Pumpkin Soup

This pumpkin soup recipe is smooth, creamy, and delicious, packed with curry spices and rich pumpkin flavor. It works beautifully with fresh roasted pumpkin or canned pumpkin puree!

Jump to Recipe

Pumpkin soup

This pumpkin soup recipe is smooth, creamy, and full of rich flavor from pumpkin, coconut milk, and warming curry spices. I love to make it with fresh roasted pumpkin in the fall, which gives it an intensely sweet flavor and almost velvety texture.

But when I don’t have time to roast a squash from scratch, I make this pumpkin soup with canned pumpkin instead. It works beautifully too, and the soup comes together about twice as fast. On a fall weeknight, I can’t argue with that. 🙂

Pumpkin soup recipe ingredients

Pumpkin Soup Ingredients

Most of the ingredients in this pumpkin soup recipe are pantry staples:

  • Onion and garlic – They add savory depth of flavor.
  • Extra-virgin olive oil – You’ll use it for roasting the pumpkin (if you’re using fresh) and sautéing the onion and garlic.
  • Curry spices – Ginger, turmeric, cumin, cardamom, and coriander add warm, aromatic flavor. I love this mix of spices in my easy coconut curry, and it’s delicious in this pumpkin soup too!
  • Coconut milk – It makes this soup rich and creamy without any heavy cream or dairy.
  • Vegetable broth – Use store-bought, or make homemade vegetable stock.
  • Apple cider vinegar – Its tangy flavor balances the squash’s sweetness.
  • And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop!

Beyond these basics, you’ll need a fresh pumpkin or canned pumpkin puree. 

Pumpkin Options

The best types of fresh pumpkin for this recipe are kabocha squash, red kuri squash, buttercup squash, and butternut squash. All of these squashes have sweet, firm flesh that will give this soup a great creamy texture and pumpkin flavor. Avoid using a big carving pumpkin. It’s stringier and less sweet than the varieties I recommend.

If you’d like to save time, you can use canned pumpkin puree instead. The soup is still creamy and flavorful, though slightly less sweet. You can skip the roasting steps in the recipe and jump straight to sautéing the onions!

Find the complete recipe with measurements below. 

Halved kabocha squash cut-side-up on a baking sheet

How to Make Pumpkin Soup

This easy pumpkin soup recipe has three main parts:

  1. roast (for fresh pumpkin only),
  2. simmer,
  3. and blend.

Here’s how it goes:

If you’re using fresh pumpkin, start by roasting the squash. Carefully chop it in half vertically, and use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and pulp. Rub the cut side of the squash with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and place it cut side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Halved kabocha squash cut-side-down on a baking sheet

Roast the squash in a 400°F oven until it’s completely soft, 40 to 60 minutes.

Roasted pumpkin on a baking sheet

When the roasted squash is cool to the touch, peel away its skin and measure 4 1/2 packed cups of the soft pumpkin flesh. If you’re using canned pumpkin, there’s no need to measure—you’ll use all the pumpkin in the 2 cans.

Roasted pumpkin on a baking sheet with measuring cup

Next, simmer! In a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat, sauté the onion until it softens. Add the spices, garlic, and ginger, and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the pumpkin, broth, and coconut milk, and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the soup from the heat, and stir in the vinegar.

Finally, blend the soup. Allow it to cool slightly. Then, transfer it to a blender and puree until smooth (you could also use an immersion blender for this step!). The consistency will vary based on the water content of your squash, so if the soup is too thick, blend in water, 1/2 cup at a time, to reach your desired texture.

Season to taste. Pour into bowls, and enjoy!

Creamy vegan pumpkin soup recipe

What to Serve with Pumpkin Soup

I love this creamy soup with a variety of garnishes on top. It’s wonderful with a drizzle of coconut milk, microgreens or chopped fresh cilantro, and/or toasted pumpkin seeds. Crusty homemade croutons are delicious too!

Enjoy the soup on its own, with a hunk of crusty bread or homemade focaccia on the side, or make it part of a larger meal. I love to pair it with a grilled cheese sandwich or a hearty autumn salad like one of these:

Storage

Store leftover pumpkin soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. It’ll thicken in the fridge, so I recommend reheating it over medium-low heat on the stove, adding water as needed to loosen it to your desired consistency.

This soup also freezes well for up to 3 months. Transfer frozen soup to the fridge to thaw overnight before reheating on the stove or in the microwave.

Creamy pumpkin soup in bowls

More Favorite Soup Recipes

If you love this vegan pumpkin soup, try one of these delicious soup recipes next:

Get This Recipe In Your Inbox
We’ll send it right away, plus fresh recipe inspiration every week!

Pumpkin Soup

rate this recipe:
4.91 from 132 votes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
Serves 6
This creamy pumpkin soup recipe is comforting and warming—perfect for a cool fall night. It's delicious with canned pumpkin puree or fresh roasted pumpkin. I typically use a kabocha squash, but butternut squash, buttercup squash, and red kuri squash all work well too.

