Curried Butternut Squash Soup
Monsoon, Chicago, IL
The first step in making this Indian-spiced butternut squash soup is to make your own curry blend, as any good Indian cook will tell you is essential. Despite the long list of spices, the soup is quite mild. Monsoon chef Sumanth Das served it at the Beard House.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons coriander
- 2 tablespoons ground turmeric
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons whole black peppercorn
- 1 teaspoon fenugreek seed
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon ground clove
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 butternut squash, about 3 pounds
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 cups vegetable stock or water
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon butter
- Salt to taste
Method
Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
Grind all the spices together; you can do this in an electric coffee mill or by hand in a mortar and pestle. Cut the butternut squash in half lengthwise, discard the seeds, and peel the squash. Cut the flesh into relatively even chunks of about 1- to 2-inches square. Toss the squash pieces with the vegetable oil and with 4 tablespoons of the curry mix. Set aside the extra curry for another use.
Roast the squash on a jelly-roll pan in the oven until tender and golden brown, about 40 minutes, stirring the mixture once or twice. about 40 minutes.
Purée the roasted squash in a food processor with 1 1/2 cups water or stock. Pour the purée into a stockpot. Add the remaining water or stock, the cream, honey, and butter. Warm the soup, but don't let it boil. Add salt to taste. For an especially creamy version, strain the soup through a fine-mesh strainer before serving it.
Yield
8 servings
