Soups
Pumpkin Curry Soup (20 Minute Recipe!)
Warm yourself from the inside out with creamy pumpkin curry soup. This straightforward soup recipe is made with canned pumpkin and warm curry spices, reliable for cold weather!
At a glance
What stands out: Warm yourself from the inside out with creamy pumpkin curry soup. This straightforward soup recipe is made with canned pumpkin and is ready to serve in just 20 minutes! The creamy soup tastes like a splurge but it’s surprisingly low calorie.
How long it takes: 20 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: large saucepan or soup pan, immersion blender
Servings: 5
Creamy Pumpkin Curry Soup
With fall in full swing and winter around the corner, it’s officially soup season! Hot on the heels of our crockpot pumpkin soup, this curried pumpkin soup is rich, creamy, and satisfying. And, because you start with a can of pumpkin, it’s straightforward to mix. Every spoonful is filled with rich pumpkin infused with warm curry spices. This is the reliable recipe to hunker down with in colder weather.
Why we Love This Soup
Creamy, without the cream. Creamy soups are often loaded with heavy cream. However, this soup gets its creaminess from protein-rich Greek yogurt.
Straightforward to mix. The base of this soup is canned pumpkin, and it couldn’t be easier to make. Canned pumpkin is so handy; we keep a can or two in our pantry year-round specifically for soups and stews.
Full of curried flavor. This pumpkin soup is incredibly rich, bursting with the bright, warm curry flavors of coriander, turmeric, cumin, fennel, ginger, and garlic, and more.
What goes in
We'll go over some of the key ingredients you’ll need to make this pumpkin curry soup.
- Canned Pumpkin: Look for pumpkin purée. It’s 100% pure pumpkin. Don’t buy canned pumpkin pie filling by mistake because that has added sugar and spices that won’t work well in your soup.
- Celery, Onion, Garlic: These savory vegetable basics add flavor and nutrition to the soup. Any type of onion is fine. We usually use a yellow cooking onion for soups. They store well in the pantry and are just the right size. If you prefer, you can omit the garlic. The veggies are sautéed in a bit of oil.
- Curry Powder: Use your favorite blend or try our from-scratch curry seasoning. Curry is such a warm blend of spices. Try it in our curried chicken salad which goes great with this soup, by the way!
- Chicken or Vegetable Broth: Either one is fine but if you can, choose a low-sodium product.
- Greek Yogurt: Use full-fat rather than nonfat Greek yogurt for a standby texture. Coconut milk or sour cream are good substitutes. You can also use heavy cream.
- Honey (optional): Because the yogurt is a bit tangy, you may want to add a little sweetener to balance things out. Taste the soup and decide. Maple syrup or brown sugar are good choices, too.
- Pumpkin Seeds to Garnish: Shelled pumpkin seeds are often called pepitas. They are green in color even when they are roasted. We love to jazz them up by adding different flavors to them (see our guide on pumpkin seeds (pepitas) eight ways).
Is Curry Powder Very Spicy?
No. Curry powder is a spice mixture, but it contains mostly mild spices like tumeric, coriander, and cumin. This makes curry powder milder than traditional Indian garam marsala, another curry spice that packs strong, bold flavors.
How it comes together
Saute the veggies. Add chopped celery and onion to a large saucepan or soup pan with a little oil. Sauté for five minutes or so until they soften. Add the garlic, stirring constantly, for a minute or until it starts to smell fragrant.
Toast the spices. Add the curry powder to the pan and toast it a little, stirring constantly. This speedy step deepens the flavor of the spices and is worth the extra minute it takes.
Simmer. Stir in the broth and canned pumpkin and bring the soup to a simmer. You can blend your soup right away, or let the soup simmer a while if you’re not quite ready to serve it.
Blend. When you’re ready, with an immersion blender, carefully purée the soup. Be mindful of splatters. We like to set the pan in the sink while we blend. Carefully tilt the pan while you process the soup. This little trick works well for a nice evenly creamy soup.
