This bright and sunny soup will cheer up even the gloomiest of days. Warmth comes from ginger, turmeric and a mere touch of chilli. Enriched with coconut milk and then topped with roast chickpeas, it’s a complete meal in itself.
I like my vegetable soups nice and thick and this is no exception. Feel free to loosen it down a little if you prefer.
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp plus 1 tsp veg oil
- 1 onion, roughly chopped
- 3 inches fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp cumin seed
- 1.5 tsp ground turmeric
- Chilli powder
- 2 parsnips, peeled and diced into chunks (about 400g)
- 400ml tin coconut milk
- 2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into chunks (about 300g)
- 1 tin chickpeas, drained
- salt
- ¼ tsp ground coriander
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
- Fresh coriander
Preheat your oven to 180°C and line a baking tray with non-stick paper.
Heat 3 tbsp of oil in a medium saucepan. Add the chopped ginger and onion and cook gently for 10-15 minutes until the onion has turned translucent. Add the garlic and cumin seed and cook for a further 3 minutes. Now add the ground turmeric and a pinch of chilli powder and cook for another minute.
Add a couple of tablespoons of hot water to moisten the pan and then add the diced parsnip. Cover with the lid and cook gently for 5 mins. Now add the tin of coconut milk followed by 600ml vegetable stock and 1 tsp salt. Bring to simmering point and cook gently for 10 mins.
Now add the sweet potato to the pan and cook for a further 10 mins or until both the parsnip and sweet potato pieces are tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. Liquidise, loosening with a little hot water or stock to your desired consistency.
Whilst the soup is cooking, prepare the chickpeas. Drain the can of chickpeas in a sieve. Next, using some kitchen paper, dry the chickpeas as best you can. Add to a medium sized bowl and mix with 1 tsp oil, ½ tsp salt, the ground coriander, cumin and a pinch of chilli powder. Pour onto the lined baking tray and roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes until dry and crisp.
Once everything is ready, pour the soup into bowls, top with the spiced chickpeas and sprinkle over some fresh coriander.
