Carve a pumpkin first
Make the jack-o'-lantern with the children and roast the seeds for the soup – step by step with pictures.
To the pumpkin guidePumpkin soup over an open fire – creamy, smooth and warming
Hokkaido, ginger and coconut milk – smooth soup in the pot over the embers
- 4 servings
- Time: 15 min + 30 min over the fire
- Difficulty: Easy
- 13 ingredients
- 9 steps
Pumpkin soup is the best soup of autumn: smooth, mild and slightly sweet, with a little heat from ginger. It works just as well on a blustery October day at the barbecue spot as on a weekday evening at home, and it is an obvious part of Halloween week when there are pumpkins everywhere anyway.
The most important choice is the pumpkin. A Hokkaido or butternut gives a thick, creamy and sweet soup. The big carving pumpkin from Halloween, on the other hand, is watery and bland – save it for the lantern, and roast the seeds for the topping. How to make the lantern is explained in pumpkin carving with kids.
Method
- Halve the pumpkin and scrape out the seeds. Hokkaido does not need peeling – the skin softens as it cooks. Butternut should be peeled.
- Cut the pumpkin into pieces, about 3 cm in size. Chop the onion and garlic and grate the ginger.
- Let the fire burn down to an even bed of embers and place the pot on a grill or on stones.
- Fry the onion, garlic and ginger in the oil for 3–4 minutes, until the onion is soft but not burnt.
- Add the pumpkin and pour in the stock. Put the lid on.
- Let the soup simmer for 20–25 minutes, until the pumpkin is completely soft. Move the pot towards the edge if it is boiling too hard.
- Mash the pumpkin thoroughly with a potato masher right in the pot – or blend until smooth with a hand blender if you are cooking at home.
- Stir in the coconut milk, season with salt, pepper and lime and let the soup heat through again.
- Serve with roasted pumpkin seeds, a dollop of crème fraîche and fresh herbs.
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All recipes →How to get the soup smooth outdoors
A hand blender needs electricity, and there is rarely any at a barbecue spot. Three ways to get a smooth soup anyway:
- Blend at home, heat outdoors. Cook and blend the soup at home, pour it into an airtight container and heat it in the pot over the fire. The easiest and smoothest option.
- Mash and sieve. Cook the pumpkin until really soft and mash it with a potato masher. If you want it smoother, press it through a sieve with the back of a ladle.
- Battery-powered blender. A small rechargeable hand blender works well for a pot of 4 portions.
If it is just a short trip, it is even easier to take the soup in a flask. Warm the flask with hot water first, pour it out and fill it with piping hot soup – then it stays warm for several hours. More ideas for the packed lunch can be found in outing food.
Which pumpkin works best?
- Hokkaido – the small orange pumpkin. Firm, sweet and nutty. The skin can be eaten, so it is the quickest.
- Butternut – pear-shaped and pale beige. Smooth and sweet, but the skin is hard and needs peeling.
- Musquée de Provence – large and dark orange. Very tasty, often sold in pieces.
- Carving pumpkin – the big Halloween pumpkin. Watery and mild. Better used for the lantern.
Pumpkin soup with kids
The soup is mild enough for most children, especially if you cut down on the ginger and use cream instead of coconut milk. Let the children rinse pumpkin seeds, pick herbs and top their own bowl. An adult handles the pot of hot soup – more about cooking with children by the fire can be found in cooking with children over a fire. Serve it with stick bread that the children bake themselves.
Vary the soup
- With roasted pumpkin: roast the pumpkin pieces in foil in the embers for 20 minutes first – it gives a smoky, caramelised flavour.
- With curry: fry 1 tsp curry powder with the onion.
- With apple: cook with a tart apple in pieces for a fresher soup.
- With bacon: top with crispy fried bacon instead of pumpkin seeds.
- Halloween version: make a cobweb of crème fraîche on the surface – drip rings and drag a toothpick from the middle outwards.
Common mistakes
- A carving pumpkin instead of Hokkaido or butternut – the soup becomes thin and bland.
- Too much heat – the onion burns and the soup turns bitter.
- Too little salt – pumpkin needs salt and acidity to taste of something.
- The coconut milk is boiled for a long time – it can split. Stir it in last.
Frequently asked questions
Do you have to peel a Hokkaido pumpkin?
No. The skin of a Hokkaido softens as it cooks and is blended with the soup. Butternut and most other pumpkins, on the other hand, should be peeled.
Can you make pumpkin soup from a Halloween pumpkin?
You can, but carving pumpkins are watery and have fairly little flavour. Use less stock, more spices and ideally a piece of Hokkaido or butternut in the mix.
How long does pumpkin soup keep?
It keeps for 3–4 days in the fridge in an airtight container. It also freezes well in portions.
Can you make the soup without coconut milk?
Yes. Swap the coconut milk for cooking cream, oat cream or just more stock. With cream the soup becomes milder, with just stock lighter.
More soups and stews to cook by the fire? Try creamy mushroom soup, a hearty goulash soup or bake a frying pan bread to dip in the soup.
More guides and recipes to read
More autumn by the fire