Thai Curried Butternut Squash Soup
Light and creamy, vegan butternut squash soup recipe. This simple butternut bisque is seasoned with Thai red curry paste and swirled with coconut milk.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on July 17, 2024
Have you ever gotten to the airport only to find that your pilot has gone missing? Apparently that happens. I finally got out of Kansas City and caught a red-eye from Chicago to London (hello from Heathrow!). I only wish I’d been smart enough to pack basic toiletries and a change of clothes in my carry on. Here’s to hoping that my luggage meets me in Tel Aviv eventually.
I love how cultures collide in airports. Right now, I’m listening to a guy speak French into his iPhone while wearing a shirt that says “Brooklyn” across the front. I just accepted German chocolate from a friendly Jordanian and earlier walked by a group of chic Europeans (maybe Italians?) drinking Stella before noon. Then there’s the pink-faced stranger of unknown origin who’s snoring loudly a few seats over. Snoring is a universal language, n’est-ce pas?
This soup is a blend of origins, too. I don’t think butternut grows in Thailand but the sweet squash pairs so nicely with Thai flavors. Curried butternut soup has been on my list of recipes to conquer for a while and I just couldn’t resist seasoning it with red Thai curry paste like I did for my sweet potato soup. I added some other Thai flavors to round it out, like cilantro and toasted coconut flakes. The soup is really creamy yet very light since it’s almost all butternut with just a swirl of coconut milk on top.
This soup isn’t so spicy that it won’t pair well with other foods. In fact, I think its colors and flavors would liven up a traditional Thanksgiving meal.
Watch How to Make Thai Curried Butternut Squash Soup
Thai Curried Butternut Squash Soup
Light and creamy, vegan butternut squash soup recipe. This simple butternut bisque is seasoned with Thai red curry paste and swirled with coconut milk. Recipe yields about 6 cups (48 ounces) soup.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil or olive oil
- 2 pound butternut or kabocha squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into small ½-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, pressed or chopped
- 2 to 3 tablespoons Thai red curry paste*
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes (up to ¼ teaspoon for spicier soup)
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 4 cups (32 ounces) vegetable broth
- ½ cup full fat coconut milk for drizzling on top
- ½ cup large, unsweetened coconut flakes**
- Handful fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add squash, onion, garlic, curry paste, coriander, cumin, salt and red pepper flakes to skillet. Stir to combine.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until squash is soft, about 15 to 20 minutes.
- While the soup is cooking, toast the coconut flakes in a medium skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until fragrant and golden on the edges. Keep an eye on them so they don’t burn. Transfer coconut flakes to a bowl to cool.
- Once the squash mixture is done cooking, taste and add a little more Thai red curry paste if it’s not quite flavorful enough for you. Remove the soup from heat and let it cool slightly. Working in batches, transfer the contents to a blender (do not fill your blender past the maximum fill line and be careful with the hot soup!). Securely fasten the lid and use a kitchen towel to protect your hand from steam escaping from the top of the blender as you purée the mixture until smooth. Transfer puréed soup to a serving bowl and repeat with remaining batches.
- Stir the lime juice into the blended soup. Taste and season with additional salt if necessary. Ladle soup into individual bowls. Use a spoon to drizzle coconut milk over each bowl, then lightly swirl the spoon through the topmost layer for a pretty design. Top the soup with toasted coconut flakes and a sprinkle of chopped fresh cilantro.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my creamy (vegan!) butternut squash linguine, How Sweet Eats’ similar soup and Simply Recipes.
*Where to buy Thai red curry paste: Look for it in the Asian section of the grocery store. I like Thai Kitchen brand, which is vegan (many others are not).
**Where to buy coconut flakes: Look for them in the baking section at Whole Foods, health food stores or well-stocked grocery stores. The brands I see most often are “Let’s Do Organic” (green package) and Bob’s Red Mill.
