A velvety, smooth and silky, creamy, thick soup, with carrot, onion squash, coconut, garlic and ginger; plus, the addition of chilli flakes adds a wonderfully warm, flavour punch. Quick and easy to make, this vegetarian soup is ideal as a starter or as a satisfying lunch with some fresh, crunchy bread, on the side.
Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.
First make the soup: peel and chop the onion. Cook in the oil, over a moderate heat, for 6 – 8 minutes, until soft and lightly caramelised.
Add the peeled and chopped carrots and onion squash and continue to cook for a further 6 – 8 minutes.
Add the garlic, ginger and chilli flakes, and cook for 1 minute.
Pour in the coconut milk and 400ml stock, with the pepper and half of the salt. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 40 minutes, until all the vegetables are very soft.
Turn the heat off, and leave to sit for 5 minutes before blending, using a food processor or an immersion blender.
Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Most likely the soup will be quite thick; add more stock, as necessary, until you reach the consistency you are looking for. Re-heat before serving.
Make the Parsley Oil whilst the soup cooks: roughly chop the parsley and stems and blitz in a food processor until chopped.
With the motor running, slowly pour in the olive oil.
Strain the parsley and oil through a sieve, to get a clear oil. I double strain; the second sieve I use has a much finer mesh, but this is not strictly necessary.
Serve: serve in heated bowls, with your choice of cream, drizzled with parsley oil and finished with chopped parsley. Accompany with chunks of fresh bread.
Equipment: