This Butternut Squash Soup recipe is a spicy, healthy & creamy soup, made with butternut squash, carrots, coconut milk, and a touch of spice in the Instant Pot Pressure Cooker or Stovetop. This Butternut Squash Soup is Vegetarian, Vegan, and Keto Friendly.
Jump to:
The fall season is around the corner, nothing beats a bowl of delicious, warm soup on a chilly day. We love creamy tomato soup, broccoli spinach soup, and now butternut squash soup. It is a little sweet and subtly spicy, making it a great addition to your Thanksgiving or Christmas holiday dinner table.
I have prepared this dish in my electric pressure cooker, Instant Pot DUO60 6 QT, and it can be made in under 30 minutes.
More Butternut Squash Recipes, you may love
Ingredients
- Butternut Squash: Pick the squash with a nice beige-ish color, firm, heavy for its weight, and without any deep cuts or bruises. If you do not have time, use the peeled, and pre-cut squash that is available in the grocery stores. You may also use frozen cubed squash.
- Carrot: Adds a sweet flavor and creamy texture to the soup.
- Onions, Ginger, and Garlic: These form the base of the soup, essentially the aromatics, as they add a ton of flavor and nutrients. Use freshly minced ginger and garlic for a burst of flavor.
- Vegetable Broth: Use low-sodium vegetable broth to add the best flavor to the soup. However, you can even use water if that's what you have.
- Spices: red chili powder (or paprika), red chili flakes, and salt.
- Coconut milk: I like to use full-fat coconut milk as it gives an extra creamy texture, but you can also use light coconut milk. For non-vegan versions, use regular heavy cream.
How to Make Butternut Coconut Squash Soup in Instant Pot
Firstly, Press SAUTE mode on Instant Pot. Add 1 tablespoon of oil (or butter), and once it’s hot, add 3 garlic cloves (minced), ½ inch ginger (minced), 1 cup of diced onions, and saute till the onions turn soft.
Then add 4 cups of diced butternut squash, 1 cup of diced carrots, 2 cups of vegetable broth (or water), ½ teaspoon red chili flakes, and salt.
Close the lid securely, and turn the vent to "SEALING". Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL (High Pressure) setting and set the cooking time to 8 minutes.
When the instant pot beeps, allow the pressure to release naturally before removing the lid.
Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. ( Or transfer the mixture to a traditional blender in batches and puree until smooth). Adjust seasoning at this stage.
Then add ½ cup thick coconut milk, ½ teaspoon red chili flakes, 1 teaspoon red chili powder, 1 tablespoon of lime juice, and stir well. It tastes great with coconut milk, but you can replace it with whole milk, or heavy cream, or half and half.
If you think the soup is too thick, you can add vegetable broth (or water) to the soup and boil it for 2 minutes.
Serve this Instant Pot butternut squash soup with coconut milk hot and top with red chili flakes and pumpkin seeds.
Stovetop Pot Method
- Heat oil or butter in a large pot, and once it’s hot, add minced garlic, ginger, onions, and saute till the onions turn soft.
- Add diced butternut squash, carrots, vegetable broth (or water), red chili flakes, and salt.
- Cover and simmer until the vegetables are soft, about 20-25 minutes.
- Puree soup using a hand blender until smooth. If you don’t have a hand blender, puree in a blender in batches once slightly cooled.
- Then add thick coconut milk, red chili flakes, red chili powder, lime juice, and stir well. It tastes really great with coconut milk, but you can also substitute it with milk or cream or half and half.
- Serve this creamy butternut squash soup hot and top with red chili flakes and pumpkin seeds.
Toppings for Butternut Squash Soup
- Pumpkin Seeds
- Shredded Cheese – Parmesan, Cheddar, Mozzarella
- Heavy Cream or coconut cream
Any combination of the above
Serving Suggestions
Creamy Butternut squash coconut soup makes a perfect Thanksgiving or Christmas Holiday appetizer or first course. Serve with:
- Homemade bread like cheezy garlic bread, veg chili cheese toast.
- Delicious salads like avocado cucumber salad, or quinoa black bean salad.
- Roasted veggies like air fryer crispy green beans, air fryer asparagus, or air fryer brussel sprouts.
Variations
- Roasted Butternut Squash Soup: You can roast the butternut squash cubes in the air fryer or oven before adding them to the soup.
- Spicy Butternut Squash Soup: Add more red chili powder or red chili flakes to make the soup spicy.
- Thai Curried Butternut Squash Soup: You can add 1 tablespoon of Thai red curry paste.
- Curried Butternut Squash Soup: Add 1 tablespoon of curry powder instead of red chili powder.
- Butternut Squash Apple Soup: Add a green apple, diced with butternut squash and carrots before pressure cooking.
- Replacement for Coconut milk: You can use heavy whipping cream or full-fat milk, or half and half in place of coconut milk.
