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!
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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 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.
How to Make Pumpkin Soup
This easy pumpkin soup recipe has three main parts:
- roast (for fresh pumpkin only),
- simmer,
- 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.
Roast the squash in a 400°F oven until it’s completely soft, 40 to 60 minutes.
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.
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!
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.
More Favorite Soup Recipes
If you love this vegan pumpkin soup, try one of these delicious soup recipes next:
- Butternut Squash Soup
- Sweet Potato Soup
- Acorn Squash Soup
- Vegetable Soup
- Carrot Ginger Soup
- Best Lentil Soup
- Tomato Basil Soup
- Or any of these 35 Best Soup Recipes!
Pumpkin Soup
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
- 2½ 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.
Nice to drizzle over Rice. Cuts the sweetness of the soup and adds some texture.
This recipe is fantastic! I had grown Musquée de Provence Pumpkins. They were huge. I followed the recipe exactly. Then, I added a few black beans and marinated goat cheese to serve with it. I will definitely make this again, and I am going to give some away for Christmas gifts.
Hello! Can I use reduced fat coconut milk?
Great recipe! I used an heirloom pumpkin variety called ‘Porcelain Doll’, which was incredible. Dense, sweet, non-stringy, amazing texture and vibrant texture! Reminiscent of red kuri or kabocha. Highly recommend! They’re cool looking too!
I fried the pumpkin seeds and some canned chickpeas in peanut oil and used them as garnish to add texture intrigue! I also added a pinch of cinnamon. Will definitely make this again!
Great recipe, love it! Some tips for the author and others — we never use single use disposable things, including parchment paper (although that’s not as bad as plastic disposable things, at least it’s compostable). Just do as directed to roast the pumpkin squash (I used a kabocha type). Scrub the pan after (saves $ and better for the environment). We happened to have fresh cilantro so we put that on top along with the squash seeds I roasted in the oven with salt at the beginning of the squash cooking. My squash wasn’t quite 4 1/2 cups but it came out great anyway. We did not put any salt in – the Better than Bouillon veggie broth we used was salty enough. Thanks for the fabulously delicious recipe!
Amazing soup! I’m typically not a fan of pumpkin so I didn’t know what to expect but this turned out wonderful. The flavors with the coconut milk and splash of vinegar at the end are delicious. Didn’t have the cardamom so doubled the coriander.
I particularly like the fact that this is not a sweet soup! I used small pie-making pumpkins – and added a little dry sherry at the warming before serving, along with plain yogurt. This is a great recipe for me ; )
Is it included on your new book?
absolutely loved it !!!cant wait to try yout other soups
So glad you loved the soup, Dorathy!
I baked two pumpkins already. How many cups of pumpkin do I need for the recipe???
This was soooooo good!!! I was worried based on other reviews that it would be overly spiced, but I didn’t didn’t so at all!! I used my leftover pumpkins from halloween! 🙂
I didn’t have coriander but threw in equal amounts garam masala. It was a huge hit with the family. Thank you!
Hi Ilsa, how fun that you used your Halloween pumpkins! I’m so glad you enjoyed the soup.
I use an actual pumpkin, one good for baking, but otherwise follow the recipe with it. The spices and coconut milk are nice and much preferred over the sweet squash soups I usually know . It’s not a go-to, year-round soup but it’s perfect for the right season.
Hi, I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
This was great! I doubled the recipe and used one kabocha squash and one butternut. The only thing I changed was added a block of tofu at the very end to bump up the protein. It was a huge hit and very filling.
Hi Mara, I’m so glad it was a hit! Fun idea to use two types of squash.
Delicious- however I added organic cinnamon for extra spark.
AMAZING!!!!
My whole family loved this thank you !
Meh… It always tasted like it was missing at least 1 something. And I know amazing chef but those who eat my cooking not me That it would be my specialty seasonings and maybe fixing something if we don’t like it exactly at 1st But I could never really get there. I’m still vexed. My mom just said it was boring. It was just seeming the impossible to alter, which I think just take all the fun out of it. Sorry I don’t want to sound like a jerk, but that is precisely where the fun is for me in a recipe this left me feeling perplexed, unsatisfied, bothered honestly
I can’t imagine this as boring. Take away half the seasoning then maybe. But another reply on here said it had too much seasoning.
But that’s why we all have different taste buds. It makes food exciting!!
I have had that with butternut/similar soups occasionally (not this recipe) where it tastes meh or strange. Both times I tried adjusting seasoning a little (not dramatically) and the next day the soups were great enough to get honest accolades from company. I’d be curious to know how yours tasted the next day
Pretty good recipe but way too much cumin and maybe some other spice too. I kept having to add salt sugar etc to try and balance out the flavor and especially get out the slight bitterness from too much spice.
Is this soup okay to freeze?
yep!
Yes
Ein geniales Rezept welches allen Bekannten sehr gemschmeckt hat!
Incredible recipe. Flavour was out of this world! I garnished with light greek yoghurt, freshly toasted pepitas, coriander and a squeeze of lemon. We ate it with toasted green olive & rosemary sourdough. Highly recommend!!!
I’m so glad you loved it!