Curried Creamy Butternut Squash Soup (Vegan Recipe)
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This curried, creamy butternut squash soup is vegan, healthy, super easy, and packed full of flavor. With warm spices like ginger and curry powder, and a secret ingredient to add creaminess and protein (without cream!) this is the best butternut squash soup recipe you’ll ever make!
Wondering what to make for dinner tonight? Soup is one of my go-to meals no matter the season, but as we head into fall and winter (the official soup season) it becomes totally irresistible to me! I love making soup because it’s an easy, one-pot recipe, it’s healing, warming and nourishing — in addition to tasting delicious!
And this curried butternut squash soup with coconut milk is no exception. It’s so easy that it’ll be ready in just 30 minutes, and with the help of an immersion blender, you’ll end up with a perfectly creamy soup with absolutely no cream!
Latest Recipe Video!
Traditional butternut squash soup is typically made with heavy cream or some sort of dairy to get that creamy texture. But the first time I made this recipe I couldn’t believe how creamy, indulgent, and filling it turned out without the need for any heavy dairy cream!
This recipe makes a large pot which makes it great for a meal prep dinner, and the butternut squash has a natural sweetness that makes this soup so satisfying! This healthy butternut squash soup is the perfect fall soup, but honestly we love it any time of the year!
👩🍳 Why This Recipe Works
- Simple ingredients you can find at your local grocery store
- High in Protein
- Vegan Friendly
- Naturally Dairy-Free
- Gluten-Free
- Creamy butternut squash soup with no cream!
- Easy Recipe
🥘 Ingredients
For exact amounts, see the ingredients list and directions in the recipe card below.
Butternut Squash: You’ll need two whole butternut squashes peeled, seeded, and chopped into cubes. I like to use organic butternut squash whenever it’s available because I find it makes for a more flavorful soup. Sometimes grocery stores sell cubed butternut squash already prepared (in either the fresh or frozen aisle). If you decide to go this route, which is a total time saver, you’ll need two 12 ounce bags.
Oil, Red Onion and Garlic: I recommend extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil. You’ll use it to saute the onions and garlic. Dice your onions, and mince your garlic cloves.
Cannellini Beans: This secret ingredient makes this easy butternut squash soup recipe ultra creamy without adding any cream, and adds tons of protein! Another way to add creaminess without dairy is to add sweet potatoes.
Coconut Milk: The easiest way to add richness and creaminess while remaining dairy-free. You only need one can of coconut milk, and can use either light or full fat depending on your preference. I use light to keep the calories and fat down. But for a creamier soup, I recommend full fat coconut milk. If you’re not a fan of coconut milk, unsweetened almond milk will also work.
Vegetable Stock: Helps to thin out the soup a bit but adds more flavor than just adding water. You could also use chicken broth or chicken stock if you don’t need to make it vegan or vegetarian.
Spices: You’ll need a little bit of fresh ginger (minced), fresh garlic, curry powder, a 1/2 a teaspoon salt, black pepper to taste, coconut sugar, and a touch of thyme give this butternut squash recipe a warm and spicy richness. This recipe uses curry powder, however, you can give this recipe your own twist by adding Thai curry paste, both Thai red curry paste and Thai green curry paste would give this recipe an excellent flavor! The Thai Kitchen brand is vegan. You can also add a dash of cayenne pepper, or red chili flakes for more heat.
🍽 Equipment
- Chopping Knife
- Cutting Board
- Large Stock Pot or Large Dutch Oven
- Wooden Spoon
- Immersion Blender, High Speed Blender, or Food Processor
📖 Variations
Make In The Slow Cooker: Allow the ingredients to simmer in the slow cooker for 6-8 hours on low. I recommend sautéing the onions, garlic, and ginger before adding to the slow cooker, then adding the rest of the ingredients allowing it cook throughout the day. Before serving, use the immersion blender to blend and make creamy.
Easy Creamy Butternut Squash Apple Soup: Add 1/2 a diced apple to this soup, and use brown sugar instead of the coconut sugar.
Make In The Instant Pot: Use the sauté function to sauté the onions, garlic and ginger for 5 minutes or until soft. Then add the rest of the ingredients. Set the instant pot to high, and pressure cook for 10 minutes. Natural release for 10 minutes, then quick release.
Curried Butternut Squash Soup With Cinnamon And Toasted Pecans: Use 1 tsp ground cinnamon in addition to the other spices, maple syrup instead of the coconut sugar, and top with a garnish of toasted pecans.
Roasted Curry Butternut Squash Soup: For even more layers of flavor — peel, cube and roast the butternut squash on a sheet pan (at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes) before adding it to your stock pot.
Use A Different Winter Squash! Try making this vegan soup with acorn squash, pumpkin, kabocha squash, or turn it into a creamy sweet potato soup by using sweet potato instead of the butternut squash!
🔪 Instructions
Step 1: Heat oil in your stock pot over medium heat. Saute onion, ginger, garlic and olive oil or coconut oil in a large pot over medium heat. Sauté until onions are translucent – about 5 minutes.
Step 2: Add beans, butternut squash, curry powder, thyme, coconut milk, salt, coconut sugar and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer over medium low heat, cover the pot and cook about 10-15 minutes until squash is soft.