- Toppings: You can use sunflower seeds, air fryer roasted chickpeas, and cheese as an option for healthier toppings.
- Fresh Herbs: use rosemary, sage, oregano, or thyme.
Tips
- Make sure to dice your butternut squash into roughly the same size (about 1-inch cubes) for even cooking.
- Be sure to sauté the onion and ginger, garlic, in a little olive oil or butter first. The soup will have a rich flavor.
- You can also use frozen butternut squash cubes in place of fresh ones.
Storage Suggestions
- Store: This soup will last up to 3-4 days in the fridge if you store it in an airtight container.
- Freeze: You can freeze Butternut Squash Soup for up to 2 months in an airtight container without adding the cream/milk. Defrost the soup in the fridge overnight, then reheat it on the stovetop or microwave until smooth again. Add the cream (or milk) and adjust the seasonings as needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Butternut Squash can definitely be eaten on a keto diet but should be limited. 1 cup of butternut squash is about 13g net carbs, making it a fairly high-carb vegetable option. However, pair it with other low-carb vegetables like cauliflower to make it work for a keto-friendly diet.
Heavy cream, evaporated milk, almond milk, half and half, or whole milk are good alternatives to coconut milk.
More Vegetarian Instant Pot Soup Recipes
Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup (Vegetarian)
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs diced butternut squash peeled and deseeded (about 4 cups)
- 1 cup carrot diced
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil or butter
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ½ inch ginger minced
- 1 cup sweet onion finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon red chilli flakes divided
- 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
- 2 cups vegetable broth (or water)
- ½ cup thick coconut milk
- juice of half lime
- salt to taste
For Garnish:
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
- ¼ teaspoon red chilli flakes
- 1 teaspoon cilantro
- 1 tablespoon full fat coconut milk
Instructions
Instant Pot Method:
- Press SAUTE mode on Instant Pot. Add butter or oil and once it’s hot add minced garlic, ginger, onions and saute till the onions turn soft.
- Then add diced butternut squash, carrots, vegetable broth (or water), red chili flakes, and salt.
- Close the lid securely, and turn the vent to "SEALING". Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL (High Pressure) setting and set the cooking time to 8 minutes.
- When the instant pot beeps, allow the pressure to release naturally before removing the lid.
- Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. ( Or transfer the mixture to a traditional blender in batches and puree until smooth). Adjust seasoning at this stage.
- Then add thick coconut milk, red chili flakes, red chili powder, lime juice, and stir well. It tastes really great with coconut milk but you can also replace it with milk or cream or half and half.
- If you think soup is too thick, you can add water into soup and boil for 2 minutes.
- Serve this Instant pot butternut squash soup with coconut milk hot and top with red chilli flakes and pumpkin seeds.
Stovetop Pot Method:
- Heat oil or butter in a large pot and once it’s hot add minced garlic, ginger, onions, and saute till the onions turn soft.
- Add diced butternut squash, carrots, water or vegetable stock, red chili flakes, and salt.
- Cover and simmer until the vegetables are soft, about 20-25 minutes.
- Puree soup using a hand blender until smooth. If you don’t have a hand blender, puree in a blender in batches once slightly cooled.
- Then add thick coconut milk, red chili flakes, red chili powder, lime juice, and stir well. It tastes really great with coconut milk but you can also replace it with milk or cream or half and half.
- Serve this creamy butternut squash soup hot and top with red chili flakes and pumpkin seeds.
Video
Notes
Variations:
- Spicy Butternut Squash Soup: Add more red chili powder or red chili flakes to make the soup spicy.
- Thai Curried Butternut Squash Soup: You can add 1 tablespoon of Thai curry paste.
- Curried Butternut Squash Soup: Add 1 tablespoon of curry powder instead of red chili powder.
- Butternut Squash Apple Soup: Add a green apple, diced with butternut squash and carrots before pressure cooking.
- Replacement for Coconut milk: You can use heavy whipping cream or full-fat milk or half and half in place of coconut milk.
- Toppings: You can use sunflower seeds, roasted chickpeas, and cheese as an option for healthier toppings.
- Fresh Herbs: use rosemary, sage, oregano, or thyme.
Tips:
- Be sure to sauté the onion and ginger, garlic, in a little olive oil or butter first. The soup will have a rich flavor.
Christine Turner
Yummy!! Made the curry version with coconut milk.
Bhavana Patil
Hi Christine, I am so glad to know you liked the recipe. Yeah curry version tastes absolutely delicious.
Ariefa Ameer
I have been searching for a butternut soup recipe which isn't too rich. This is perfect. I would half the chili flakes and chili powder though. I also used sweet potato instead of carrots, since I didn't have any at the time. Definitely adding this to my recipe book.
Bhavana Patil
That's nice to hear, Thanks for sharing your feedback.