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Laksa-Style Pumpkin Soup - Georgie Eats

LAKSA-STYLE PUMPKIN SOUP & TAMARIND HALLOUMI CROUTONS

Bright, vibrant, punchy.

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

  • neutral oil
  • 800 ml vegetable stock
  • 400 ml can coconut milk
  • 1.5 kg squash (I like buttercup here, but butternut, red kuri and/or delica would work well here), peeled & cubed
  • 350 g halloumi cubed
  • 1 tbsp tamarind paste
  • salt & freshly ground black pepper
  • to serve: sliced red chilli, coriander

laksa-style paste

  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 2 tsp coriander seeds
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 2 shallots peeled & roughly chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves peeled
  • large thumb-sized piece of ginger (don’t bother peeling it)
  • 2 sticks lemon grass (fresh is best, but dried if not), trimmed
  • 3 red chillies seeds removed

Instructions

  1. Heat a small dry frying pan over a low-medium heat. Once hot, add the cumin and coriander seeds and toast for a minute or two, stirring frequently, until they darken slightly and release their fragrance. Watch them carefully here as they can turn from browned to burnt in a matter of seconds. Remove from the heat and let them cool.
  2. Combine the toasted cumin and coriander seeds, turmeric, shallots, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, chillies and a good pinch of salt in a food processor or blender. Blitz the mixture, wiping the sides of the bowl a few times if needed, until you have a smooth paste. If your food processor requires a little dash of water to help it along, that's fine.

  3. Next, heat a good glug of neutral oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Once hot, add the curry paste and cook for 3–4 minutes, stirring constantly, until it fills the room with its perfume and has slightly darkened in colour. Add the vegetable stock, coconut milk, cubed squash and a good pinch of salt and black pepper, then bring everything to a gentle simmer. Lower the heat slightly and cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring regularly, until the squash is easily broken apart with a fork.

  4. Remove the soup from the heat and use a hand blender to blitz it into a silky smooth soup. If you would prefer it thinner, you can either make up a little extra stock to blend through, or just use water (you can also do this in a stand blender, just let it cool down slightly first). Taste and adjust the seasoning, if needed, and keep warm over a low heat.
  5. Finally, we can make our tamarind halloumi. Heat a glug of neutral oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Once hot, fry the halloumi for 2–3 minutes each side, until lightly golden. Stir through the tamarind and continue to fry for a further minute or so, or until the halloumi is sticky and darkening at the edges.
  6. Ladle the soup into bowls and top with the sticky halloumi, a few slices of fresh red chilli and fresh coriander leaves. Finish with a good crack of black pepper.