Vegetarian Chard Soup

by Dorothy Reinhold on October 20, 2020


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Vegetarian Chard Soup is a delicious, easy, healthy soup starring nutritional powerhouse Swiss chard. This is perfect for a weeknight, or how about Meatless Monday?

I had a Swiss chard plant that sprang up in my vegetable garden, unbidden but not unwelcome.
chard plant in gardenIt must have been from an errant Bright Lights chard seed that I thought never would germinate, so I planted something on top of it and went about my gardening business.

Months later, up popped a gorgeous chard. What magnificent luck!

So when I heard Emma Kelly-Hasken on Twitter talking about her dad’s chard soup, I had to have the recipe. I didn’t know her, but I reached out anyway, and since we were both chard lovers, she obliged me with the recipe. It turned out to be yummy!

She says, “It’s super easy, healthy, and delicious. My dad made up the recipe after growing an abundance of chard a couple of years ago. :)”

Chard in a raised planter bedI know what she meant about an abundance of chard! I got a new raised planter recently, and stuck a few baby rainbow chard plants in there, and look what I have now! Those leaves are as big as my head!

Healthy? I’ll say. Chard is a kind of powerhouse of nutrients. It’s one of those veggies that is said to be “nutrient dense,” which means it packs more nutrients in fewer calories, which makes it a good deal, foodwise.

I’m glad her dad had too much chard. I’m hoping to follow suit, by planting more!

How to make Vegetarian Chard Soup

chard leaves on a cutting boardGather the chard, either from your garden, or the produce section at your grocery store. Wash it well, and pat dry.

chard stems chopped on a cutting boardRemove the stems from the leaves (fold leaf in half vertically with the stem on one edge, and slice it away). Then slice stems into small pieces, say 1/4-1/2 inch thick.

Swiss Chard on the chopping boardSlice the leaves in 1- to 2-inch pieces and set aside.

Add Swiss Chard to the soup potYou’ll cook the soup for 15 or so minutes, and then add the chard leaves, so they stay bright green.

Vegetarian Chard Soup in the pot.A relatively quick time in the soup pot makes this a great weeknight dinner.
Vegetarian Chard Soup up closeThe soup is brothy, but full of healthy ingredients. You can see tomatoes, potatoes, onions and beans here.

Vegetarian Chard Soup

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: Serves 4

Vegetarian Chard Soup

A delicious, easy, healthy soup starring nutritional powerhouse Swiss chard. This one is perfect for a weeknight, or how about Meatless Monday?

Ingredients

  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (evoo)
  • 6 large chard leaves, stalks separated (leaves should be cut in 1- to 3-inch pieces, stalks sliced to 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces)
  • 4 medium garlic cloves, minced
  • 32 ounces (4 cups) vegetable broth (or use chicken broth or stock)
  • 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice
  • 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini (or any white) beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 large potato, diced small (I leave the skin on for more nutrition)
  • 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Garnish: Parmesan cheese, grated (or use vegan cheese to keep this a vegan soup)

Directions

  1. Sauté onion in olive oil on medium heat, about 5-7 minutes, until onion begins to brown.
  2. Add chard stalks, stir and sauté until they are starting to get soft, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another minute.
  3. Add stock/broth, tomatoes, beans and potato, plus 1 cup water. Bring to a simmer, and simmer 10 minutes, uncovered. Add chard leaves and simmer another 5 minutes, uncovered.
  4. Add 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste.
  5. Portion into bowls, and once served, top with grated Parmesan cheese or vegan cheese if you prefer that.
  6. Serves 4.

Notes

Recipe source: Emma Kelly-Hasken.

https://www.shockinglydelicious.com/vegetarian-chard-soup/

pin this please!Pin the image below for Vegetarian Chard Soup to your Pinterest board to save this recipe

Vegetarian Chard Soup collage on ShockinglyDelicious.com

chard plant growing tallI can’t get enough of how pretty a chard plant is, whether it’s in a vegetable garden like above…

Swiss chard growing in a raised plater bed in Southern California…or a raised planter bed. See that little hole in one of the leaves? Who cares! It’s organic!

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This post was originally published October 24, 2011, and has been refreshed and republished today.


{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }

Karen October 28, 2020 at 9:57 pm

So jealous of your garden! I need more space here!

Reply

Dorothy Reinhold October 28, 2020 at 10:07 pm

Karen,
If you have a patio, try the raised planter bed like I have here. It’s a game-changer, especially for herbs.

Reply

Terri Oliver Steffes October 28, 2020 at 7:20 pm

I’ve grown Swiss shard as a decorative plant and ate it a couple of times. I want to try it again in this soup.

Reply

Amy (Savory Moments) October 28, 2020 at 6:44 pm

This is a lovely looking soup and I really like the idea of using chard in it!

