As Chefanie Frasco mentioned in her earlier post, today is national home made soup day. Soups are one of my favorite things to make – especially in the winter time. There are so many different things that you can do and it’s a really great way to be creative with flavors. I found a recipe for a Thai inspired Kabocha squash soup on Food and Wine and thought it would be a good opportunity to change it up the old curried squash soup I’ve been making.
Thai Red Curry Squash Soup
adapted from Food and Wine
Ingredients
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh ginger, plus 1 cup slivered fresh ginger
2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
3 pounds kabocha, kuri or buttercup squash—peeled, seeded and cut into 2-inch pieces
5 cups water
Two 13 1/2-ounce cans unsweetened coconut milk
2 lime leaves or 1 teaspoon lime zest
1 large stalk of fresh lemongrass, smashed and cut into 2-inch lengths
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 large scallions, thinly sliced
Serves 12
Method
- In a large, heavy pot, melt the butter. Add the onion and sliced ginger and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened, 7 minutes. Add the curry paste and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 2 minutes. Add the squash and water and bring to a boil. Cover partially and simmer over low heat until soft, 25 minutes.
- Add the coconut milk, lime leaves and lemongrass, cover partially and simmer for 30 minutes longer. Discard the lime leaves and lemongrass.
- Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender; add it to a clean pot. Stir in the sugar and lime juice and season with salt.
- In a medium skillet, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the slivered ginger and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until golden brown and crisp, 5 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the ginger to paper towels to drain.
- Reheat the soup; ladle it into bowls. Garnish with the fried ginger and scallions and serve.
My thoughts/notes:
I used a Kabocha because they are my favorite type of squash. I think they are a little less sweet and have a more clean flavor than an butternut. I started cooking with Kabochas when I was learning about macrobiotics and Japanese foods. These delightful pumpkins are full of beta carotene, iron, vitamin C and potassium. I halved the recipe since I was only cooking for two people. We both had enough to take to work the next day.
The soup was extremely delicious. The coconut milk and the squash added delicacy and softness to the intense flavors of lemongrass and red curry. It was really simple too; the only part that was kind of tedious was peeling the squash. I didn’t serve it with the fried ginger because I didn’t have enough, but I honestly don’t think it even needed it. I also used half low sodium vegetable broth and half water for the water in the recipe. I loved this soup. It’s going in my bag of tricks.
I told you I was addicted to Spaghetti Squash. Unfortunately for all of us this may be my last Spaghetti Squash recipe for a while… That’s right, I am being banned from the delightful little guy by Jason. Once he said, “Your Spaghetti Squash is becoming the Chicken and Rice of my childhood,” I knew I had to take a little break.
I’m in love with this salad. It is the perfect combination of zesty citrus (which is in season right now) and sweet beets. The fennel gives it a little crunch and a delightful little licorice flavor. Recipes don’t get much easier than this. If you want you can add a little crumbled cheese. Something like goat, feta, or blue would make this a bit heartier.