Step 3: Puree soup with an immersion blender (or transfer to a high-speed blender) until it has a smooth texture. Transfer the puréed soup into bowls. Serve this low calorie butternut squash soup warm, with a some cilantro, crushed nuts, and pita chips!
❓Recipe FAQs
The answer is – it depends! If you are making butternut squash soup with heavy cream, it likely won’t be that healthy and will be higher in fat and calories. But this vegan soup is really well balanced – with 260 calories, 9 grams of fiber and 10 grams protein for each giant serving. That means you can go back for seconds and feel really full and satisfied after you’re done!
Butternut squash is an amazing vegetable, it’s full of fiber, potassium, vitamin E, thiamin, niacin, vitamin B6, and folate. Paired with the protein-rich white beans – this soup becomes a one pot meal! Additionally, the light coconut milk + white beans give the soup a richness and creaminess without the fat content of heavy cream or sour cream.
The best way to add flavor to butternut squash soup (or any soup recipe) is to make sure to season it liberally with salt and pepper! This soup already has other flavor building spices like curry powder, garlic, ginger, etc. But without salt and pepper none of those spices will shine.
Absolutely! The spices in this recipe: ginger, garlic and curry powder are pretty mild and add flavor without heat. And the coconut milk adds a nice sweetness along with making this soup rich and creamy (which kids tend to love). If you have a curry powder that’s especially “hot”, I’d recommend adding less of it to the pot when you’re cooking the recipe, and once you have served it to the kids, add more curry powder for the adults!
Yes! This recipe (as with most butternut squash soup recipes) is naturally gluten free. The only time butternut squash soup wouldn’t be gluten free is if it was made with a roux.
👪 How To Store
Refrigerator: Allow the leftover soup to cool before transferring to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freeze: This soup freezes really well so I love to make a big batch and freeze half for later! This creamy butternut squash soup recipe will keep in the freezer in an airtight freezer-safe container for up to 4 months. I use these quart-sized eco-friendly freezer bags or these freezer-safe glass containers to store soup in the freezer.
❄️ How To Serve
- Garnishes: Fresh cilantro, shredded coconut flakes, chopped nuts (like cashews or peanuts), toasted pumpkin seeds, a dollop of sour cream (vegan sour cream works great here), a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, a touch of lime juice, and/or whole wheat pita chips for dipping!
- With Side Dishes: You can also serve this big bowl of soup with a side salad of fresh greens for additional veggies and a freshly baked slice of crusty bread (like sourdough bread!)
- With Entrees: This tasty butternut squash soup would be a great first course before any main meal. Some of my favorites to pair this with include: this Thai Basil Eggplant Stir Fry, this Florentine Pizza, or these Vegan Quesadillas!
💭 Expert Tips
- The soup will keep well in the fridge for a few days and is easily frozen. If you’re using a freezer bag to store your soup, freeze it flat so that you can stack the frozen bags to save space. Also, make sure your soup is cool before freezing and if you plan to reheat only some of it at a time, store it in pre-portioned containers.
- If you want to add even more veggies into this vegan butternut squash soup, I’d recommend adding 8oz frozen cauliflower (at the same step you add the butternut squash).
- Butternut squash is harvested in the autumn, so if you’re making this soup out of season, buy frozen butternut squash to take advantage of all those nutrients!
🥧 More Delicious And Healthy Hot Soup Recipes!
- Creamy Corn Soup
- Chunky Black Bean Soup
- Roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup
- Light and Creamy Tomato Soup
- Broccoli Cheese Soup
- Lentil Soup by Cooking Classy
📋 Recipe Card
Curried Creamy Butternut Squash Soup With Coconut Milk
Ingredients
- 1 red onion diced
- 2 15oz cans of cannellini beans rinsed and drained
- 1-2 cups vegetable broth more if needed
- 2 butternut squashes – cubed or 2 16oz packages of frozen butternut squash
- 2 tbsp minced ginger
- ½ tbsp curry powder
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 15oz can of light coconut milk
- 1 tsp salt more to taste
- 1 tsp coconut sugar
- 1 sprinkle dried thyme
Instructions
- Add onion, ginger, garlic and olive oil to a large pot over medium heat. Saute until onions are translucent – about 5 minutes.
- Add beans, butternut squash, curry powder, thyme, coconut milk, salt, coconut sugar and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, covered, about 10-15 minutes until squash is soft.
- Puree with an immersion blender until smooth. Serve with crushed cashews or peanuts on top and pita chips on the side!
Notes
- The soup will keep well in the fridge for a few days and is easily frozen. If you’re using a freezer bag to store your soup, freeze it flat so that you can stack the frozen bags to save space. Also, make sure your soup is cool before freezing and if you plan to reheat only some of it at a time, store it in pre-portioned containers.
- If you want to add even more veggies into this soup, I’d recommend adding 8oz frozen cauliflower (at the same step you add the butternut squash).
- Butternut squash is harvested in the Autumn, so if you’re making this soup out of season, buy frozen butternut squash to take advantage of all those nutrients!
- For garnishes, I like fresh cilantro, chopped nuts (like cashews or peanuts) and whole wheat pita chips for dipping! You can also serve this with a side salad of fresh greens for additional veggies.
