Pumpkin Curry Soup

This Pumpkin Curry Soup comes together with coconut milk, canned pumpkin and curry paste. It's a delicious twist on fall comfort food!

How to make this soup

1. Assemble all your ingredients.
2. Heat coconut oil in a large pot, then saute onions until softened.
3. Add garlic, ginger, curry paste, chili powder, turmeric, cumin, salt & pepper.
4. Stir in pumpkin, coconut milk and broth. Simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Blend with an immersion blender.
6. Serve in bowls and top with desired garnishes. Enjoy!

Ingredients in this recipe

Here's what you need to make this easy vegetarian soup – it's so perfect for fall! Full ingredients and instructions are at the bottom of this blog post.

• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 yellow onions, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp ginger, minced
• 2 tbsp red or yellow curry paste
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp each salt & pepper
• 2 (15oz) cans pureed pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 (14oz) can coconut milk (full fat preferably)
• 1 cup vegetable broth (or chicken broth)

Ingredient substitutions

• coconut oil – This ingredient is very common in curry soups but any neutral flavor of cooking oil can used as a substitute
• yellow onion – feel free to use white onion or even shallot instead
• fresh garlic cloves and ginger – Using fresh aromatics gives the dish better flavor but you can use dry spices if necessary (garlic powder and powdered ginger)
• red or yellow curry paste – Although curry paste is typically the choice for Thai dishes and curry powder is what most Indian curries use, you can substitute curry powder for the paste. Simply use 1 teaspoon of curry powder for every tablespoon of curry paste
• pumpkin puree – This is NOT the same as pumpkin pie filling. You need 100 percent pumpkin, without any sugar or spices
• coconut milk – if you can’t use coconut milk, then heavy cream, Greek yogurt, and sour cream are all good substitutes. Just keep in mind that the flavor will be different, you will just be keeping the creaminess. You can even use nut milk, but the soup will have a thinner consistency
• vegetable broth – for richer flavor, feel free to use stock. Chicken broth or stock will also work if you don't need to keep the soup vegetarian

Adding protein to this soup

This a healthy vegetarian curry but adding protein is definitely possible, and will make the dish heartier!

Consider blending cooked lentils, chickpeas, or other legumes of your choice into the soup. If you would rather not puree the protein into the soup, there are other options.

You could stir in a cup of cooked quinoa, tempeh, or wild rice.

If you don't need to worry about keeping the soup vegetarian, you could saute some chicken or sausage up in the beginning and then add it back in again once you have blended the soup.

What to serve with pumpkin soup

As with any other soup, a side of fresh garden salad is always a good choice. You might also want to serve some flatbread, pita, naan, or thick slices of crusty bread.

Another tasty way to make the curry a complete meal is to serve it with grilled vegetables or panini sandwiches. Of course, marinated chicken breast would be great, as would skewers of roasted or grilled lamb.

More topping ideas

I like to garnish my soup with creme fraiche, pumpkin seeds, fresno chilies and fresh cilantro. Other great toppings for a creamy soup like this are:

• spicy condiments, like hot sauce
• finely snipped greens, like kale, chard, or peppery arugula
• scallions
• finely chopped peanuts
• sour cream or Greek yogurt

Storing and reheating

You will need to refrigerate any leftovers in a covered container, and be sure to use them up within five days. If you want to store this pumpkin curry soup longer than five days, you will need to freeze it.

The best way to reheat your leftovers is in a saucepan on the stove top over medium heat. Stir it occasionally to ensure that all of the soup warms through completely to at least 165° F.

You can also microwave it for 2-3 minutes, stirring partway through.

Freezing this soup

This meal may be kept frozen for up to 3 months. However, for the best flavour and texture, try to use it within 2 months.

Allow the soup to cool to room temperature before transferring it to freezer storage bags or individual serving sizes in glass containers. This helps to prevent ice crystals from forming on the top of the soup.

You can microwave the soup from frozen if you've stored individual portions in glass containers. Simply reheat for 6-7 minutes, stirring partway through. If defrosting from freezer bags, then defrost in the fridge overnight before reheating.

TIP: To save space in your freezer, store the soup in large freezer storage bags. Be sure the bags are properly sealed, then lay them down flat in the freezer. This way, you can easily stack them.

More fall soup recipes

• Cabbage Soup
• Chicken Wild Rice Soup
• Curried Butternut Squash Lentil Soup

Meal prep tools for this recipe

• Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on storing the leftovers
• You can order red curry paste online