Roasted Winter Squash Soup with Coconut Milk and Asian Flavors
‘Oh, that’s good.’ Lovely words to hear from my friend who tried my latest recipe, a beautiful Roasted Winter Squash Soup with Coconut Milk and Asian Flavors. The cooler weather is here in Portugal and my mind has switched to soup mode. So, much so, on Tuesday it was tomato, and then on Wednesday, this one.
This is NOT another average butternut squash recipe. Sorry, I do love butternut squash and soup made from it. BUT most of them are all the SAME. And there’s so much more you can do with butternut squash.
Try this recipe for example. No sage in sight. Instead, intrigue your taste buds with hints of salty soy and fish sauces, spicy red chili flakes, hints of nutmeg, and the sweetness of coconut milk. It’s like wrapping your insides in a warm comforter while sitting in front of a crackling fire.
And if you don’t want to use butternut squash, then don’t (if you do, no worries – use it). I didn’t. Instead, I used a BIG slice of one of the HUGE winter squashes grown here in Portugal. Called abóbora, there’s so many different varieties, eaten and served year-round in a variety of dishes. One of my favorites is squash jam with walnuts paired with a fresh cheese that is similar to ricotta. And of course, SOUP.
Winter Squash Varieties
Winter squash comes in so many different sizes (some are HUGE) , shapes, and flavors. Which means you aren’t stuck with butternut (which I do adore, btw). Instead, try out other winter squash flavors in all your squash dishes, like my Fall Squash Pancakes. Varieties such as acorn, kabocha, calabaza, pumpkin, Hubbard, and delicata.
If you’ve never tried delicata squash, I do highly recommend it. Even the peeling on it is edible and it’s so SWEET. Try it using my recipe for Roasted Delicata Squash, Kale, and Black Bean Tacos. It’ll also work in this soup, but I do recommend peeling it for the soup, because the skin texture isn’t quite right.
One squash you will want to avoid for this recipe is spaghetti. Save the spaghetti squash for dishes where you want a substitute for pasta.
Making Your Roasted Winter Squash Soup Vegan
It’s EASY to make this recipe vegan. Use veggie stock, instead of chicken. And skip the fish sauce – add a touch more soy sauce instead. Everything else is already there since we’re already using vegetables and coconut milk.
Substitutes
Almond milk or any of the nut milks will work in the place of the coconut milk, in the event you don’t have any or don’t like. You can also use olive oil instead of sesame oil BUT do be aware, the sesame oil adds A LOT of flavor to the recipe. For gluten-free, use Tamari instead of soy sauce. And instead of cilantro, fresh basil, rosemary, thyme, or even sage will work.
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Grab a Bowl of Soup
Are you ready to get warm with a hot bowl of Roasted Winter Squash Soup with Coconut Milk and Asian Flavors? I’m off to have a bowl right now since there’s plenty in the fridge. What’s your favorite soup flavor? Let me know in the comments. And please, if you have any questions or comments about the soup, leave them below and I’ll get back to you.
Roasted Winter Squash Soup with Coconut Milk and Asian Flavors
Ingredients
Roast Squash
- 1 large butternut or your favorite winter squash peeled and diced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Soup
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- ½ small red onion diced
- 1 large sweet-tart apple peeled, cored, and diced
- 1 large garlic clove approx. 1 tablespoon
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger grated
- 1 tsp fennel seed
- ¼ to ½ tsp red chili flakes
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 2 cups chicken or veggie stock
- 2 cups coconut milk
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 tbsp fresh cilantro roughly chopped
- 2 large green onion sprigs sliced
Instructions
Roast Squash
- Preheat oven to 325 F (180 C).
- Peel and dice squash into 1-inch cubes. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and spread squash evenly onto a baking sheet.
- Place in oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until squash tests extremely tender with a fork or toothpick.
- Remove from oven and set aside until needed.
Soup
- In a large pot, heat sesame oil over medium-low heat. Add onion and apple, cooking until tender before adding ginger, garlic, fennel seeds, red chili flakes, and nutmeg.
- When you smell the fragrance of ginger and garlic, add roasted squash, soy sauce, fish sauce, stock, and coconut milk. Stir well to mix together and allow to simmer for about 10 minutes or to your desired thickness.
- Using a stick blender or regular blender, puree the mixture until smooth.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste, then stir in the fresh chopped cilantro and green onions.
- Serve warm with crusty bread or Black Pepper, Fennel and Thyme Crackers. Top with additional chopped cilantro and green onions, if desired.