I submerse the following:
daylilies (as long as the green part can come above water)
waterlilies of course
water celery
water hyacinths
swamp hibiscus
siberian and louisiana iris
yellow loosestrife
sweet potato vine
coleus
and my spider wort is doing well as long as the tops are above water.
I don't use soil but rather gravel or rocks
most of the plants are in veggie filters, waterfalls, or in containers.
I am sure there are many other suggestions.
Out West we used Joe Pye weed but it was a bog plant.

I plant directly in pea gravel on shelf with no soil and mine grow great.
Water Iris
Hosta
cat tails
I put in pots with just pea gravel:
lilies
water sensitive plant

Water lilies can be planted in pea gravel? I thought they'd need some sort soil medium.

What about full submersibles like anacharis? Those were the ones that I saw some sites recommend just tying a weight to the bunch and not planting.

In my last pond, I would kayak in the lake across the street and collect plants. I just tossed the anachris in and it thrived. ....too much! Every year I harvested huge balls of it out so that it did not clog the pond.
Water lilies will do fine in gravel or river jack but you will need to fertilize them with little pellets if you want big flowers.