Finish and serve. Over low heat, stir in the Greek yogurt gradually. Check the seasoning to see if the soup needs more salt, pepper, or a bit of sweetener. A squeeze of honey goes great with the curry flavor. Serve the soup immediately or keep it warm over low heat.
Tips for the Best Curried Pumpkin Soup
Don’t overheat the soup. After you’ve added the Greek yogurt, make sure that if you’re not serving your soup right away, you don’t let it overheat. You don’t want the soup to boil or it may curdle.
Season the soup. If your soup tastes bland, stir in additional seasoning. Often, just a bit more salt can make a big difference. A teaspoon of apple cider vinegar or a squeeze of orange juice adds a little acidity which can balance out the flavor.
Ways to change it
- Make this soup vegan. Substitute coconut milk for the Greek yogurt in this recipe, and use a vegan sweetener, like agave.
- Substitute cream for the Greek yogurt. If you prefer, stir in milk or cream instead of the broth and Greek yogurt.
- Stir in more curry powder, nutmeg, ginger, or cinnamon. Add a bit of garlic powder or onion powder to enhance the flavors.
- For a Southwestern variation, omit the curry and substitute chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, or chipotle chili powder.
- If you’re not into creamy soups, give this red lentil soup a try. It’s always a hit! Folks love our turkey quinoa chili too. Both of those recipes are lighter and straightforward to mix.
Ways to serve it
Serve this curried pumpkin soup garnished with pepitas, seasoned oyster crackers, or from-scratch croutons. This savory nut-free granola is so good on soup, too!
Pumpkin curry soup goes great with from-scratch cornbread or Texas toast garlic bread and a side of green arugula salad or warm kale salad. A crunchy, buttery air fryer grilled cheese is also the reliable way to enjoy a bowl of soup, bistro-style.
Keeping leftovers
Refrigerate/Freeze: Refrigerate leftover soup for up to 5 days. This soup freezes well and will keep for up to three months. We often freeze it in individual serving portions so we can pull one out when we're craving something warm and cozy.
Reheat: To reheat leftovers, heat the soup gently in a saucepan on the stove or individual portions in the microwave.
Free Meal Plan
Interested in a weekly meal plan that includes this recipe? Take a look at Meal Plan #57. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list.
Browse Meal Plans- Yield: 5
- Prep: 5 minutes
- Cook: 15 minutes
- Total: 20 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons coconut oil (olive oil is fine, too)
- ¼ cup minced yellow onion
- ½ cup minced celery
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon curry powder (or more, if you prefer)
- 3 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 can (15 ounces) 100% pure pumpkin purée (see note)
- 1 cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt (see note)
- honey to taste, optional
- pumpkin seeds to garnish, optional
Method
- In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and salt, and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes or until onions are translucent and celery is softened.
- Add garlic and cook for another minute, stirring, until garlic is fragrant.
- Add curry powder and cook for another minute, stirring, to toast spices.
- Stir in broth and pumpkin, and bring soup to a gentle boil.
- Remove the pan from the stove, and CAREFULLY blend using an immersion blender. We often set the pan in our sink to catch splatters. If you tilt the pan slightly while you're blending, the soup will blend more evenly.
- Gradually stir in yogurt. If needed, heat the soup again over low heat to warm through. Check seasoning and add salt, if needed. The yogurt adds a tangy flavor and you may prefer to sweeten the soup with honey or maple syrup.
- Garnish with pumpkin seeds if desired.
Notes
Pumpkin: Be sure to choose canned pure pumpkin purée, not canned pumpkin pie filling which has added sugar and spices.
Yogurt: Use full fat Greek yogurt for a standby results. Lowfat or nonfat yogurt may curdle. Be sure to add the yogurt gradually, or have it at room temperature before you add it. If you’re not a fan of yogurt in soup, you can substitute heavy cream, half & half, canned coconut milk, or whole milk (the soup won’t be as creamy).
Serving ideas: This soup is fantastic topped with from-scratch croutons or spicy toasted pepitas.
Storage/reheating: Leftover soup will keep up to five days in the refrigerator or 3 months in the freezer. Reheat gently in saucepan or microwave.