Make it vegetarian/vegan: Choose your curry paste carefully to avoid animal products. Thai Kitchen is vegan.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Isn’t amazing how being in an airport in foreign country truly opens your eyes to the way others behave and live? I love your observations, I’m always stalking others too :) This soup, oh this soup! Stunning even if Thais don’t grow their butternuts. Their loss. Have a great trip in Israel, will be living vicariously through IG!
Kate, this soup just looks absolutely gorgeous! And it’s so true that snoring is a universal language!
I am loving the smoothness of this soup – and that flavour!! Such a winner.
This soup is so pretty! I bet it’s so tasty, too :) I love that coconut milk drizzle and all the spices? Mmmm :)
Stunning presentation, Kate!
Oh man, I love airports for that exact reason! Also, I’m looking forward to following along on Instagram, it looks like the trip of a lifetime!
Have a wonderful trip! If you visit Jerusalem, be sure to get some pastries from Marzipan (especially the rugelach!). The bakery is right on the edge of a fantastic open-air market called Machaneh Yehuda. Enjoy!
Thanks, Alyssa! Exploring Jerusalem isn’t on our itinerary, but I really want to go there so we’ll see!
What a perfect idea for this upcoming cold week!!
Has anyone tried this with Thai green curry instead of red?
I just made it with green curry instead of red and it was delicious! I also added a small sweet potato since I didn’t have quite enough squash and also added some turmeric since I’m trying to increase my intake of that and I mixed the coconut milk right into the soup. But those seem like small changes that wouldn’t affect the taste too much.
I made it with green curry as I was out of red. It was awesome. Got it a little too hot so added some coconut milk to the soup.
Firstly, holy wow does this soup look delicious!!! Secondly, you wrote it so beautifully about airports, it’s always amazing to see all the different cultures, and thirdly, I can’t wait to see all the gorgeous pictures and hear stories about your travels!
This soup looks delicious! I love ordering Thai red curry from restaurants but whenever I cook with red curry paste, the flavor is never as strong as I want. Do you have a suggestion for a particular Thai red curry paste?
Hey Tess! I have always used Thai Kitchen brand, which seems to be the most readily available. My only suggestion would be to add more to taste until it’s flavorful enough for you! I suspect most American recipes hold back on the curry paste. :)
Also to enliven Thai curry recipes, use sliced fresh galangal root (sour and mustardy flavor) with fresh lemongrass stalks (bruised or sliced) to the early stages of cooking. Fresh or frozen kaffir lime leaf is a must have in most Thai curry sauces, too. These fragrant ingredients are present in most curry pastes but they need to be added to bring up the scent and flavor. A Thai lady I used to work for told me to add sugar and salt a little at a time, taste until it’s perfect. Hope these tips help you increase your enjoyment of the wonderful tradition of Thai food.
Thanks for the tips! I’ll definitely have to try adding some more fresh ingredients the next time I make a Thai curry.
Hi Melissa, thank you for your tips! I wish those ingredients were easier to come by in the middle of the U.S. I will keep an eye out for them.
There is no reason to use curry paste. Mix the spices yourself.
Hey Karl, I’m a person, working as hard as I can. I used store-bought curry paste. It was delicious, and there’s nothing terrible in it, so I’m not sorry. Feel free to make your own.
I shouldn’t have read this when starving! Now I’m desperate for this soup. It looks so delicious.
mmm this sounds amazing!
p.s. that’s almost weirder than the time my egypt-london flight was delayed…because the baggage handlers wanted to watch football. oh yes.
The colours in this soup are amazing! The perfect blend of cultures and flavours in a bowl :)
I love people watching in airports, guessing where and why people are flying from one place to another. Have a wonderful time overseas and safe travels Kate.
I love these Thai flavors, what a gorgeous soup!
Warm curried soups are one of my favorite things in the fall. I love the idea of sweet butternut squash pairing with the warm curry flavor. Have a wonderful time on your trip! Would love to see photos of Tel Aviv!
