Foraged nettle and sorrel soup

The taste of spring to me is the taste of this soup: rich, sweet and lemony. And early May is its moment.

To make it you’ll need:

a pint jug of nettle tips and sorrel leaves

three medium sized potatoes and one onion, chopped small

3 oz butter

a pint of vegetable stock (I used Maggi bouillon which has a slight thickening property useful in this soup)

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As with all foraging, you’ll need to know precisely what you are picking. Avoid anything which could have been sprayed with toxic chemicals (look for contorted or yellowed leaves), too closely inspected by dogs or too old (once they have flowered, both sorrels and nettles lose their flavour, and later they become a food plant for caterpillars).

If in doubt, never trust AI ID. Go out with someone who knows what they are looking at and learn from them.

To pick nettles, wear gloves, take scissors and a basket or plastic bag and snip off only the top tips, the first six leaves at most.

With sorrel, pick leaves one by one or strip the leaves from the woody stems. Never uproot the plant, it will give you more leaves. Wash both nettle tips and sorrel leaves in clear water several times. Snip the nettle leaves from the hard stems – then discard the latter. They’re so tough they were used for string by early peoples, so you won’t want them in your soup.

Fry the onion and potato in the butter until starting to turn golden. Add the washed leaves and stir until wilted. Add vegetable stock, bring to boil, turn down and simmer until all soft.

Blend until lovely and smooth, stir in a little cream if liked, and serve.