Butternut squash and Thai chili soup
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One of the best cooks I know made a version of this soup for me on a cold October day with fresh peppers from her garden. This recipe is inspired by that meal - she used the Instant Pot, I prefer a combo of the oven and stove top. Regardless of cooking method, the heat from the chiles really nicely balances the sweetness of the squash.
You'll be eating in: 55 minutes
Active time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4-6 servings
Ingredients
- 2
tablespoons coconut oil
- 1
onion, chopped
- 3
cloves garlic, minced
- 1
inch piece of fresh ginger, minced
- 3
bird's eye chiles
- 1
butternut squash
- 1
(14 ounce) can coconut milk
- 2
tablespoons fish sauce
Juice of 1 lime
salt and pepper
Instructions
Preheat
Heat the oven to 400 degrees.
Roast squash
Slice the squash in half lengthwise, remove the seeds, and roast for 25-30 minutes. It should be soft and easy to pierce with a fork.
Prepare vegetables
Meanwhile roughly chop the onion, garlic, ginger, and chiles - everything is going to get blended later so this doesn't have to be perfect. Heat a medium-sized pot or dutch oven (<=4 qt - this isn't an enormous recipe and you want your pot to be small enough that an immersion blender will be submerged in the final mixture) over medium heat.
Cook
Saute the onion in coconut oil for 5-8 minutes until the onion is soft. Add the garlic, ginger, and chiles and cook for 1 minute more. Scrape the cooked squash from the skin and add to the pot with the coconut milk, ~1/2 can of water (careful here, you can always add more later).
Blend
Blend everything with an immersion blender (you can also transfer to a blender, just be careful to start it at a low speed and cover the top with a towel so you don't burn yourself -- definitely not speaking from experience).
Season
Season with fish sauce, lime juice, and salt and pepper to taste.
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Substitutions
I've made this with honeynut squash instead of butternut squash and would definitely try it with other types of winter squash/pumpkin.