Last winter I used the last of my low FODMAP red Thai curry paste in a pot of pumpkin soup I was making. It ended up being so incredibly delicious that I vowed to write down a recipe for soup season. So here we are with this low FODMAP Thai pumpkin soup.
The soup uses a simple low FODMAP pumpkin soup base, a delicious low FODMAP red Thai curry paste and coconut cream. The result? Creamy, delicious perfection. Honestly, I think this is one of my favourite soups I have ever made.
A note, before we dive in: this is not an authentic Thai recipe (obviously!). The name Thai pumpkin soup is purely so that the recipe can be found and not to imply any sort of authenticity. It uses Thai flavours to infuse the soup with a delicious and fragrant flavour.
Low FODMAP Thai pumpkin soup
This delicious soup is incredibly easy to make once you have the curry paste on hand. It takes about 15 minutes of prep and 25 minutes of cooking which makes it a great weeknight meal. Leftovers keep well in the fridge and freezes beautifully, too.
The soup is low FODMAP, gluten free and easily vegan. I use vegetarian/vegan fish sauce in the soup and vegan shrimp paste in the curry paste. You can use regular fish sauce and shrimp paste if that’s all you have and don’t need the soup to be vegan.
Recipe tips
One of the kitchen tasks I dislike the most is finely chopping lemongrass. I find it’s tough nature very annoying to cut, but I do love the taste and think it’s important to the curry flavour. If you loathe it like I do, keep your eyes peeled for grated lemongrass in the frozen section of your local Asian grocer (if you have one). It saves me so much time and frustration! The flavour isn’t quite as potent but it’s a sanity (and time) saver for sure.
I like to make the curry paste in double or triple batches when I make it. I’ve already got the blender out and the ingredients prepping, so I figure I may as well. I then freeze the paste in small containers to use on a rainy day. You can make more soup or a low FODMAP Thai red curry. I have more red Thai curry recipes in the pipeline, as well.
Most big blenders are too annoying to blend small batches of curry paste. The curry paste can also leave a taste in the plastic which makes for an unpleasant berry smoothie the next day. I have a little KitchenAid blender that I use for curries. However, you can also use a tall-ish jar and an immersion blender (soup stick).
I recommend using either homemade low FODMAP stock without much salt added or water. This is because store bought stock (even low FODMAP varieties) are often quite salty. We want to be able to use enough fish sauce (regular or vegan) to add flavour complexity to the soup. Fish sauce is a salty ingredient, so you might not be able to add much if your stock is already salty.
FODMAP notes
As we have discussed, I have used my own homemade low FODMAP red Thai curry paste. I use this because I can’t eat onion or garlic and I can also control the chilli content. It’s not difficult to make but it does require a few ingredients for maximum flavour.
Most store bought curry pastes use onion and garlic and a large volume of chillies which have a low FODMAP threshold. I recommend making my curry paste or another low FODMAP red Thai curry paste to ensure you don’t get any surprises.
I use Japanese/Kent pumpkin for all my pumpkin recipes. It’s the only variety of pumpkin without limits on how much you can eat, FODMAP wise. You can see the FODMAP thresholds for other varieties of pumpkin here.
In terms of the stock, I do have a recipe for low FODMAP vegetable stock which you can find here. To make things easy, though, I often just use water. The soup has plenty of flavour from the curry paste and doesn’t need the added complication of making stock on a weeknight.
Regular fat coconut cream and light coconut milk are both low FODMAP in up to 500g serves. I don’t know why regular coconut milk has a smaller (60g serve) threshold than either of these products. I recommend using a small tin (270ml) of full fat, pure coconut cream here. It’s thick and rich and made without any other additives at all.
In Australia, most 400ml tins of coconut cream seem to have added gums and other ingredients. Look for a tin that contains nothing but coconut kernel extract. I like Ayam brand, but be sure to read the labels.
Finally, the pickled garlic. FODMAPpers will know that garlic is generally off limits for us. However, Monash recently introduced a low FODMAP threshold of 3g (1 clove) and up to just under 29g (10 cloves). This makes pickled garlic a fantastic way to add flavour to your low FODMAP dishes. I have a recipe for it here.
