppery, sweet, nutty, creamy soup over the top is serving it with a little truffle oil. Just a little though- it goes a long way!
Skip the Post, Jump to the Recipe!
This recipe was originally posted in December, 2017. It was last updated February, 2024, and changes have been made to improve the original recipe.
How to Shell Chestnuts
By far the hardest thing about this soup is shelling the chestnuts. I’ve tried to shell a lot of chestnuts in the past few weeks, and honestly I’m over it. It results in singed fingertips from the hot shells coupled with painful pokes from sharp broken edges. After all that effort, it’s still hard to get the papery skin 0ff the nut, and depending on the batch of nuts you get some will have gone bad. And once you’ve discovered a nut has past it’s prime, you’ve already burned and bruised your fingers in the process. I know in the past I’ve written cheerfully about shelling chestnuts, but I’ve turned a corner on that part of my life and just like that I’m no longer advocate for chestnut shelling. Although if you have any good tricks to make it easier, I might give it another shot. Let me know.
But maybe annoyance over chestnuts is just me. So with that promising introduction, let me walk you through how to shell chestnuts (in theory, anyways). Before peeling your chestnuts, it’s important to pick good ones. Choose chestnuts that are dark in color, with a shiny and uniformly textured shell. Look for signs of white mold growing on the shells, and avoid any that may be starting to spoil. The chestnut should feel fairly heavy and full. If you can squeeze the shell and it cracks, it is too old. If the nut moves inside the shell when you shake it, it is also likely too old.
To prepare chestnuts for easy (…sort of easy) removal of shells and skins, you can either roast, steam, or boil. In either case, cut an “x” into the chestnut shell to facilitate the loosening of the shell during cooking. This also stops the potential for exploding chestnuts. For roasting, preheat the oven to 400 F, cut the shells, place prepared chestnuts in a roasting pan or on a baking sheet, and cook for approximately 30 minutes until shells pull apart and nuts are tender. For steaming, bring water to a boil in a saucepan, set prepared chestnuts in a steamer basket over the boiling water, cover, and steam for about 20 minutes until the shells loosen and the nuts are tender. Boiling is done similarly to steaming, but you submerge the chestnuts in the water. Regardless of the cooking method, wrap the chestnuts in a kitchen towel after cooking to keep them warm, to make peeling easier. Peel the shells, ensuring removal of the skin between the shell and chestnut. It’s crucial to find that perfect point between the chestnuts being too hot to handle and them cooling off and being impossible to peel. If they cool too much, reheat briefly in the oven, steamer, or microwave (though microwaving may affect texture).
My real advice though? Buy frozen chestnuts, pre-shelled. It makes the whole process so much simpler, I don’t notice a big difference in the taste or texture, and it’s typically much cheaper per pound.
Got Chestnuts or Watercress? Try one of these!
- Fermented Spreadable Sweet Chestnut Cheese
- Watercress Soup with Tofu and Vegan Broth
- Eggplant, Chestnut, and Mushroom Vegan Holiday Loaf
Looking for Smooth and Creamy Vegan Soups? Try one of these!
- White Bean Creamy Vegan Artichoke Soup
- Roasted Vegan Green Tomato Soup
- Cheesy Vegan Broccoli Soup with Poblano
- Chilled Lemony Wood Sorrel Soup
- Fresh Tomato Soup with Crispy Garlic Toasts
- Classic New England Style Vegan Clam Chowder
- Kabocha Squash Soup with Sunflower Seed Cream
- Creamy Roasted Romaine Soup (Vegan)
How to Make Watercress Vegan Chestnut Soup
First things first, you have to handle the chestnuts. You can read my advice in the paragraph up above, but essentially you either need to cook and peel the chestnuts, or start with frozen peeled chestnuts and defrost them. Choose wisely. Once you’ve passed the hurdle of getting shells of chestnuts, the rest is easy.
After the chestnuts are peeled and ready to go, chop all your vegetables. Start the soup with a little oil, and sauté your garlic, onions, and mushrooms. Add some dill, before adding the potatoes, chestnuts, and broth (or water). Once the potatoes are cooked, add it all to a blender with the remaining ingredients for the soup. Give it a good blitz, so that it’s uniform and creamy. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and when serving add a small swirl of truffle oil to really complete the experience.
Watercress and Vegan Chestnut Soup
Ingredients
- 2 cups (300g) chestnut meat (about 3-4 cups with shells or 40 nuts total)
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 cup roughly chopped mushrooms
- 1 onion
- 3-4 cloves of garlic
- 1 tsp dried dill
- 1 quart vegetable broth or water
- 1 lb. potato
- 6 oz. fresh watercress
- 13 oz. can full-fat coconut milk
- 2 tbsp. light miso paste
- 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Truffle oil, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- If starting with shelled chestnuts, you can Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Lay the chestnuts flat and use a sharp knife to draw an X on each of the rounded surfaces of the nuts. Make sure the break through the shell (if you don’t, they will explode in the oven), and it’s okay if you cut into the meat of the nut a little. Lay them in a single layer on a baking sheet, and cook until the skins have opened up and they have started to turn slightly golden (around 20 minutes). Remove them from the oven and peel away the shells while they’re still warm. Set these aside. If you are starting with frozen chestnuts, simply allow them to defrost before using.
- Mince the garlic, dice the onions, roughly chop the mushrooms, and peel and chop the potatoes into cubes.
- In a large pot, heat the olive oil and add the garlic, onion, and mushrooms and cook for around 3 minutes until the onions have softened a little. Add the dill and toss. Next add the potatoes, chestnuts, and vegetable broth, bring to a boil before reducing to a simmer. After around 10 minutes check the potatoes- you can tell they’re cooked when a fork goes through easily.
- Once the potatoes are cooked, turn off the heat and add the watercress, miso paste, coconut milk, and apple cider vinegar. Add to a blender, and blend until smooth and creamy. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Reheat if needed, and serve warm topped with a drizzle of truffle oil.
Like this Watercress Vegan Chestnut Soup? Pin it!
2 thoughts on “Watercress and Vegan Chestnut Soup”