The most flavorful soup you'll ever try, this Sweet Potato and Red Pepper Soup is cozy and comforting. Packed with anti-inflammatory ingredients, it's an easy recipe that can be meal prepped and frozen for later.
This recipe was one of the first I ever wrote for this website, over 4 years ago. We were under a winter weather advisory, and in the south that's usually when everyone goes into a panic and clears the grocery shelves. Sure enough the same thing happened last week, which lead me to make this soup. An old favorite it's my go to for a cozy day at home.
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Benefits of Sweet Potato and Red Pepper Soup
- Simple, pantry-staple ingredients that you probably have on hand.
- Vegan and vegetarian friendly.
- If you want more protein, it's easy to add chicken.
- This gives you a full serving of vegetables in one soup.
- It's simple to make in 30 minutes.
- This recipe is awesome for meal prep. It freezes and reheats beautifully
- It is packed with anti-inflammatory ingredients like turmeric and ginger, which is great for pain, headaches, and migraine attacks.
Ingredients
Here are a few of the key ingredients you'll need for this sweet potato and red pepper soup.
- Sweet potatoes - I recommend using red garnet or jewel for this soup. Japanese and purple don't have the same texture and taste.
- Leeks - This can be substituted with green onions or whatever you have on hand, but I love the soft flavor the leeks provide.
- Red pepper - A large red bell pepper adds a hint of tanginess to this soup.
- Yellow curry paste - I recommend Mae Ploy for the best flavor, but choose whatever your favorite is! Since so many brands vary in flavor, it's best to taste test the mixture before adding the full amount and see if you want more or less spice.
- Turmeric and Ginger - These bump up the flavor and also add some anti-inflammatory power to the soup.
- Coconut Milk - Although on the "avoid list" of some migraine diets, I find coconut milk to not be a very common trigger. If it's a personal one, this can be substituted with whole milk or ½ cup of heavy cream. Native Forest and Trader Joe's are what I typically use.
- Additional vegetables - Once the soup is blended, feel free to add extra vegetables like broccoli or cauliflower. It's really versatile!
Equipment Needed
There are two items that will make your life a lot easier when preparing this soup.
- A heavy bottomed pot, at least 5-7 quarts.
- An immersion blender.
For the pot, I have a Le Creuset gifted to us for our wedding that I adore using for soups and stews. With a price tag of over $200, it's definitely an investment. Occasionally you can get a discontinued color for a good deal, and it's worth the hunt. Lodge makes a wonderful, affordable version as well. Enameled cast iron pots are really wonderful at distributing heat evenly, and sealing in moisture with a tight fitting lid.
An immersion blender is basically a handheld blender that you can tote around the kitchen with you. At around $40-50 it's something that's worth buying to make life a little bit easier. You can, of course, blend this in a traditional blender. It may need to be done in batches to fit it all. Just be very careful with the heavy pot when pouring the hot soup. Immersion blenders are awesome for making homemade mayonnaise.
How to Make
Making this sweet potato and red pepper soup with coconut milk is really easy with just a few simple steps.
Step 1: Add the olive oil, leeks, and red pepper to the heavy bottomed pot and stir frequently with a wood spoon over medium heat till just softened, about 2-3 minutes. Add in garlic and ginger, continuing to stir often so it does not burn.
Step 2: Mix in curry paste, turmeric and sugar or honey, stirring often for about 1 minute.
Step 3: Add in sweet potatoes and broth, increasing heat to bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium/low to continue a simmer.
Step 4: Simmer for about 30 minutes or until potatoes are very soft. Taste and adjust any seasonings, adding salt, pepper, or honey as needed. Honey will help decrease spiciness if you add too much curry. Stir in the coconut milk after the potatoes have softened.
Step 5: Use an immersion blender (or transfer soup carefully to a blender, which may need to be in batches), to blend the soup till smooth and creamy.
If adding vegetables like cauliflower or broccoli, stir them in at the very end and simmer for another 5-10 minutes. You want them to still have a bit of firmness so they're cooked but not mushy.
Recipe Tips
- Adjust the curry seasoning to your personal taste, depending on brand. They vary greatly in spiciness! If you make it too spicy, adding honey or more coconut milk can help.
- Leeks can be substituted with green onions or shallots.
- Make sure the sweet potatoes are soft by poking with a fork and seeing if there is any give. In order to get a smoothy, creamy soup, they need to be very soft.
Health Benefits
A lower calorie option with lots of flavor and health benefits, you'll love this soup for any meal.