People watching at the airport is the best! Have a great trip, my sister lives in Tel Aviv and I went out last year to visit and loved it! Enjoy and eat the days away. :) The markets are so much fun, I brought back so many spices and lots of tahini. (Oh, and make sure to eat some halva. :) )
Thanks, Becky! I’m envious that your sister gets to live in Tel Aviv. I’m really loving my stay here. We went to the market and ate tahini today! I’ll have to hunt down some halva. I don’t think it will be too hard. ;)
I sampled some vegan curried carrot soup the other day that I bet is so similar to what you developed above – can’t wait to recreate!
i will definitely be trying this dish for my family this winter, looks delish. thanks for sharing
I was in Heathrow yesterday too! If I’d known you were going to be there, I would have suggested a crazy airport coffee or something : ) Anyway, I love the sound of this soup, it’s filled with some of my favourite flavours and your photographs are so vibrant!
Oh man! That would have been SO GREAT! I actually wrote this post earlier and scheduled it to post later, so I was in the airport on Sunday morning. Hope we can cross paths someday, Kathryn!
Recipe swoon. Love that swirled coconut milk on top!
This soup is gorgeous and sounds delicious! Prefect for this fall weather! Have an amazing trip to Tel Aviv – I’m jealous!
Loving this soup! I need to make it. I also have been adding coconut yogurt to some of my soups and oh my goodness it makes them so fabulously creamy and delicious!
Thanks Monique! I never would have thought to add coconut yogurt to soup, but that sounds totally delicious.
Monique,
Do you buy plain yogurt and add what type of coconut: flaked, freshly ground, dehydrated?
Thanks for any suggestions.
joni
Great looking recipe, I look forward to making it soon. Just looking at my jar of red curry paste in the fridge this past weekend thinking I should use it soon. Safe travels and have a great time.
Thank you, Barbara! I hope you love the soup. It’s already gotten a few positive reviews. :)
Squash + curry = love!
I recently did a curried pumpkin soup and loved it with crispy coconut flakes floating atop. Great minds…
Oh boy, your pumpkin soup sounds great!
Looks stunning! I can’t wait to use the remainder of my squash for this soup…I am tired of baking with it so this will be a nice change. Happy traveling!
Once again you must have peeked into my pantry because it had everything needed to make this soup. Just one of the many reasons I love your recipes–the healthy ingredients and international flavors. I had picked up two beautiful butternut squash, expecting to just roast them as usual, but couldn’t resist the yummy pictures. So I made this soup today and it came out great! I sure hope your suitcase turns up by the time you visit Tel Aviv.
Thank you, Sandy! I finally got my suitcase back yesterday (two and a half days after it had gone missing). I’ve never been happier to have clean socks. :) So glad you enjoyed the soup! Yay!
Perfect timing. I’ve been home sick today so this soup is a welcomed treat, sans the spice for now tho since I have a sore throat.
Thank you for being such an inspiration. Your recipes and blog are wonderful. I’ve tried many of your recipes and they are delicious!
I’ve spent the day on the couch with hot tea and tissues researching camera options for my blog. Always coming back to your info. So thanks for sharing.
Wishing you a fabulous trip!
Tina
Thank you, Tina! I hope you feel better soon. Glad to hear you’re enjoying my recipes. xo.
So delicious and creamy! The spice goes so great with the sweetness of the squash. Perfect for a cold fall day. I think it might be my new favourite soup!
Wonderful! Thank you, Dean. Glad you enjoyed the soup.
This soup is gorgeous. I’m sure it tastes as good as it looks too. Love butternut squash and thai flavors…so genius to combine them! xo
Thanks, Taylor! :)
just made this, it’s wonderful. i was hungry, too lazy to chop, so i didn’t even add the cilantro or toasted flakes.
Thanks, Sue! Glad you enjoyed the soup without those extras. :)
We may be getting our first snow of the season here in Columbus,OH. I think this will be perfect for cuddling up inside and enjoying. Thanks!
Hey lady your soup looks awesome!
I hope your travels are going well – can’t wait to see your shots of Israel.
