This Healthy Butternut Squash Soup is creamy, easy, flavorful and perfect for fall! Ready in 30 minutes it is also gluten free and vegan. Everyone will love this easy butternut squash soup recipe!
Its pressure cooker version is this Instant Pot butternut squash soup. Also this butternut squash chicken soup is super delicious!
Table of Contents
This healthy butternut squash soup is made with mostly pantry staples. It still blows my mind how real food can be so easy to make!
This hearty soup is creamy, full of great flavor and perfect for a cold day! It has sweet flavor of honey garlic sauteed butternut squash and spiciness of ginger and curry powder.
This time of year, we make double batch, freeze and enjoy for easy work from home lunches. It’s one of our favorite soups!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
We think this is the best butternut squash soup recipe and here are the reasons why:
- Wholesome: This butternut squash soup is made healthy with no cream or loads of cheese. Also high in dietary fiber and suitable for vegan, gluten free, dairy free, and paleo diets.
- Flavorful: Warm spices like curry and ginger are balanced by savory thyme. It’s my favorite butternut squash combination.
- Rich and creamy: From veggies, broth, and coconut milk, no heavy cream in sight unlike in traditional butternut squash soup!
- Meal prep friendly: Make a big batch and store in the refrigerator for healthy lunches all week!
Ingredients and Notes
To make this easy butternut squash soup, you just need these few ingredients.
- Fresh butternut squash: You will need a 3 pound butternut squash, this is about 9 cups chopped butternut squash.
- Onion: White onion or yellow onion adds savory taste to the sweeter squash.
- Spices: Curry powder, dried ginger powder, thyme, salt and black pepper. Fresh ginger would be great too!
- Coconut Milk: I use full fat canned coconut milk, best for superb creaminess.
- Broth: I recommend low sodium vegetable broth, chicken broth or water.
- Oil: Just a small amount for sauteing your onion, I love avocado oil which is great for high heat.
How to Make Healthy Butternut Squash Soup
There is something so inviting about this creamy soup, it’s basically fall in a bowl! Making this easy butternut squash soup is simple. Just saute, cook and blend it in a regular blender.
Saute onion and spices: Heat large soup pot or dutch oven over medium heat. You want it to be hot-hot-hot when you add your oil. Cook onion for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add curry powder, thyme, ginger and cook for 30 seconds, stirring frequently. This step allows the spices to release maximum flavor.
Add remaining ingredients: Now add butternut squash, coconut milk, vegetable stock, salt and pepper. Stir, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 15 minutes until squash has softened and is fork tender. It cooks very fast.
If you like roasted flavor of butternut squash, you can roast butternut squash halves or butternut squash cubes on baking sheet in the oven first. After, just scoop out the flesh and proceed cooking the soup.
You can also use pressure cooker butternut squash leftovers in this soup.
Blend soup: I prefer to blend with an immersion blender. Make sure to keep the blender at the bottom of the pot so hot liquid doesn’t splatter on you.
This creamy butternut squash soup splatters a lot!
Recipe Tip
This soup is so versatile! Add a pinch of cayenne pepper, nutmeg or ground cinnamon at the end.
What is the Best Way to Puree the Soup?
I love to use an immersion blender for easy and convenience right in the pot where the soup has just cooked.
You can also use a stand blender, but be aware that it can “explode” from the hot soup. To prevent that:
- Cool it: Wait until the soup has cooled down to room temperature and then blend.
- Use the towel: Most regular blenders have the center removable plastic piece in the lid. Remove it and cover with a towel, so the heat can escape.
- Work in small batches: Less hot soup, less steam build up inside the blender. Puree a few cups of soup at a time.
A food processor may work as well, but again proceed with caution as hot soup can splatter.
Variations for This Easy Butternut Squash Soup Recipe
There are many ways to customize this easy butternut squash soup recipe!
- Broth: Chicken broth could be used vs. vegetable stock.
- Sweetener: 1 tablespoon of maple syrup or brown sugar adds extra sweet flavor.
- Herbs: Feel free to add sage or rosemary for some additional savory taste.
- Apple: Add a peeled apple for butternut squash apple soup. It will add a sweeter taste.
- Milk: If you are not a fan of coconut milk, use regular milk (2% or higher), cream or any plant based milk like almond milk. You will need to add this after cooking your squash before pureeing.
Serving Recommendations
My favorite toppings include the pictured toasted pumpkin seeds and plain yogurt or sour cream swirl. Cooked chopped bacon would add savory taste as would savory fresh herbs like fresh thyme.
Add delicious crunch by topping this cozy soup with homemade sourdough croutons.
For a fall inspired meal, serve hot with toasted whole wheat bread or quinoa bread and a side of kale and quinoa salad.
