Creamy Butternut Squash Soup with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
A silky stovetop butternut squash soup built on cumin and curry powder toasted in oil, finished with coconut milk and a squeeze of lime. Toasted pumpkin seeds add crunch on top.
- Total
- 40 min
- Prep 10 · Cook 30
- Serves
- 1
- Difficulty
- Easy
You'll practice: Sweating · Blooming spices
- Standard
- Savory
- Creamy
- Mild
- Stovetop
Instructions
-
Peel the butternut squash, scoop out the seeds, and cut the flesh into 2 cm cubes (about 900 g). Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic.
~8 min
-
Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until soft and translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more until fragrant.
~5 min
Sweating the onion in oil softens its cell walls and releases sweetness before the garlic, which burns easily, goes in.
Sweating Cook onion over medium heat until soft and translucent, not browned. If it starts to color, lower the heat; browning early makes the soup taste bitter.
-
Add 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp curry powder, 0.5 tsp ground coriander, 0.5 tsp turmeric, and 0.25 tsp cinnamon to the pot. Stir constantly for 45 seconds until the spices darken and smell toasted.
~1 min
Toasting the ground spices in hot oil blooms their fat-soluble aromatics, deepening flavor and removing the raw, dusty taste.
Toasting the ground cumin, curry powder, coriander, turmeric, and cinnamon in the oil for 45 seconds before adding liquid is what gives this soup its roasted depth — pull the pot off the heat if they start to smell bitter.
Blooming spices Stir ground spices in hot oil for 30-60 seconds until fragrant and slightly darkened. Pull off the heat the instant they smell toasty, not bitter.
-
Add the squash cubes, 700 ml water, 0.75 tsp salt, and 0.25 tsp black pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until the squash is completely tender and mashes easily against the pot, 15 to 18 minutes.
~18 min
Simmering covered cooks the squash through gently so it purees smooth without the water reducing too far or scorching.
Butternut squash cubes should be uniform at 2 cm so they cook evenly; if a cube resists a spoon after 18 minutes, simmer 3 minutes more before blending.
-
While step 4 cooks
While the soup simmers, toast 30 g pumpkin seeds in a dry small skillet over medium heat, shaking often, until they puff and turn golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Set aside. Zest the lime, then cut it into wedges.
~4 min
Dry-toasting the pumpkin seeds drives off moisture so they crisp and brown instead of steaming.
-
Stir 100 ml coconut milk into the soup. Blend until smooth with a blender, or leave it partly chunky if you prefer. Taste and add more salt if needed, then squeeze in lime juice to brighten. Ladle into bowls, top with the toasted pumpkin seeds and a little lime zest.
~4 min
Coconut milk adds richness and body, while lime juice's acid cuts the fat and brightens the earthy squash.