Ingredients

  • 1 (4-pound) pumpkin (I like kabocha squash), or 2 (15-ounce) cans pumpkin puree
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more for sprinkling
  • 3 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • ½ teaspoon ground coriander
  • ½ teaspoon turmeric
  • ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1 (14-ounce) can full-fat coconut milk, reserve a little for garnish
  • cups vegetable broth
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Microgreens, optional, for garnish

Instructions

  • If using fresh pumpkin, preheat the oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place cut side down on the baking sheet. Roast for 40 to 60 minutes, or until very soft. When cool to the touch, peel away the skin and measure 4½ packed cups of the flesh. If you're using canned pumpkin, there's no need to measure—you'll use all the puree in the 2 (15-ounce) cans.
  • Heat the 2 tablespoons of oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, salt, and several grinds of pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 8 minutes, or until softened. Add the garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander, turmeric, and cardamom and stir for 30 seconds, or until the spices are aromatic. Add the cooked pumpkin, coconut milk, and broth and stir to combine. Simmer for 20 minutes, then stir in the vinegar.
  • Transfer to a blender, working in batches if necessary. Blend until smooth. Fresh pumpkin can vary in water content, so if your soup is too thick, add up to 1½ cups water (½ cup at a time) to reach your desired consistency.
  • Season to taste. Pour into bowls and garnish with additional coconut milk, fresh black pepper, and microgreens, if desired.
Nutrition Facts
Pumpkin Soup
Amount Per Serving
Calories 260 Calories from Fat 189
% Daily Value*
Fat 21g32%
Saturated Fat 15g94%
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 4g
Sodium 798mg35%
Potassium 516mg15%
Carbohydrates 19g6%
Fiber 6g25%
Sugar 9g10%
Protein 3g6%
Vitamin A 22273IU445%
Vitamin C 10mg12%
Calcium 60mg6%
Iron 3mg17%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

150 comments

4.91 from 132 votes (63 ratings without comment)

Leave a comment:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Rate this recipe (after making it)




  1. SK
    06.17.2026

    5 stars
    Fabulous with a squeezed lime.

  2. Lea
    04.19.2026

    5 stars
    This is the absolutely best pumpkin soup I have ever had! Cannot stop eating! This will be my go-to this winter. Used butter cup pumpkin instead of kabocha squash.

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      04.22.2026

      I’m so glad you loved it1

  3. Amanda
    11.24.2025

    I have previously made squash/pumpkin puree – how much is needed to equal a 4lb squash?

  4. Georgette
    11.13.2025

    5 stars
    Made it this week and it’s absolutely delicious!!!!

  5. Denise
    11.12.2025

    I don’t see how many this serves? I have 12 guests, tryna figure out how many squash to buy and also have you tried mixing various squash into the same recipe? Thanks!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      11.13.2025

      Hi Denise, it serves 6. Various squashes could totally work!

  6. Lindsey Brown
    10.28.2025

    5 stars
    While I was making this I realized I didn’t have coconut milk – it’s still amazing without it and way fewer calories! I used freshly roasted Kabocha squash, yum.

  7. Susan Y
    09.29.2025

    5 stars
    Loved this! Yummy and warming. Love the subtle flavors that blended so nicely together. Living in Australia, I can’t find acorn squash so I had to use what they call pumpkin here. It turned out beautifully. So creamy you would swear there’s some kind of cream in it. Thanks for this delicious recipe. Definitely a keeper.

  8. sara
    09.27.2025

    5 stars
    i love it thanks slot please send me pumpkin soup recipes and meals 🙏💐

  9. sarah
    09.22.2025

    how many calories per serving for the butternut squash soup?

  10. Annamarie Rice
    08.06.2025

    5 stars
    So sorry. Now I see! 4.5 cups of pumpkin meat..

  11. Annamarie Rice
    08.06.2025

    I LOVE this soup, however, can you tell me exactly how many cups of cooked pumpkin I should use?

  12. Catherine
    03.06.2025

    I made this soup today for the first time. It is absolutely delicious!! Will definitely be making it again and again

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      03.06.2025

      I’m so glad you loved it, Catherine!

  13. Nancy
    02.08.2025

    5 stars
    This was an easy, fabulous recipe. I served with grilled cheese and my family loved it!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      02.11.2025

      I’m glad you all loved it!

  14. Grace
    02.03.2025

    5 stars
    I thought it would be very difficult to make a homemade soup and I was afraid to use the pumpkin I had. But this recipe was great – simple, easy to follow and the soup was great! I felt it was missing something in the depth of the flavours and then realized I had forgotten about the vinegar. Added the vinegar and that was the missing piece. I’ve made this soup twice now and I love it. I think the blender was a better call than the immersion blender even if I had to do it in two batches.

  15. Megan
    01.16.2025

    2 stars
    I made this, but it had the hardly any flavor. Not sure if it was the pumpkin or broth I used ( both home grown/ made). I added a bunch more spices including cayenne for a bit of heat. The cardamom & vinegar just came in through too much (cardamom was freshly ground because I only had whole on hand). Disappointed, but I suspect this is user error. I usually love pumpkin soups.

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      01.17.2025

      Hi Megan, I’m sorry to hear you had disappointing results! Did you change the recipe at all, specifically in regards to the coconut milk or salt?

Fresh, easy
recipes for
every day.

Jeanine Donofrio in her kitchen

I'm Jeanine, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, and founder of Love & Lemons, a trusted recipe resource for millions of home cooks. I create fresh, easy, and delicious vegetarian recipes that celebrate seasonal ingredients and flavors.

About Us >

Start here

Get our Recipes

We’ll send our top 10 recipes straight to your inbox, along with weekly recipe inspiration!