How to Store
Store: Butternut squash soup can be refrigerated for up to 5 days. To reheat simply simmer on low heat while covered. Again, it splatters a lot.
Freeze: Leftover soup can be also frozen. Fully cook, cool completely and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
FAQs
Yes! The skin of a butternut squash is thick and not edible. Here is the easiest way to peel butternut squash.
After peeling trim the ends, cut in half horizontally, scoop out the seeds from the 2 chubby halves and dice.
Yes you can use roasted whole butternut squash or here is an easy tutorial how to roast butternut squash cubes. Or coat your cubed squash in olive oil and roast at 400 F for 30 minutes.
Yes. Hit Saute on your pressure cooker and saute as per recipe. Then add all ingredients and pressure cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. After wait another 10 minutes and release remaining pressure. Blend.
For slow cooker butternut squash soup, saute veggies with spices in a skillet. Then transfer to crockpot with remaining ingredients and cook on Low for 6-8 hours. Blend.
More Healthy Soup Recipes to Try
- Instant Pot potato soup
- Healthy broccoli cheddar soup
- Healthy pumpkin soup
- Best ever vegetable soup
- Buffalo cauliflower soup
- Creamy tomato soup
Healthy Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients
- 3 lbs butternut squash peeled and cut into 2″ cubes (9 cups)
- 1 large onion coarsely chopped
- 15 oz can coconut milk full fat
- 2 cups vegetable broth low sodium
- 1 tbsp oil for frying
- 1/2 tsp curry powder
- 1/2 tsp thyme dried
- 1/4 tsp ginger dried
- 1 tsp salt
- Ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat large heavy bottom pot or Dutch oven on medium heat and add oil. Add onion and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add curry powder, thyme, ginger and cook for 30 seconds, stirring frequently.
- Add butternut squash, coconut milk, stock, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low-medium, cover and cook for 15 minutes until squash has softened.
- Using an immersion blender, puree soup until smooth and silky.
- Serve hot with whole grain toast, a bit of plain yogurt and maybe pumpkin seeds.
Notes
- Store: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freeze: Fully cook, cool completely and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw on a stovetop covered on low.
- Instant Pot instructions: Hit Saute on your pressure cooker and saute as per recipe. Then add all ingredients and pressure cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. After wait another 10 minutes and release remaining pressure.
- Slow cooker instructions: For slow cooker butternut squash soup, saute veggies with spices in a skillet. Then transfer to crockpot with remaining ingredients and cook on Low for 6-8 hours.
- Blending soup: Use an immersion blender or work in small batches to puree in blender.
This was even more delicious than I imagined! Reading the ingredients I knew it would be very tasty. I added a little bit of minced garlic and some fresh sage. I also grated fresh ginger becauss I didn’t have dried ginger. This soup is so warm and flavorful. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Yay, so happy to hear you loved my butternut squash soup recipe! Fresh ginger is even better!
I’ve been looking for a butternut squash soup recipe for ages and I finally found it! This recipe is a keeper! My husband and I both loved it very much! It’s rich, delicious and nutritious! Plenty for seconds or to freeze for another day. Thank you! I will be making this on a regular basis.
Perfect for the fall, too! Thanks for leaving a review!
This was actually the first recipe of yours that I have not absolutely LOVED. It wasn’t bad; it was just bland and not at all memorable. I tried to find some other butternut squash soup recipes to see if I could add more flavor to rescue it, and I ended up adding garlic, apple, nutmeg, and sage, then put it in the crock pot on low to see if the flavor will concentrate overnight. I’m thinking that next time I’d skip the instant pot version and roast the butternut squash in my oven to get more concentrated sweetness. It was good for a 10-minute soup, but not something that I want to take to a friend’s house as part of a meal. My butternut squash came from the grocery store, so maybe it just wasn’t that flavorful. I don’t know. . . I’ll keep trying your recipes though, because usually, they are sheer perfection!
My husband and my 10 yo daughter love this recipe. I’m obsessed too! It is so easy and so healthy and so yummy. Only thing I did differently was to add fresh ginger since I didn’t have dried ginger. And I also used Osso Good Bones chicken bone broth (I use that bone broth with all my instant pot cooking). So good!! Thank you, Olena, you are an instant pot genius. My family also adores your instant pot split pea soup, rice and beans, lentil vegetable, lazy cabbage rolls….. so so so good!!!
Oh Anna! You made my day! I have never been referred to as an Instant Pot Genius (blushing). I am so happy your family is enjoying my recipes!
Restaurant quality ! So good !
Awe, thanks so much Susan 🙂
Hi Olena, could you let me know what curry powder do you use?
From Amazon in Canada Splendor garden brand https://amzn.to/3TvvWLp