Reply

Patricia @ Grab a Plate October 25, 2020 at 7:22 pm

Cant’ wait to try this recipe! I still have some chard in the garden that will be perfect for this! Looks tasty!

Reply

Kevin October 23, 2020 at 2:28 pm

I love your photos in this post! Not to mention the recipe!

Reply

Dorothy Reinhold October 23, 2020 at 2:32 pm

Thank you Kevin!

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Sara Welch October 22, 2020 at 3:24 pm

I love soup season for recipes just like this one! Adding this to my dinner line up for the week, indeed!

Reply

Erin | Dinners,Dishes and Dessert October 21, 2020 at 10:16 pm

This Vegetarian Chard Soup couldn’t look any more perfect!

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Vikki October 21, 2020 at 9:29 pm

Love this tasty soup, so much flavor! I’m a chard lover myself

Reply

Amanda October 21, 2020 at 3:20 pm

This looks very tasty and perfect for those cold evenings!

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Brandee July 3, 2018 at 11:31 am

I loved this soup! I live in Chile and here chard is easy to get, so I will be making use of this recipe a lot 🙂

Reply

Dorothy Reinhold July 3, 2018 at 3:31 pm

Thank you for coming back and telling me Brandee! So glad you loved it!

Reply

Dford November 11, 2017 at 8:53 pm

Can you freeze this soup?

Reply

Dorothy Reinhold November 13, 2017 at 6:23 am

Dford,
I did not try that because we ate it all in 2 days, but I would not hesitate to freeze it.

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wendy August 26, 2017 at 11:47 am

Substituted frozen baby limas for the white beans, and bite sized cauliflower florets for the potato, also added 2 small celery stalks sliced thinly. Used braggs vinegar as it is what I had in the house. DELISH soup!

Reply

Dorothy Reinhold August 30, 2017 at 12:54 pm

Wendy,
Love hearing your substitutions! I always say, “Use what you have!” Thanks for the compliment. <3

Reply

Josh January 16, 2016 at 9:12 am

Really nice soup, especially when you add a couple of drops of Tabasco to each bowl. Looks great as well. Thanks very much.

Reply

Dorothy Reinhold January 18, 2016 at 9:58 am

Josh,
Highly approve of the Tabasco! Have you ever tried the Tabasco Habanero? My husband is addicted. Thank you for coming back to let me know you liked it!

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Susan Larsson October 8, 2015 at 11:47 pm

fabulous – used fire roasted tomatoes and added braggs at the end, less broth so it was more stew than soup. absolutely delicious!

Reply

Dorothy Reinhold October 10, 2015 at 6:37 am

Susan,
Sounds great! I often make more of a stew than a soup. I always say, suit yourself! Or is it “soup yourself?”

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bobbywobby! June 25, 2013 at 12:43 pm

This soup is fantastic! Im hooked, great tip on adding the leaves towards the end of the soup. thank you!

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Dorothy Reinhold June 25, 2013 at 1:40 pm

Bobby,
So glad!

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carissa weibley June 6, 2013 at 6:03 pm

I got swiss chard in my CSA box this week, and it rained today. Perfect combination. This was a great recipe…thanks for sharing!

Reply

Dorothy Reinhold June 6, 2013 at 9:25 pm

Carissa,
Fantastic! So glad you liked it!

Reply

Nena January 18, 2012 at 8:50 pm

It’s me with all the questions….Can this be made in a slow cooker or will it get too mushy? I’ve never cooked with swiss chard before.

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Dorothy January 19, 2012 at 1:07 pm

Nena,
Good question! This soup cooks in a half hour or less, so is relatively fast. I personally wouldn’t bother with the slow cooker on this one, although if you try it, let me know how you like it. For me, the slow cooker does a better job on things that are meant to cook longer conventionally. For the fast stuff, just make it the usual way. You can buy a bag of Cut `n Clean Greens chard, which is already triple washed and chopped, which will eliminate one more prep step from this recipe, if you like.

Reply

Tammy October 25, 2011 at 10:49 am

This chard soup looks delicious. Do you use the entire part of chard?? I see you use the stems and the leaves separately. Tammy

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Dorothy October 25, 2011 at 10:55 am

Tammy,
Yes, you use the whole chard, stem AND leaf. The stems need just a BIT longer to cook, usually, so you will often see them thrown in the skillet or pot first, with the leaves coming later. But yes, the whole thing! Plus, the stems are gorgeous, aren’t they, especially with the rainbow chard!

Reply

sippitysup October 25, 2011 at 8:34 am

So I wake up to rain and a soup recipe. It seems as if someone were trying to give me a hint. GREG

Reply

Dorothy October 25, 2011 at 10:56 am

Greg/Sippitysup,
Take the hint! Make the soup!

Reply

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