Full Serving of Vegetables - This soup is packed with red peppers, sweet potatoes, and leeks, but then you can add as many vegetables as you like. Mushrooms, zucchini, spinach, kale, cauliflower and broccoli would all work well in this recipe.
Anti-Inflammatory Ingredients - Ginger and turmeric are known for their pain-fighting powder, particularly as natural migraine remedies. Turmeric's main active component is curcumin, which needs to be consumed with black pepper to get the full benefits for inflammation. It can also help with joint pain, IBS, and arthritis.
Good for the Brain - Sweet potatoes support brain health, with high levels of antioxidants that benefits brain and memory.
How to Meal Prep and Freeze
To meal prep this for the week, double the recipe, which will make about 8 servings total (you may also need a bigger pot). Pour into individual containers and store up to 5 days, freezing the rest for the end of the week.
To freeze, allow it to cool fully first, then add to individual storage bags, freezing flat to save space. You can also freeze in individual soup containers, then defrost overnight in the fridge.
What to Serve with This Soup
This sweet potato and red pepper soup would pair well with any salad, especially my kale and roasted cauliflower salad. You can make this into a full meal by adding raw, bite sized chicken breast and simmering for 10-15 minutes (after the soup has been blended), or cooked rotisserie chicken breast at the very end of cooking.
Soup Recipes
For more soup recipes like this, see these posts.
And for more vegan recipes that use sweet potatoes, try my Sweet Potato Bowl, Hearty Sweet Potato Stew, and Mexican Stuffed Sweet Potatoes.
Sweet Potato and Red Pepper Soup
Ingredients
Soup Base
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 leeks (white and light green parts only) chopped
- 1 small red bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
- 1 tablespoon yellow curry paste Mae Ploy is much stronger/more spicy than Thai Kitchen so adjust accordingly.
- 1 tablespoon turmeric
- 3 cups sweet potatoes, skin removed, cut in ½ inch cubes
- 1½ tablespoons sugar or honey
- 2 13.5oz cans full fat coconut milk
- 4 cups vegetable broth
Optional Mix Ins
- broccoli, zucchini, mushrooms, peppers, cauliflower
Instructions
- In a heavy bottom pot (at least 6qt), add olive oil and adjust to medium heat. Add leeks and red pepper and sauté for 1-2 minutes, till softened. Add garlic and ginger, stirring often so it does not burn. Cook another minute.
- Add curry paste, turmeric, and sugar and combine. Add sweet potatoes and broth and bring to a boil over medium high heat, cover and reduce heat to medium low heat to maintain a steady simmer. Simmer until the potatoes are very soft, about 20 minutes.
- Add in the coconut milk and use an immersion blender to (carefully), blend the soup till smooth and creamy. This can also be done in batches with a blender, just be careful as the soup will be very hot.
- If you want to add in extra veggies, stir fry them in a separate pan till softened, or add to the soup and bring to a low simmer for about 10 minutes.
Notes
- Leeks can be substituted with green onion.
- I used Mae Ploy for curry paste, which tends to be more spicy than Thai Kitchen. If you don't like spicy food, start on the low end (maybe ½ tablespoon) and taste and adjust to your preference.
- I use Trader Joe's or Native Forest coconut milk in a can.
Nutrition
This post was originally published January 15, 2018 as Sweet Potato Coconut Curry Soup. It has been updated with new pictures, minor recipe changes, and instructions for cooking.
Tina Renz says
Can I make it without the peppers? It doesn’t agree with my colitis. Does it still have flavor without it? TIA
Alicia says
I think so! I also have this sweet potato stew you make like too.
Megan Patterson says
I want to make this but all of the chicken stocks/broths I find in store have onion/natural favours/yeast extract etc in. Where can I find a HYH safe stock/broth? Thank you!!
Joan says
Made this today after a week of Alphabet soup issues 🙂 . So good that my husband had 2 helpings and now I know I should have doubled it!
My only concern is the Thai curry paste has a lot of sodium which is a no-no for BBPV folks .
I used 1/4 cream in the soup and a little on top when serving . .
Will definitely make it again .
Janette says
One of my favorites I make on bad days! I swear it helps me feel better. Thank you!
Bridget says
This was delicious! I can’t believe I hadn’t tried it before. It’s also great for lunch the next day. I added a little rotisserie chicken and a lot of mushroom. My husband also put his over rice and he enjoyed it too!
Alicia says
You found the hidden recipe! Thanks, Bridget!
Kaitlyn says
I love trying new recipes, and I've never made a soup like this before. It did not disappoint! I thought it was fantastic!