If you have a Red Kuri squash and are wondering just what to do with it: make soup. Roasting the squash and simmering it in a savory broth spiked with onions and extra virgin olive oil is always a win because it's so painlessly simple.
This basic recipe, which only contains five ingredients, is a great place to start and it has endless variations so you can adjust the recipe based on what you have in your pantry.
What is it?
Red Kuri squash is an heirloom variety of winter squash that was developed in Japan during the 1920s. It has a dense, richly orange flesh with a decadent sweet flavor reminiscent of chestnuts. And, like most winter squashes, it makes a gorgeous soup.
This version of the recipe is beautifully simple and only contains five ingredients: Red Kuri squash, onions, olive oil, salt, and broth. That simplicity allows you to modify the recipe based on the herbs and spices you have on hand in your pantry.
Tips for Good Soup
This soup recipe is very easy to make - simple and nourishing with minimal ingredients. Like most soups and stews, there's a fair amount of room for both invention and error. Because it has that little bit of extra give, you can modify it easily to suit what you have in your pantry and make small adjustments and additions as you see fit.
- Roasting the squash makes it easier to break down. While you can peel, seed, and cube the squash before tossing it into a pot full of simmering broth for soup, roasting it in advance makes the process less cumbersome and so much easier.
- Sweat the onions until fragrant and translucent, but pull them before they begin to caramelize or brown. Since Red Kuri squash is so sweet, you don't need the added sweetness from caramelized onions.
- Keep the additional liquid to about three cups. That could be three cups of bone broth, three cups of vegetable stock, or a blend of broth, stock, cream, or coconut milk.
- Purée the soup until perfectly smooth for good consistency. An immersion blender works well, but you can also purée the soup in an upright blender as long as you work in batches, making sure to fill the blender only one-third full each time.
- Garnish the soup with microgreens, toasted nuts, hemp seeds, sourdough croutons, fresh herbs, sliced green onions, and a little drizzle of heavy cream or coconut milk. These heavier garnishes give more flavor to the soup and make it more satisfying, too.
Variations
Season it with red curry, shallots, cilantro, and lime juice. Red curry's heat complements Red Kuri squash, and you can add a dollop of the curry paste to the soup when you add broth. Instead of sautéeing the onion in olive oil, sauté shallots in coconut oil before tossing in the roasted squash. Finish it off with chopped fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime.
Add apples and celery root. Apples come into season at the same time as winter squash. Peel, core, and chop a tart apple, such as a Granny Smith, and sauté it with the onion. Garnished with crumbled bacon. The saltiness balance the squash's sweetness, and the smokiness adds depth.
Swirl in some heavy cream or coconut milk for a creamy version of this soup.
Add ancho chile and smoked paprika. Ancho chile gives the soup just a little punch of heat, while smoked paprika gives it a pleasant smoky edge. Both balance the natural creamy sweetness of Red Kuri squash, much in the same way that red curry paste does.
Kiwicottage says
I make this with butternut squash for years, using piquante smoked paprika and turmeric to give it a lovely flavor and ricotta it coconut cream for a creamy texture.
Madi says
So simple and oh so good. Even my husband raves about it and he is not big on squash
Sheila says
So, this was really good overall, but I thought it was a little salty. I think I'll cut down on the salt next time. I also think ginger would be nice and maybe coconut milk instead of cream.
Denaye says
This sounds amazing. Trying new foods is one of my hands down favorite part of traveling--and the one of the parts of traveling that I most look forward to sharing with my kids 🙂
Kelsey says
Red kuri squash is fantastic. I usually roast it but I love the idea of a soup!
Ashlee says
Oh this looks delicious! I've never made pumpkin soup before, but am adding this to my list of things to try!