This Thai butternut squash soup is one we're ready to make every single year as soon as we feel that crisp fall air! The epitome of fall comfort food, this soup contains warming Thai spices and coconut milk to create and thick and creamy texture for the ultimate comfort food.
This Thai butternut squash soup is one of my favorite soups of all time! It's exactly what you need when you're craving comfort and warmth in a bowl. A dear friend of mine brought some to work for me to try years ago, and I was immediately hooked. She shared her recipe with me and I was quickly in the kitchen testing, tweaking, and adding curry roasted chickpeas into the mix for a lovely crispy topping.
Many bowls later, and we've arrived at this thick and comforting version. Let's go get our comfort food fix!
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Ingredients
For the butternut squash soup:
- Coconut oil
- Onion
- Carrot
- Celery
- Butternut squash
- Thai red curry paste - I love the kind by Thai Kitchen!
- Fresh ginger
- Vegetable broth
- Coconut milk - Full fat, canned coconut milk creates a super rich and creamy soup.
For the curry roasted chickpeas:
- Chickpeas
- Olive oil
- Spices - curry powder, cayenne, salt, pepper
Substitutions & Variations
Don't have some ingredients or want to modify for dietary needs and preferences? Check out some swaps below!
- Toppings - Crispy chickpeas are fun and delicious to make, but if you don't have time or don't want to dirty up extra dishes, try topping with some pepitas (raw or roasted & salted are both great), cashews, or croutons. If you don't make baking up an extra delish topping, try homemade whole wheat croutons or these 20-minute maple cayenne caramelized walnuts.
- Bread - We just can't talk about soup without talking about bread. If you have a good sourdough or hearty dinner roll on hand, slice some of that up for dunking. So good!
- Roasted butternut squash - To intensify the butternut squash flavor, try roasting your butternut squash in halves instead of letting it simmer. Scoop out the roasted squash flesh and add to the other veggies and broth before blending.
- Thick or thin - This recipe makes a thick soup, almost like a bisque. Feel free to use more or less liquid to get it to your desired consistency!
How to Make a Thick & Creamy Thai Butternut Squash Soup
- Step 1: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees, and optionally line a sheet pan with parchment paper or foil. Drain and rinse canned chickpeas and thoroughly dry with a clean kitchen towel or use a salad spinner. Transfer chickpeas to a bowl with olive oil and spices, then spread in an even layer across the sheet pan, leaving some space between chickpeas. Roast in the oven for 30-35 minutes, or until crispy.
- Step 2: Meanwhile, heat coconut oil over medium heat in a large soup pot or dutch oven. Add in the aromatics: carrots, celery, onion, and ginger. Sauté for 3-5 minutes to soften, then add in red curry paste and sauté for 2-3 more minutes so that the veggies soak up all that curry flavor.
- Step 3: Add in cubed butternut squash, veggie broth, coconut milk, salt, and pepper. Bring everything to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, or until squash pieces are soft and fully cooked.
- Step 4: Allow the soup to cool slightly before carefully transferring it to a high-speed blender. Alternatively, you can use an immersion blender and keep the soup in the pot. Either way, blend the soup on a high speed until it's fully smooth. If you used a standing blender, transfer the soup back into the pot and reheat as needed.
- Step 5: Ladle into bowls and top with the crispy roasted chickpeas! Cilantro and diced fresh jalapeño also make delicious toppings.
Butternut Squash Soup FAQ
Yes! I love freezing this soup to save my future self some time making dinner. Allow the soup to cool completely, then store it in an airtight container in the freezer for up to three months. Make sure to leave about an inch of space between the soup an the cover, allowing room for liquid to expand when frozen.
First make sure to let the soup cool completely, then store leftover soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. I recommend storing the roasted chickpeas in a separate airtight container for leftover soup toppings. Note, you can re-crisp the roasted chickpeas in an air fryer or oven if desired.
