This fan-favourite, creamy vegan cauliflower wild rice soup is packed with nutrition, easy to make and perfect for warming up on a cold day.

Bowl of creamy cauliflower wild rice soup topped with chopped chives. Spoon rests in bowl.

Features

  • quick and easy: minimal prep required and about 45 minutes of cooking time (if you have cooked wild rice on hand, it will be faster)
  • dietary needs: vegan, gluten-free, nut-free
  • nutrition features: low-fat, high in protein and fiber
  • 5-star reviewed: this recipe has dozens of raving reviews so you can cook with confidence!

Ingredient Notes

Visual of all ingredients needed for making a cauliflower wild rice soup. Ingredients are labelled with text overlay.
  • wild rice – any wild rice or wild rice blend works, it will be cooked separately from the soup so various cooking times don’t matter
  • broth – any homemade or store-bought broth works, I like using bouillon cubes since they’re easy to keep on hand
  • nutritional yeast – adds a cheesy, nutty flavour to the soup, this recipe was developed specifically for nutritional yeast so if you don’t want to use it I’d suggest checking out a different cauliflower soup such as this cauliflower sweet potato soup or cauliflower potato soup (wild rice could be added to this one)

Complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.

Step by Step Instructions

Step 1. Start cooking the wild rice according to package instructions. Most varieties take about 45 minutes to cook.

Wild rice cooking in a pot. Spoon rests in pot.

Step 2. When you’re ready to start the soup, add the onion, garlic and celery to a soup pot with a couple tablespoons of water and cook for 5-6 minutes until softened and fragrant.

Stir in the thyme and oregano and cook for another couple minutes.

Onion, garlic and celery cooking in a soup pot.

Step 3. Add the cauliflower, carrot and broth and lightly simmer for about 20 minutes until the carrots and cauliflower are tender. Stir in the nutritional yeast.

Carrots and cauliflower cooking in broth in a soup pot.

Step 4. Carefully scoop half of the soup into a blender. Start blending on low and then increase to high for 10-20 seconds until the soup is smooth and creamy. Make sure you allow the steam to escape while you’re blending.

Pour the blended portion back into the pot with the rest of the of the soup.

Hand ladling cauliflower carrot soup into a blender.
Creamy blended cauliflower soup in a blender.

Stir in the wild rice then serve with fresh lemon juice and thinly sliced green onion.

Creamy cauliflower wild rice soup in a soup pot. Ladle rests in pot.
Hand squeezing lemon into a bowl of cauliflower and carrot soup.

Notes and Tips

  • Since you cook the rice separately and stir it in at the end, any variety works. If you don’t have wild rice on hand, try brown rice, long-grain white rice or a wild and brown rice blend.
  • Amount of broth can be reduced or increased to adjust the consistency. If you like your soup very thick, reduce the broth to 4 cups. You can always add more at the end if it’s too thick.
  • Potatoes work well in place of or in addition to cauliflower for a different twist. Use an equal of amount of peeled, cubed potatoes in place or cauliflower or do half cauliflower, half potato.
Bowl of creamy cauliflower wild rice soup topped with chopped chives.

Storing

  • Fridge: Let cool then store in a sealed container for up to 5 days.
  • Freezer: Let cool then store in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
  • Reheating: Reheat stovetop or in the microwave until heated to your preference.
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Bowl of vegan cauliflower wild rice soup topped with sliced green onion.

Creamy Cauliflower Wild Rice Soup

  • Author: Deryn Macey
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 45 mins
  • Total Time: 55 minutes
  • Yield: 6 1x
  • Category: Soup
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan

This creamy, vegan wild rice soup is the ultimate comfort food. The flavours are wonderful, it’s full of nutrition and makes the perfect way to warm up on on a cold day.

★★★★★

4.9 from 38 reviews
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Ingredients

  • 1 cup chopped celery (150 g)
  • 1 medium white onion, diced (approx. 1 1/2 cups, 215 g)
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp each ground thyme and oregano
  • 2 cups peeled and diced carrots (300 g)
  • 4 heaping cups or 1 small head of cauliflower, chopped into small florets (450 g)
  • 5 cups vegetable broth
  • 1/2 cup nutritional yeast (30 g)
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked wild rice (250 g)
  • 1 tsp each sea salt and black pepper, or more to taste
  • squeeze of fresh lemon juice (1-2 tbsp)

Instructions

  1. Cook the wild rice according to package instructions. While it’s cooking, proceed with making the soup. 
  2. Add the onion, garlic and celery to at least a 7.5 qt soup pot with 2 tablespoons of water and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes until starting to soften, stirring often (alternatively, you can saute the veggies in 1 tbsp of olive oil). If the pot starts to dry out at any time, add another tablespoon of water. Add the thyme and oregano, stir to combine and cook for another 2 minutes until fragrant.
  3. Add the cauliflower, carrot and all of the vegetable broth and simmer over medium heat until the carrots and cauliflower are tender. This should take approximately 20 minutes.
  4. Stir in the nutritional yeast.
  5. Scoop half of the soup into a blender. Make sure you leave a crack in the lid to let the steam escape. Start blending on low then increase to high and blend until smooth and creamy. Once it’s blended, pour it back into the soup pot with the rest of the soup.
  6. Stir in the cooked wild rice.
  7. Season with the salt and pepper and if desired, a squeeze fresh lemon.
  8. Serve right away with chopped fresh chives or green onion or store in the fridge for up to 5 days or freezer for up to 2 months.

Notes

  • Storing: Let cool then store in a sealed container for up to 5 days or in the freezer for 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge if frozen. Reheat stovetop or in the microwave until heated to your preference.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1/6th of recipe (350 g)
  • Calories: 125
  • Fat: 0.4 g
  • Carbohydrates: 25 g
  • Fiber: 6 g
  • Protein: 8 g

Keywords: cauliflower wild rice soup, vegan wild rice soup

Originally published on February 19, 2018. Updated with new photos and text on November 17, 2020.