Curry Butternut Squash Soup

When the weather turns cool, the perfect antidote is a big bowl of soup. This curry butternut squash soup is a balanced combination of flavors that’s finished with creamy coconut milk. It’s delicious, completely warming, and perfect for cold fall or winter weather. Plus, it’s a really quick and easy weeknight soup to prepare.

Get ready for a deliciously warm soup perfect for fall.

This soup is the perfect comfort food on a cool fall day, but fairly healthy compared to some other comfort food options. As soon as cooler weather arrives, I’m ready for a change in the kitchen, and I inevitably begin making soup.

This squash soup is quick and uses ingredients that are usually in any pantry. And if not, they’re easy to find. The base starts with onion and carrot sautéed in butter. The butter adds a rich undertone, and the carrot adds a depth of vegetal flavor.

The key is the yellow curry powder. Curry is a complex mixture of spices and has a certain spice level but not necessarily heat. Once the squash cooks, everything is blended for a smooth soup and finished with coconut milk. The coconut milk adds a little sweetness, and the flavor complements the curry.

This truly is one of those soups I go back to repeatedly because it perfectly captures the flavors I crave!

Everything you’ll need to make this recipe.

The best part of this curried butternut squash soup is its healthy list of ingredients. With carrot, onion, apple, and butternut squash, the soup can easily be adjusted for a vegetarian or vegan option. Here are some of the important ingredients:

• Carrot has inherent sweetness and is a perfect color for a squash soup. The flavor is not noticed in the finished soup but instead enhances the predominant squash flavor.
• Butternut squash is the darling vegetable of the fall, but you can also use other squash varieties. Squash is dense and sweet, providing the perfect texture to the soup.
• Yellow curry powder is a blend of spices, often using turmeric, coriander, cumin, and fenugreek. Any purchased blend will work well.
• Cumin is already in the curry powder, but the soup’s flavor is enhanced even further by adding a bit more. The spice is strong but offers an earthy, warming flavor.
• Red pepper flakes add a bit of heat and helps elevate the curry flavor.
• Ginger is grated directly into the soup capturing all the juices with the pulp. Fresh ginger adds a pungent, bright flavor to the curry.
• Apple adds a hint of sweet and tart flavor to the soup. Choose a crisp, sweet apple that you prefer to eat.

Here’s how to make this recipe.

The best part about most soup recipes is that they are easy to make; this recipe is no exception. Much of the time comes in waiting for the soup to simmer on the stove. Once cooked, it’s blended into a perfectly smooth liquid that is super cozy to eat. Here are the steps to make this soup:

1. Prepare the base of the soup. Dice up the onion and carrot. Add the two vegetables to the butter in a kettle on the stove over medium heat. Let the mixture sauté in the kettle while preparing the squash.

2. Prepare the butternut squash. Using a sharp knife, slice off both ends, then slice the squash in half. Using a spoon, remove the seeds and either discard or bake to sprinkle on top of the soup (recipe below). Peel each half using a peeler. Then chop the flesh into rough, small pieces. Since the soup will be blended, having uniform sizes for the pieces is not a huge concern. Once sliced, set the squash aside.

3. Add the spices. To the sautéed onion and carrot, add the chopped garlic cloves and salt. Let this soften into the vegetable mixture for approximately 30 seconds. Then add in the yellow curry powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes. Stir in the spices and let them bloom in the liquid from the butter. Then add in some freshly grated ginger and stir it into the mixture.

4. Add the squash and apple liquid. Add the chopped butternut squash and diced apple to the kettle’s vegetable mixture. Pour on the chicken stock and bring the mixture to a simmer.

5. Blend up the soup. Remove the kettle from the stove and blend the mixture using an immersion blender or countertop blender. Continue blending until the mixture has a smooth, homogenous texture.

6. Add the coconut milk. To the blended soup, add the coconut milk. Stir the milk into the soup, making sure everything is combined. Serve immediately.

These pro tips will make this recipe a success.

• When slicing up butternut squash, make sure to use a sharp knife. While a sharp knife does sound more dangerous, it tends to cause fewer accidents because you’ll be able to cut easier and more precisely. 
• Make sure to peel the squash before adding it to the soup. While roasting butternut squash with the peel left on is fine, when adding it to a soup, the peel can add a gritty or grainy texture to the resulting blended purée.
• For the apple, the peel can be left on or removed. Since apple skin is very thin, it will not impact the texture of the soup if left on. This will save a step and make preparing the soup a bit faster.
• To know when the soup is ready to blend, simply take a piece of the butternut squash and, using a wooden spoon, smash it against the side of the kettle. If it meets no resistance, the squash is cooked, and the soup is ready to blend.

Have I Convinced You to Make This Recipe?

I hope you make this recipe and put some food on your table. Leave a comment and share a star rating so you can let others know how much you love this recipe. This helps show others that this is a recipe they, too, can make, enjoy, and love!