Why I Love My Red Curry Kabocha Squash Soup
Winter squashes are a hard sell in my house; not everyone has the same love of them that I do. In fact, most are not huge fans unless it comes in the form of pie, so I work hard to make interesting and tasty options to snag their attention and bring them to the squashy side!
One of my favorite flavor pairings, and one that is loved by all of my family, is curry. Curry literally translates to spice mixture, so this could mean anything. A warm, Indian-inspired spice mix with Garam Masala and turmeric would be delightful here, but I decided to go with the spices of Southeast Asia.
My pumpkin soup is flavored with red Thai curry paste, loaded with red chili, shallots, galangal, garlic, lemongrass, coriander (cilantro), and makrut lime. I bumped up the protein and flavor of my pumpkin soup with some andouille sausage. Andouille is not at all Thai, but it is loaded with chilies and garlic that work great here. I opted for a fresh sausage, not smoked. I added chickpeas and coconut milk for a creamy, comforting soup. Top with fried, salted pumpkin seeds for a winning combo. This will keep you warm all dreary season long!
Cooking method
This could be a one pot soup, but I like to caramelize the squash, onion and garlic by roasting in the oven at a pretty high heat first, 425 degrees. While the kabocha squash is getting toasty, I brown my sausage over medium-high heat in a dutch oven or your favorite soup pot. My sausage came in casings, so I removed the casings and broke up the sausage in my pot with a wooden spoon.
Once the sausage was nice and golden brown, I remove from the pot, reserving the rendered fat. Add the curry paste straight to the hot fat and stir it around. Cooking your paste in the fat will bloom the spices, and develop the flavors for your soup. This ensures you do not have raw tasting spices, and you will not have to simmer your soup as long to achieve a full rich flavor. Add the coconut milk and a bit of water to the pan and combine.
When the squash is tender and caramelized, add the flesh the cooked onion and garlic to the pot with the curry paste mixture. Blend until smooth. I use an immersion blender for this, but you could also carefully puree the soup in a blender in batches, being careful to not spatter hot liquid all over yourself!!!
Add the sausage back to the pot along with the chickpeas. Bring to a simmer, adjust any seasoning with salt, and simmer just until the soup is a nice creamy consistency. Garnish with some fried, salted pumpkin seeds, and a drizzle of cocomut milk. So Good!
Make It Your Own
This is a method that can be modified a number of ways:
- Use a different curry paste or curry powder
- Sub any of the winter squashes for the Kabocha
- Add in a leafy green: spinach, kale, chard, etc
- Add a grain: rice, wild rice, farro, etc
- Cube the squash and leave it in chunks for a rustic no puree soup
- Let your imagination go wild!
Things You Need From Your Pantry
- olive oil
- canned chickpeas or dried and cooked
- coconut milk, I prefer full fat
- onion
- garlic
Things You May Need To Grab From The Store
- Kabocha squash
- curry paste
- coconut milk
- pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
Red Curry Kabocha Squash Soup
Course: SoupsDifficulty: Easy8
servings10
minutes45
minutesCreamy, warm and comforting squash soup. So easy to make, and enjoy throughout the week.
Ingredients
1/2 medium kabocha squash (about 1 – 1 1/2 lbs)
1 medium yellow onion, peeled and quartered
5 – 6 garlic cloves, skins on
1 tsp white ground pepper
1 tsp diamond crystal kosher salt, plus more as needed
1 Tbsp olive oil, divided
1 lb fresh andouille sausage or other garlic sausage, removed from casings
1 – 4 oz jar red Thai curry paste
1 – 14 fl oz can coconut milk, full-fat, reserve a couple tablespoons for garnish
1 – 15 oz can garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
juice of 1 lemon
- Fried Pepitas
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
1/2 tsp diamond crystal kosher salt
Directions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Carefully cut the kabocha squash in half, scoop out the seeds, and cut half into wedges. Reserve the other half for another day!
- Place the squash on a sheet pan with the quartered onion, and garlic. Season with salt, white pepper and drizzle with 2 tsps olive oil. Place in oven and roast for 20-30 minutes until caramelized and tender. A fork should slide in and out easily.
- In a heavy bottomed dutch oven, heat 1 tsp olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and break up with a wooden spoon. Let cook for 3-4 minutes until caramelized and brown on the first side. Resist the urge to stir during this time. Turn the sausage over and brown on the other side. When the sausage is cooked and golden brown, remove from the pan with a slotted spoon, reserving the rendered fat in the pot.
- Add the curry paste to the reserved fat, and stir to combine, let cook for a minutes so the spices in the paste bloom, and release its flavor. Add the coconut milk to the pan, fill the can most of the way with water, swish around to get all the coconut milk, add to the pot. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to medium-low.
- Remove the squash from the over. Scoop the squash flesh into the pan with the curry, coconut milk. Add the roasted onions and garlic, squeezing the garlic out of the skins. Using an immersion blender, blend the squash and coconut milk to a smooth consistency.
- Add the sausage back to the pan with any juices that have accummulated, and the garbanzo beans with the bean liquid. Bring back to a simmer and cook gently until it reaches your desired consistency. I like mine silky but coats a spoon. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt. Squeeze in the lemon juice to finish.
- Fried Pumpkin Seeds
- Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the pumpkin seeds to the hot oil and cook for 2-3 minutes just until the seeds start to get a light golden brown, being careful not to burn them. Do not leave unattended. Seeds will go from perfect to burnt in an instance.
- Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon, and season immediately with salt. Tossing to coat. Reserve the pumpkin seed flavored oil for garnish.
- Plate and Garnish
- Ladle soup into warm bowls, drizzle with the reserved coconut milk, and reserved pumpkoin seed oil, add a nice amount of fried pumpkin seeds to finish. Serve immediately and enjoy!
