You guyyyyysssssss. This Thai Coconut Curry Carrot Soup is everything. I seriously wanted to slurp up the entire pot! It’s light, creamy, just a little spicy, and somehow perfectly fitting with this warmer than usual spring weather we’re having. If you like my Thai Curry Vegetable Soup, you’re going to love this one as well. It has a similar flavor profile, but a little sweeter (naturally), a little lighter, and with a silky smooth texture. It’s one of those recipes that makes you wonder, “How do so few ingredients make something that tastes SO good??”

Vegetarian or Vegan?

This Thai Coconut Curry Carrot Soup is an amazingly flavorful vegetarian OR vegan treat. To make sure your soup is vegetarian, check the ingredients on your Thai curry paste. I used Thai Kitchen brand, which does not include any shrimp, but some brands do, so just double check. Also, if you want to make your soup vegan, just use coconut oil in place of butter in the first step. :)

Thai Coconut Curry Carrot Soup

Step by Step Photos

Start by dicing one yellow onion and adding it to a large soup pot with 2 Tbsp butter (or coconut oil). Sauté the onions over medium heat until they are soft and translucent.

Add 4 Tbsp red Thai curry paste and continue to sauté for about one more minute.

This is the red Thai curry paste I used. I’m showing you this because it’s an ingredient that I think many people might be familiar with, but is actually in most major grocery stores now. I’ve even seen it at Walmart! So, when you’re in your international foods aisle, you’ll know what to look for. :) And if you’re unfamiliar with this ingredient, it’s basically made out of red chiles, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, and other spices and aromatics. Super yum.

While the onions are sautéing, peel and dice one sweet potato (about 3/4 lb.). Add them to the pot after the curry paste as sautéed for about a minute, and continue to sauté everything while you peel and slice 1 lb. carrots. Add the carrots as you slice them.

Add 3 cups of vegetable broth to the pot. The vegetable broth should barely cover the chopped vegetables, but don’t worry if a few poke out above the liquid. Place a lid on the pot, turn the heat up to medium-high, and allow it to come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn it down to low (or just above low) and let it simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. If any sweet potatoes or carrots are out above the liquid, the steam in the pot will still help them soften and you’ll be stirring once in a while to make sure everything gets time in the broth.

After simmering for 30 minutes, the sweet potatoes and carrots should be extremely soft and should begin to fall apart as you stir the soup. Turn the heat off and move the pot to a different surface to facilitate cooling (moving to another part of the stove is fine).

Add one 13.5 oz. can of full fat coconut milk (not the stuff you find in the dairy aisle as a milk substitute). You can reserve a couple tablespoons for garnish, if you like. Stir to combine. If you’re going to use a traditional blender to purée the soup, you’ll want to let the soup cool a bit before you blend, to reduce the risk of burning yourself, should anything splatter or explode out the top of the blender. The steam from hot liquids can actually build pressure in a blender and cause the top to pop off while blending, so it’s very important to let it cool a bit first. If you’re using an immersion blender, you can blend the soup whenever you’re ready.

Purée the soup until smooth. If you’re using a regular blender, you’ll probably want to do this in batches, depending on the size of your blender. This recipe makes about 9 cups total. It’s also a good idea to drape a towel over the top of the blender when blending warm liquids, just in case there is any splatter. How gorgeous is that color?!

Once your Thai Coconut Curry Carrot Soup is puréed, give it a taste and add salt or freshly cracked pepper, if needed. If you’re using a low sodium broth you may need to add a touch of salt at the end to help the flavors pop. I decided to add a little pepper to mine because I thought I might like that little peppery bite on top of the mild spiciness from the curry paste. You can also garnish your soup with fresh cilantro, sriracha, or a small drizzle of coconut milk, if you like. :)

YUM.