Rice Soup with Sweet Potato, Spinach & Cannellini Beans
Italian seasoning and coconut milk in the same pot. Add a teaspoon of mustard and the broth picks up a warmth that goes beyond the paprika.
Sweet potato cubes soften during the fourteen-minute simmer and begin to break apart at the edges, thickening the liquid into something halfway between a soup and a stew. Brown rice absorbs the coconut milk broth. Cannellini beans and a handful of spinach go in right at the end — just long enough to heat through without losing their texture.
749 kcal in one pot. Twenty minutes.
Ingredients
- red onion ¼
- garlic 1 clove
- celery 1 stalk
- sweet potato ¼ pound
- cannellini beans 3 ounces
- olive oil 1 tablespoon
- Italian seasoning 1½ teaspoon
- paprika (ground) ½ teaspoon
- brown rice 3 ounces
- water 1½ cup
- vegetable bouillon ½ cube
- coconut milk 2½ fluid ounce
- yellow mustard 1 teaspoon
- spinach 1 handful
Method
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Dice the red onion, press the garlic clove and finely chop the celery. Peel the sweet potato and cut it into cubes. Rinse the cannellini beans in a colander with cold water.
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Heat the oil in a soup pot and sauté the onion, garlic and celery for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the Italian seasoning along with the paprika powder and sauté for another minute. Add the sweet potato cubes to the pot along with the rice, water, bouillon cube, coconut milk and mustard. Let it simmer over medium heat for about 14 minutes until the rice and sweet potatoes are cooked.
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Stir in the spinach and cannellini beans and heat for another minute.
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Serve the soup in a bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Fourteen plant-based milks were tested with spinach in a single study — almond, oat, soy, rice, and ten others. Only coconut milk improved lutein liberation, and it improved it by 42%. The rest showed no effect or actively made it worse. This soup stirs spinach into a coconut milk broth at step three. That pairing is doing more than adding richness (Neelissen et al. 2023).
Why This Works
Behind this recipe
Can I use another plant-based milk instead of coconut milk?
You can, but it changes more than flavor. Out of fourteen plant-based options tested in a single study, coconut milk was the only one that improved how your body accesses lutein from spinach — by 42% compared to water. Soy milk actually reduced it by 40-61%. Cow's milk also worked, through a different protein mechanism. The swap will not ruin the soup, but the nutrient interaction with the spinach changes.
Is 16g of protein enough for a full meal?
It depends on your goals. 16g is on the low side if muscle maintenance or growth is a priority — most adults aiming for that target 25-40g per meal. The 103g of carbs and 13g of fiber make this soup filling, but if you need more protein, add a boiled egg, a side of Greek yogurt, or extra cannellini beans. At 749 kcal, there is calorie room to adjust.
Can I meal-prep this soup?
Yes. It stores well for 2-3 days refrigerated in an airtight container. The brown rice will keep absorbing liquid overnight, so the soup thickens — add a splash of water or vegetable broth when reheating. The spinach loses some brightness but the texture holds. Do not freeze: the sweet potato and rice turn mushy when thawed.
