Easy Pumpkin Soup Recipe

Cooking pumpkin

1. Rinse, peel and chop pumpkin in cubes. Also onion and the garlic cloves.
2. Add the pumpkin cubes, chopped onions and garlic in a 2-litre stovetop pressure cooker. Check the notes section for cooking soup in the Instant Pot.
3. Now add ¾ to 1 cup water or vegetable stock. For a thicker soup add less water.
4. Cover and pressure cook on medium heat for 8 to 9 minutes. If you do not have a pressure cooker, then you can even cook the pumpkin cubes in a pan. Add water as required if cooking in a pan.
5. When the pressure drops naturally on its own in the cooker, then only open the lid. Let the pumpkin mixture become warm.
6. Then with an hand held mixer or beater, blend the whole mixture. You can even add the mixture in a blender or grinder jar and then blend to a fine and smooth puree. Do not blend when hot as then the mixture splutters.
7. Blend till smooth and fine. You can keep the soup slightly chunky if you want.

Making pumpkin soup

1. Now keep the cooker back on stovetop on a low to medium heat. Add olive oil. Adding olive oil is optional and you can skip it completely. You can even add butter or sunflower oil instead of olive oil.
2. Mix very well.
3. Then add oregano, thyme and crushed black pepper as required.
4. Add sugar (optional) and salt as per taste. 
5. Mix well. if the pumpkin is sweet, then skip adding sugar.
6. Let the soup come to a gentle simmer till it becomes hot. Then switch off the heat.
7. Serve pumpkin soup hot or warm.

Serving suggestions

1. Enjoy pumpkin soup as a light dinner. I like to serve it with a slice of warm toasted bread or a baguette. It also works great as a side, pairing it with a mixed veggie pasta dish, light salad or grilled veggie sandwich.
2. While serving you can garnish the soup with some grated cheese, herbs, bread croutons, crushed black pepper, cream or all of the above. You can serve the soup hot, warm or even chilled.

Scaling, storage & make ahead

1. You can make the soup a few hours earlier and refrigerate to be eaten on the same day. Reheat before serving and if required mix in some stock or water if the soup looks very thick. Reheat in a saucepan.
2. Any leftover can be refrigerated for a day only.
3. Easily scale the soup recipe to make for more servings.