Pumpkin season is well upon us.
Take a break from pumpkin pie with this savory, creamy and a little spicy Pumpkin Curry Soup!
This dish was inspired by one of my favorite Thai dishes, Pumpkin Curry, which uses a Kabocha Squash in a smooth and spicy curry. Here, I’ve borrowed the flavor profile and used a Baking Pumpkin instead, small and readily available this time of year.
I love Crock Pot soups, and this is one of them! The only prep required is dicing the vegetables and roasting the pumpkin.
I followed this roast pumpkin recipe. Save the seeds and roast them later for a salty, crunchy topping!
Feel free to adapt as needed, replacing vegetables with your favorite. One thing I have learned making pureed soups over the years, (more often than not without a recipe) — choose vegetables with a similar color palette. Here, I used orange, red and white vegetables. The result was a beautiful bright orange soup that was appealing to the eye and the stomach.
A quick cautionary tale: In past attempts, I’ve combined green vegetables (like kale and spinach) in with carrots, peppers, other bright orange and red toned vegetables. This, as color theory teaches, results in an extremely unappetizing brown color. The soup may taste good, but you’ll have to trick your eyes when you eat it. My advice: choose a color palette — either orange & red or greens — and stick to it!
Here’s a loose recipe to follow for delightful Pumpkin Curry Soup.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2-3 orange sweet bell peppers, diced and deseeded
- 2-3 carrots, peeled and diced
- 4-5 sweet red shisito peppers (substitute 2 red bell peppers)
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 TB Thai red curry paste
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 1/2 tsp each ground ginger, turmeric, paprika and cayenne pepper
- 1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
- 1 small can of coconut milk
- 1-2 cans of chicken broth (if vegan or vegetarian, substitute vegetable broth)
- 1 small baking pumpkin
DIRECTIONS
1. Cut and roast pumpkin according to baking instructions, found here.
2. Add all chopped vegetables (onion, peppers, carrot, garlic, sweet potato) to crock pot. Stir in 1/2 can of coconut milk and 1 can of chicken broth. Add curry paste and spices. Adjust according to taste. Note: Hold back on the cayenne and add to taste at the end if you are spicy averse.
3. Once pumpkin is done roasting, scrape flesh from skin and add to crock pot. Stir well. Add enough coconut milk and/or broth to cover the vegetables. Cook on high for four hours.
4. Ensure all vegetables are tender. Add more coconut milk and/or broth if too thick. Puree in blender or with immersion blender until smooth. Add liquid as needed to achieve desired consistency. Taste and adjust spices.
5. Enjoy with roasted pumpkin seeds, a drizzle of good olive oil, some fresh cracked pepper and hunk of crusty bread.
Enjoy!