I so loved getting to have lunch with you a couple weeks back. What a treat after all these years!
xoxo
E
I can not wait to make this!! I’ve been making a really simple butternut squash soup that I love, but this is taking it up to a whole other level I very am excited about. :) Yum!
Also- unrelated to this post, but thank you for your response to my cast iron question. I appreciate it!
EEK! Hope your luggage gets there eventually!! I don’t think the Thai grow butternuts, but they do have kabocha, which is my second favorite. Pairing butternut and red curry is a favorite of mine…I’m sure this soup is utterly slurpable.
This soup is so beautiful! It should be hanging on a wall somewhere! Can’t wait to try it :)
Wow that soup looks so pretty! Never mind how it tastes, I just want to stare at it in wonder! And I so know what you mean about airports, I’ve hardly flown, but the two times I did (and it was a return journey, so the same airports) I was amazed. Everyone looked so the same but so different at the same time!
This made me laugh, Kate – there’s nothing like international travel to make you realize how big and small the world can be at the same time. Glad to see the pilot turned up! LOVE LOVE this soup – all my favorite Thai flavors and a great way to use kabocha (which we have in wonderful excess here!)
So true, Jess! The pilot actually never showed up, at least while I was at the airport, so getting to Tel Aviv proved to be quite a challenge. But, I made it and it was great!
The pilot was missing? Whoa :D Well, I hope you got to Tel Aviv without further troubles. Enjoy!
This soup is a true beauty. The colors and the flavors; love it!
This soup turned out very nicely. I supplemented the butternut squash I had on hand with a large sweet potato. You said the seasonings complemented a sweet potato soup recipe that you have, so I thought i it would work out. It did!
Thanks, Kim! Your sweet potato butternut version sounds fantastic! Good call!
i am LOVING your photography skills. I just got my first DSLR camera, and I am definitely inspired!!
made this twice so far, super great. Left out the pepper flakes and it was plenty hot.
Awesome, thanks Meri!
Wow! I love each and every one of your photos. So bright, and full of life. I am going to have to give this soup a try. Sounds delightful! Happy New Year :)
Made this soup for dinner tonight and lunch for the week! It’s spicy, creamy, and perfect! Thanks for giving me a delicious lunch to look forward to everyday :)
Glad to hear it, Courtney! :)
I made this last night (half recipe) since I had half of a butternut squash in the fridge that I needed to use. This soup is amazing!! So delicious and super easy to whip up. I am so happy I tried this recipe and that I found your blog! My husband is going to love this soup when he gets back from his business trip. Can’t wait to try more recipes!
Thank you, Meredith! I hope you enjoy the other recipes just as much! :)
Great soup. Came out perfect consistency and spicyness the first time.
Living in Hong Kong, I kicked it up by adding cooked rice and chicken to it. It’s more of a congee, but a very filling meal!
Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Thank you, Hunter! Glad you enjoyed it!
This soup is simply out of this world. It could become addictive! Thanks Ian
I loved this soup and my husband raved! I will definitely be making this again. Thank you so much for the recipe! I can’t wait to try some other from your blog. :-)
Thanks, Marnie! So glad you enjoyed the soup! Hope you enjoy the others just as much.
This looks beyond delicious!! Your photos are just stunning!!
WoW!! I just made this soup and it is divine. I did tweek it a bit. I added a whole can of organic coconut milk, a bit more ginger and a couple tablespoons of goldenrod honey that we extracted from our own backyard beehives this weekend. The honey made it POP! I would eat this everyday for breakfast, lunch and dinner while the squash vines are still producing. (and well into Winter for that matter) Thank you so much for posting. :D
Thank you, Katie! Your version sounds fantastic!
I found this soup to have good flavor but it was way too spicy for me and I only used a teaspoon of the red chili paste. I had to add an entire can of coconut milk as well as some canned pumpkin and extra coconut flakes just so I could eat it. Thankfully my husband loved it!
I’m glad your husband loved it! sorry to hear you had to adjust it to suit your taste buds.