Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Name: Roasted Butternut Squash Soup Recipe
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 90 min
Ingredients: 1 medium butternut squash (about 1kg / 2lbs, halved and seeds removed); 2 teaspoons olive oil; salt and pepper; 1 Tablespoon coconut oil; 1 large onion (diced); 4 cloves garlic (minced); 1 - 2 Tablespoon freshly grated ginger; 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro (leaves and stems); 1 teaspoon ground turmeric; 1 teaspoon smoked paprika; 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes; 3 cups vegetable broth; 14 ounce coconut milk (light or full-fat); 1 medium lime (juiced); 2 Tablespoon white miso; salt and pepper; toasted sesame oil (for garnish); cilantro leaves (for garnish )

by Katie Trant on Oct 3, 2023 (last updated Feb 25, 2025) // 49 Comments

Servings

Prep Time30

Cook Time1

Total Time1 30

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5 from 15 votes

This Roasted Butternut Squash Soup recipe features the delicate flavors of coconut, miso, and lime. Silky smooth, this vegan butternut squash soup recipe is comforting, nourishing, and super simple to make.

two bowls of miso butternut squash soup on blue plates with a big bowl of soup in the background

Soup season is here and I'm going all in

Did you ever want to dive face-first into a bowl of soup? Just do a few laps around the bowl? Just me? Well, listen. This Roasted Butternut Squash Soup is so delicious, so velvety, and so comforting, I think you're going to want to join me in there.

Soup season is the best season, right? As a nutritionist, I love how many veggies we can pack into a bowl of soup—and yes, they count towards your daily veggie intake. I've got a whole archive of nourishing soup recipes here on HNL, but if I had to pick a favorite, this BNS soup is right up there with our community fave Vegetarian Dumpling Soup—though, to be honest, this super easy lentil soup recipe is probably the one I make the most.

This particular soup recipe, Roasted Butternut Squash Soup, is a seasonal favorite that you'll want to get in rotation. It's velvety smooth and has an incredible depth of flavor, thanks to roasting the butternut squash before we blend it into the soup.

If you're wondering what the heck miso paste, coconut milk, and lime are doing in this soup, together with warming spices like turmeric and smoked paprika, let me tell you—your taste buds are in for a treat.

Featured comment

What a fantastic soup. I am all about the finish, when it comes to soup, most I make are pureed, and the more velvety the better! This one has such a great layering of flavors...it's not your run-of-the-mill butternut squash soup, and vegan friendly! LOVE LOVE LOVE!

~ Fabulii ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

butternut squash, cilantro, lime, coconut milk, spices, ginger, garlic, and onion on a grey background

Let's make some soup together!

While admittedly this roasted butternut squash soup dirties up more dishes than I normally like, it's very simple to make. Are you ready for this? I'll talk you through it step by step!

Step 1: roast your squash

Slice your squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle it with a bit of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

photo collage of roasted and unroasted butternut squash in a white casserole dish

Place it into a baking dish cut side up / skin side down, and place into the oven to roast for about 30 minutes, or until deeply golden and at least fork tender.

Step 2: prepare your soup base

Start by melting a bit of coconut oil in a heavy bottomed pot, and sautéing the onions until translucent. Add the ginger and garlic and sauté for a few minutes more.

photo collage off onions and spices cooking in a red dutch oven

Add the cilantro and spices and sauté for a couple of minutes more.

Step 3: deglaze the pan

When your flavor base is nice and cooked down (see below) you're going to add just a bit of vegetable broth to the pan.

photo collage of cooked onions with broth being poured into a red dutch oven

We're using this to help lift any spices stuck to the bottom of the pot—but don't worry if they don't all come up. We'll eventually add everything back into this pot.

Step 4: blend, baby, blend!

Transfer the broth and flavor base to your blender. Scoop your roasted squash out of the peel (make sure it's cool enough to handle!) and add to the blender.

photo collage of roasted butternut squash soup in a blender

Blend until completely smooth, adding a bit of extra broth if necessary.

*Note—If you're using an immersion blender, you can do this blending step right in the soup pot. If you're using an upright blender, be very careful when blending hot liquid!

Step 5: finish the soup

Transfer the squash mixture back to the soup pot.

Tip! I like to add the remaining broth into the blender at this point and run it for a few seconds to help get all off the squash mixture out.

overhead photo of roasted butternut squash soup with coconut milk swirled into it

Add the remaining broth, coconut milk, miso, and lime juice to the pot. Stir to combine, and gently heat to serving temperature.

That's it! You're done!

Recipe Variations + Tips

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup is the perfect canvas for so many different variations. Maybe miso and lime aren't your jam - that's ok. Here are a few ideas for changing up this soup and making it your own.

Add veggies. You can stir baby spinach leaves right into the soup and they'll wilt right down. Or, throw other veggies into the oven when the squash is roasting, like sweet potato, cauliflower, or broccoli.
Add lentils or beans. Red lentils will blend right into this soup, much like in our Carrot and Ginger Soup with Red Lentils. Or, add creamy chickpeas. or white beans for extra protein.
Dial up the heat. Try replacing the red curry paste with smoky chipotle peppers, Aleppo pepper, or a pinch of cayenne pepper - they go great with the sweetness of the roasted butternut squash.
Mix up your spices. Cilantro not your thing? Try sage instead. Other fresh herbs like chives are perfect sprinkled on top. Butternut also goes beautifully with warming spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
Add apples. You know they say what grows together goes together. The natural sweetness of apples is an excellent complement to butternut squash. Pears are a great choice, too!
To save time, you can pre-cook your squash (try our Instant Pot Butternut Squash) or start with pre-cut squash cubes for roasting - fresh and frozen both work fine!

overhead photo with two bowls of miso roasted butternut squash soup garnished with cilantro leaves and bread on the side of the plate

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5 from 15 votes