Curried Parsnip Soup

This Curried Parsnip Soup is a warming soothing soup, easy to make, and perfect for chilly winter days. Served with parsnip crisps, this soup is great for lunch, or as an entree for a special occasion.

If you haven't already noticed making soup is one of my favourite things to do, it's like therapy, some people like to bake cakes I like to make soup. I think it's the smell of garlic and onion that soothes me, so when I feel a bit out of sorts or under the weather then you'll find me making soup.

This curried parsnip soup is moderately spiced, enough to shake up the taste buds and it has a little kick of ginger, just in case the spices aren't enough. I used medium curry powder, so if you want to give this to the kids you may want to use mild curry powder.

How to Make Curried Parsnip Soup

1. Start by cooking the onions and celery, cook until soft. Once the onion is soft add the ginger and garlic and cook for about a minute or two.
2. Next, add the spices and cook for just a minute until they release their fragrance. Then stir in the parsnip, potato and coriander/cilantro.
3. Pour in the stock, add salt and pepper, bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes.
4. Once the potatoes are cooked blend the soup until it is smooth.

Top Tips for Making Curried Parsnip Soup

• Parsnips - Make sure the parsnips are really fresh, and when buying parsnips try to get the whiter ones. They should also be firm and the roots should be intact. Always go for smaller white parsnips, they are sweeter. Bigger parsnips can be quite woody so are best avoided.
• Vegetable Stock -  I prefer a vegetable bouillon for making soup. This is a vegan soup as I used a vegan vegetable bouillon, always read the label, not all vegetable stocks are vegetarian!
• Potatoes - to get a creamy soup without the cream I add a potato, make sure the potato is a floury variety, the starch released in cooking will result in a creamy soup.

What to Serve with Curried Parsnip Soup

I usually make parsnip crisps to serve with this soup. They make for a lovely garnish. But they are also a great snack too, so if you have any leftover hide them away and snack on them instead of potato crisps/chips. And if you have time go ahead and make a good-sized batch of these because they are really tasty and slightly addictive, one or two may not be enough for you. They certainly weren't enough for me so I'm making more of these for the weekend, just for me!

How to Make Parsnip Crisps

• Cut a parsnip in half lengthways then using a vegetable peeler, peel thin slices of the parsnip. Start at the fat end of the parsnip then peel all the way to the end.
• Place the strips of parsnip on parchment paper, brush each side with oil then sprinkle with sea salt.
• Bake on the middle shelf of a preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes turning halfway through cooking.
• Once the parsnips are golden around the edges and looking dry, remove from the oven and transfer onto kitchen paper.

Can I freeze this soup? Yes, you can! This soup is perfect for freezing. Leave the soup to cool then transfer to a freezer bag, label the bag, and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To defrost leave the soup in a bowl in the fridge overnight then once fully defrosted heat in a saucepan on the hob. I do not recommend freezing the parsnip crisps.

Can I make this ahead? Yes, you can make this soup up to 3 days ahead. Make the soup, leave it to cool then transfer it to a suitable container. Leave it in the fridge and reheat it on the hob. This soup is great for bringing to work, you can heat it up and pour it into a good flask. You can also make the parsnip crisps a day or two in advance. Keep these in an airtight container at room temperature.

More Tasty Soup Recipes:

• Spicy Cauliflower Soup - Vegan
• Vegetable Orzo Soup
• Roasted Tomato Soup
• Irish Potato Soup

Did you make this Curried Parsnip Soup recipe? Rate it and leave a comment below to let me know what you think!

Curried Parsnip Soup

Warmly spiced parsnip soup with crispy parsnip crisps. Warming and satisfying this soup is perfect for lunch or a light supper.

5 from 7 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Lunch

Cuisine: Fusion, Vegan

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Servings: 4

Calories: 159kcal

Author: Michelle Alston

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 large brown onion (200g) chopped
• ▢ 1 tbsp olive oil
• ▢ 1 stalk of celery finely chopped
• ▢ 600 g parsnips (3 large parsnips) peeled and chopped into chunks
• ▢ 1 large potato (250g) peeled and cut into chunks
• ▢ 2 fat cloves of garlic minced
• ▢ 1 heaped tsp ground cumin
• ▢ ½ tsp ground coriander
• ▢ 3cm piece of ginger peeled and grated
• ▢ 1 ½ tbsp medium curry powder
• ▢ 1 small handful fresh coriander/cilantro leaves and stems finely chopped +plus more for serving
• ▢ 1.1 litre vegetable stock made from vegan vegetable bouillon
• ▢ ¼ tsp sea salt
• ▢ ¼ tsp ground black pepper

For the parsnip crisps

• ▢ 1 parsnip peeled then cut in half lengthways
• ▢ 1 tbsp olive oil
• ▢ ¼ tsp sea salt

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Instructions

• Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.

  Add the onion and celery and cook until soft, for about 5 minutes. Once the onion is soft add the ginger, garlic and chopped coriander stems. Cook for about a minute. Now add the spices, again cook for just a minute until they release their fragrance.
• Now stir in the parsnip, potato and chopped coriander/cilantro leaves. Pour in the stock, add salt and pepper, bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer.
• Simmer over a low to medium heat for 20 minutes or until the potato and parsnip are soft. Use a hand-held blender to blend the soup until smooth.
• Serve with parsnip crisps, coriander leaves and good crusty bread.

To make the parsnip crisps

• Heat the oven to 200 degrees C, 392F.

  Line a baking tray with parchment.

  Cut a parsnip in half lengthways. Using a vegetable peeler, peel thin slices of parsnip. Start at the fat end of the parsnip then peel all the way to the end.

  Place the strips on the parchment paper, brush each side with oil then sprinkle with the sea salt.

  Bake on the middle shelf of the oven, bake for 15 to 20 minutes turning halfway through cooking.

  Once golden around the edges and looking dry remove from the oven and transfer onto kitchen paper.

Notes

• Parsnips - choose smaller parsnips that are firm and white. I always peel my parsnips when making soup.
• Potatoes - use a floury variety parsnip, Maris Piper or Yukon Gold is perfect. The potato will give the soup is creamy texture.
• Stock - I prefer a vegetable bouillon for making soup. As this soup is vegan I used a vegan bouillon which was also gluten-free.
• Freezing - this soup freezes well. Leave it to cool, transfer to a suitable container, label and freeze for up to 3 months. To defrost, leave the soup in a container in the fridge overnight, reheat on the hob. I do not recommend freezing the parsnip crisps.
• Nutritional Information - is approximate and calculated using an online nutrition tool. It does not include parsnip crisps.

Nutrition

Calories: 159kcal | Carbohydrates: 26.3g | Protein: 3.3g | Fat: 4.3g | Saturated Fat: 0.5g | Sodium: 128mg | Potassium: 466mg | Fiber: 3.9g | Sugar: 2.4g | Calcium: 25mg | Iron: 1mg

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*This recipe was first published on February 6, 2018. It has now been updated with a step by step guide, more nutritional information, and expert tips.