Bonus flavour suggestions
- A good squeeze of lime juice adds a lovely layer of acidity to the soup. You can also serve each bowl with a lime wedge so people can add it as they see fit.
- I haven’t tried this, but I daresay a teaspoon or two of tamarind paste would make an incredible addition. I plan to try that next time.
- A good zesting of lime (makrut or regular) would add a layer of flavour to the soup.
- I haven’t tried adding spring onion greens to the soup. However, I daresay you could easily add them to the curry paste to add a pop of onion flavour.
- Although this soup gets a garlic hit from the pickled garlic, you could consider using some asafoetida powder for another layer of flavour.
- This soup is lovely and creamy from the coconut, but you can also add a little bit of peanut butter if you like.
- I have added canned and drained cannellini beans to my original pumpkin soup recipe for extra protein and I don’t see why it wouldn’t work here. Keep in mind that beans are starchy and will thicken the soup so you might need to extra stock or water. You might also need to add more curry paste and flavourings.
More low FODMAP soup recipes
- Low FODMAP broccoli cheddar soup
- Low FODMAP leek and potato soup
- Low FODMAP classic pumpkin soup
- Low FODMAP carrot soup
- Low FODMAP laksa from my cookbook, Intolerance Friendly Kitchen
Low FODMAP Thai pumpkin soup
Ingredients
- 1.5-2 kg Japanese or Kent pumpkin weighed after peeling and chopping (I buy 2kg+ to account for the weight lost)
- 60 ml (3 tablespoons)* oil of choice
- 2-5 pickled garlic cloves see notes
- 20 g ginger peeled and chopped
- 3-4 tablespoons* low FODMAP Thai red curry paste see notes for recipe
- 750-1000 ml low FODMAP and low salt vegetable stock or water
- 40-60 ml (2-3 tablespoons)* fish sauce (I used vegetarian but regular will also work) to your tastes
- 5-10 makrut lime leaves (optional, but add a nice subtle flavour to the soup)
- 270-400 ml can full fat coconut cream (no additives)
Instructions
- Cut the pumpkin into even cubes. I find slightly larger cubes easier to blend at the end if you’re using a stick blender.
- Preheat the oil in a large soup pot over a low-medium heat. Add the pickled garlic and ginger and cook for a couple of minutes until fragrant.
- Add 3 tablespoons of the low FODMAP Thai red curry paste and stir to combine. Allow the mixture to cook for a minute or two until the oils begin to release the paste becomes fragrant. Note: 3 Australian tablespoons = 4 US tablespoons.
- Add the pumpkin pieces and stir to coat. Add the stock or water, 40ml (2 tablespoons) of fish sauce and makrut lime leaves (if you are using them) and stir again to pick up any caramelised bits from the bottom of the pot.
- Pop the lid on and cook for 20 minutes or so or until the pumpkin is soft and completely cooked through.
- When the pumpkin is cooked, take the pot off the heat. Remove the makrut lime leaves from the soup, if you used them.
- Add the coconut cream and stir to combine.
- Use an immersion blender to blend the soup until smooth. If you don’t have one, use your food processor of choice. Keep in mind that a Nutribullet doesn’t have a steam escape valve so you need to wait until the soup is completely cool if you plan to blend in one. If there is nowhere for the steam to escape, you risk a hot soup explosion.
- Taste your soup and adjust as necessary. I generally add a tablespoon or two more red curry paste and some extra fish sauce. Add pepper to taste and salt if you need to.
- To finish, garnish with whatever you fancy. I used extra coconut cream, chopped chillies, peanuts and coriander.
- Keeps well in the fridge for a few days and also freezes well.
Notes
- You can use up to 2kg pumpkin if that’s what you end up with here. You might need to use a little extra stock to thin the soup to your desired consistency.
- I use a small amount of red chilli in my Low FODMAP Thai red curry paste. I am a chilli wimp, I prefer a mild soup and I also react to fructose. If you use more chilli or a different recipe, use your curry paste to taste.
- 3-4 Australian tablespoons = 4 – 5 American tablespoons. No need to be super precise, but use more curry paste (or just use it to taste!) if you are based in the US.
- I have a recipe for low FODMAP pickled garlic here.
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