This soup's thickness is all about the vegetable to liquid ratio, so if you want thicker soup, use less broth, and if you want thinner soup, add more broth. I don't recommend reducing the amount of coconut milk due to the flavor it adds. If you've already blended your soup, a couple thickening tricks could work. I like to let a piece of lightly toasted sourdough to soak in the soup for a few minutes, then I blend it all again. Another option is to make a cornstarch slurry by stirring equal parts cornstarch and water together, then stirring into the soup and allowing it to cook for a few minutes until thicker.
The answer here is salt! My recipe has a suggested amount of salt based on many recipe tests, but if your soup still tastes bland, continue adding salt by the ¼ teaspoon, stirring, and tasting. I always like to say salt soup until the taste makes you smile, but said another way, salt little by little until it's no longer bland.
Recommended Pairings
Looking for something to pair with your creamy Thai butternut squash soup? Here are some recommended blog favorites!
Did you try this Thai butternut squash soup recipe? Don't forget to leave a star rating 🌟 and comment below, and tag me on Instagram and Pinterest so I can see what you made!
📖 Recipe
Thai Butternut Squash Soup
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
This Thai butternut squash soup is thick and creamy with red curry paste, fresh ginger, and coconut milk. Topped with cilantro, coconut flakes, and crispy curry roasted chickpeas. So comforting for fall!
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 14-ounce can chickpeas, drained, rinsed, and dried
- ½ tablespoon curry powder
- ¼ teaspoon each of cayenne, salt, and pepper
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
- 1 carrot, diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- 1 sweet or yellow onion, diced
- 5 cups cubed butternut squash (about one large squash)
- 2 cups veggie broth
- ½ - 1 can coconut milk (adjust according to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon each of salt and pepper, plus, more to taste
- Optional: cilantro for topping
Instructions
- Roast chickpeas. Preheat oven to 375 degrees, and optionally line a sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. In a bowl, toss the chickpeas with olive oil and spices, adjusting spices to taste. They should be nicely coated! Roast at 375 for 30-35 minutes, or until chickpeas are on the crispy side.
- Sauté soup aromatics. While the chickpeas roast, heat the coconut oil in a medium-large pot over medium heat. Add in onion, ginger, celery, and carrot. Sauté for about 5 minutes or until veggies are softened, then add Thai red curry paste and sauté for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add squash, broth, and coconut milk. Add the cubed butternut squash, broth, coconut milk, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, the reduce to a simmer. Cover and allow to cook for 30 minutes. You'll know it's ready when the squash can be easily pierced with a fork.
- Blend soup. Remove the soup from heat and allow to cool slightly. Pour soup into a high-speed blender, and blend until super smooth. If you want to keep your soup in the pot, you could also use an immersion blender (no need to wait for it to cool if you do it this way!). Transfer blended soup back to pot to reheat if necessary. Divide among bowls and top with the curry roasted chickpeas and cilantro if desired.
Notes
- Coconut milk. Full fat coconut milk yields the richest, creamiest results, but light coconut milk would work as well. I've tried coconut milk from a carton and it doesn't yield as rich and silky of a soup, though you could use it in a pinch.
- Blending the soup. I've tried both an immersion blender and a stand blender for this soup, and I like the stand blender results just slightly better. That said, both work and your soup will be delicious either way!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 40
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl of soup + roasted chickpeas
- Calories: 311
- Sugar: 8.3 g
- Sodium: 791.1 mg
- Fat: 13.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 44.7 g
- Fiber: 10.2 g
- Protein: 8.2 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Carrie says
This recipe is one of my very favorites! I don't even like butternut squash very much, but this one changes that. It's a perfect comfort food. Thank you so much for it. ❤️
Tera says
Thank you so much, Carrie!! So glad you were able to find a comfort food you love here 🙂
Bethany says
I love chickpeas! This looks like such a delicious soup.
Tera says
I really hope you like it, Bethany!