Slow-Cooked Butternut Pumpkin Chipotle Soup

After standing on a frosty oval watching soccer, early on a weekend morning, there is something about coming home (and warming up) to a bowl of slow-cooked pumpkin soup. It’s simple ingredients, easy to make, hearty, and ridiculously inexpensive. Some people warm the soul with whisky, for me, it’s soup. It’s also probably a bit too early for me for a glass of whisky at lunchtime! Not a week goes by in the colder months, that there isn’t a pot of some sort of delicious soup made in our house to eat alongside some fresh crusty bread. Even better if it’s pumpkin season! Hello ALL the pumpkin recipes!

What you are going to love about this easy butternut squash soup recipe

It has a good amount of heat from the ground chipotle chilis, but it’s not overly spicy pumpkin soup. More warmth than heat is how I would describe it. Just remember, you can always add chili, but you can’t take it out!

It’s super easy to make. Kind of a set-and-forget kinda soup recipe. Want to speed up the cooking time? I’ve also cooked this in my pressure cooker when I’m totally time-poor and it’s a total winner. An easy weeknight dinner recipe when you are short on time.

The best part is that this homemade pumpkin soup can easily be changed and adapted to your needs. Without cream, it’s a vegan soup. Love creamy pumpkin soup? Add a little cream or even coconut cream for a different take and a creamy soup. Occasionally I have excess homemade vegetable stock (or sometimes chicken stock) in the freezer, so I use it up as a substitute for the water. Being so adaptable also makes it the perfect cozy meal addition to a Thanksgiving table. Dress it up or leave it as is, it’s up to you! I sometimes nix the chipotle in favor of a tablespoon of curry powder or Thai curry paste for a different and delicious flavor.

What you need

• Butternut Pumpkin – In my little corner of the world butternut pumpkins (or butternut squash as they are known outside of Australia) are readily available throughout the year. It’s rare that I don’t have one in the fridge. If you can’t get your hands on one, try another fresh pumpkin, cooking variety. I’ve used a couple of different types of pumpkin with this recipe over the years. I always seem to come back to my love for butternuts though. As far as I’m concerned they are the best pumpkin variety for soups. If you’re lucky enough to find these miniature sugar pumpkins (like the ones pictured) around, they make a great soup bowl. There’s a cracking description of how to make them here
  

• Chipotle powder – for me is a pantry staple for me. Find it in a good gourmet grocery store. Adding a teaspoon or two of chili is a really good, quick way to add a little depth and heat to things like roasted pumpkin, or say a chili con carne. I love this stuff and can’t get enough. Alternatively, you could also try using canned Chipotle chilis.
  
  
• Vegetables – Potato, brown onions, garlic cloves
  
  
• Pantry Staples – sea salt flakes, pepper, unsalted butter (or olive oil)

How to make pumpkin soup

1. Preheat oven to 150°c.
   
   
2. In a cast iron casserole on low heat, melt the butter. Add the sliced onions and gently stir. Cook them until soft and translucent (about 10 minutes), stirring occasionally.
   
   
3. Add the garlic. Stir in, and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the pumpkin, potato, and water. Increase the heat to medium and bring to a simmer.
   
   
4. Once simmering on the stove top over medium heat, remove the soup from the stovetop and pop into the oven for 90 minutes.
   
   
5. After 90 minutes of slow cooking the pumpkin and onions should be nice and caramelized, and the liquid partly reduced. Blitz the soup with a hand blender until you get the desired consistency and add the ground chipotle. Season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper.

Equipment you’ll need to cook this spicy roast pumpkin soup

A cast iron French oven (or Dutch oven)– I use my 22cm Le Creuset for this soup. If you don’t want to slow-cook the soup in the oven, could also use a slow cooker or Instant Pot, however, cooking times will vary. You’ll also need a chopping board, vegetable peeler, and a knife big enough to be able to cut through the pumpkin. I find a 20cm cook’s knife is the perfect size for me.

A good stick blender (Bamix, immersion blender) is essential for blending soups in the pot. Alternatively, you could use a regular bench blender or a food processor with a blender attachment. It’s just a bit messier and more time-consuming.

Batch cook this one!

To eat the next day, cool the roasted pumpkin soup to room temperature and store it overnight in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Generally, soup recipes are always quite easy to make double/triple batches. So batch-cook away and you’ll have lunch for days. It also freezes well so portion it out in a reusable, freezer-friendly, airtight container and pop into the freezer for up to 3 months.

A few more Autumnal recipes I think you’ll like…

• Apple & walnut ANZAC crumble
• How to dehydrate Autumnal fruits
• Spiced apple cider doughnuts
• Persian lentil sweet potato soup
• Irish Stew

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