Keto Coconut Curry Soup

This creamy keto coconut curry soup is thickened with cauliflower instead of flour or potatoes, and it's on the table in about 15 minutes. As written it's completely vegetarian (vegan, too), made with vegetable broth and no fish sauce, so it's an easy pick when you're after a keto vegetarian soup that still feels cozy and filling.

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This recipe is about all the C's: creamy, coconut, curry and cauliflower. It started with a half can of coconut milk left over from a Mistletoe Margarita, and it turned into one of those warming soups I keep coming back to. Other than the garlic paste, everything comes from the pantry or the freezer, and there's no chopping at all, so it's ideal when you need lunch in a hurry.

Key Ingredients & Substitutions

• Coconut milk. Use canned, full fat, unsweetened coconut milk (I like Thai Kitchen), not the thin coconut milk beverage in a carton. The fat is what makes the soup rich and silky, and it keeps you full. Shake the can well first so the cream and liquid are mixed. Light coconut milk works, but the soup will be thinner.
• Curry powder or curry paste. The recipe uses 2 tablespoons of mild curry powder, which gives a warm, golden, family-friendly flavor. For a more Thai-style soup, swap it for 1 to 2 tablespoons of red or yellow curry paste and stir it into the coconut milk before you heat it. If you want to keep the soup vegetarian, read the label: Thai Kitchen red curry paste is vegan, but many other brands contain shrimp paste or fish sauce. (If you love that flavor, my Low Carb Thai Green Curry uses curry paste too.)
• Vegetable broth. Vegetable broth keeps the soup vegetarian. Chicken broth or bone broth works just as well if you aren't cooking for vegetarians. Pick a low sodium broth if you can, so you control the salt.
• Cauliflower. This is the secret thickener. I use a 12 oz bag of steam-in-the-microwave cauliflower to save time, but fresh florets are fine (see the tips below). Frozen cauliflower rice works too and blends even faster.
• Garlic paste and cumin. A tube of garlic paste is a real time-saver here. One tablespoon of freshly minced garlic does the same job. Ground cumin adds an earthy depth that rounds out the curry.
• Pepitas. Shelled pumpkin seeds add crunch and a little color on top. Use store-bought raw pepitas or toast your own following my Roasted Pumpkin Seeds recipe.

Helpful Tips

Start the cauliflower first. Pop the bag of cauliflower in the microwave before you do anything else. By the time the coconut milk mixture comes to a boil, it will be cooked and ready to go into the pot.

Using fresh cauliflower? Add the florets to the pot with the coconut milk and broth, then simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, until they are completely fork-tender. Undercooked cauliflower won't blend smoothly and leaves the soup grainy.

Use a deep pot. Coconut milk can bubble up quickly as it comes to a boil, and an immersion blender splashes in a shallow pan. A deep-sided pot keeps everything where it belongs. If you use a regular blender instead, let the soup cool for a few minutes, fill the jug no more than halfway and vent the lid.

Season at the end. Broths and curry powders vary a lot in salt, so taste the soup once it's blended. It usually needs a generous pinch of salt and some black pepper, and a pinch of cayenne if you like a little heat.

Adjust the thickness. For a thicker soup, add a few more florets before blending. For a thinner one, stir in a splash of extra broth or water until it's just how you like it.

Variations

• Add chicken. Stir 1 to 2 cups of shredded cooked chicken into the blended soup and heat it through for a heartier lunch. Leftover rotisserie chicken is perfect here. (This makes the soup no longer vegetarian, so use whichever broth you like.)
• Add shrimp. Simmer raw peeled shrimp in the blended soup for 3 to 4 minutes, just until pink, or top each bowl with a few pieces of Keto Garlic Butter Shrimp.
• Thai-style. Use red curry paste instead of curry powder, and finish with a squeeze of lime juice and some fresh cilantro or Thai basil.
• Extra veggies. Stir a couple of handfuls of baby spinach into the hot soup after blending. It wilts in a minute and adds color.
• Spicy. Add a sliced red chili with the coconut milk or a drizzle of chili oil on top.

Serving Ideas

This recipe makes about 3 cups, which is four starter-size servings of about ¾ cup each, or two bigger bowls for lunch. A starter-size serving comes in at around 8g net carbs. A lunch-size bowl is around 15g net carbs, so it's still low carb but not keto-level, and you can keep it lower by stirring in some chicken or shrimp instead of making the bowl bigger.

Top each bowl with pepitas, a swirl of extra coconut milk or a sprinkle of fresh cilantro. For a fuller meal, serve it with a crisp green salad, a few low carb crackers for dunking, or a scoop of cauliflower rice in the bottom of the bowl.

Storing & Freezing

Let the soup cool, then keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. It thickens as it chills, so add a splash of broth or water when you reheat it on the stove or in the microwave. Store the pepitas separately so they stay crunchy.

This soup freezes well for up to 3 months. Freeze it in single portions so you can grab one for a quick lunch. Thaw it overnight in the fridge, then reheat gently, stirring often. Coconut milk can separate a little after freezing, so give it a good whisk (or a quick blitz with the immersion blender) and it will be smooth and creamy again. If you added shrimp, freeze the soup before adding them and cook them fresh when you reheat.

More Low Carb Soups

If you loved this soup, here are a few more you might enjoy:

• Cauliflower Fennel Soup
• Keto Alfredo Soup
• Keto Turkey Soup
• The Best Low Carb Vegetarian Recipes

Inspired by this recipe.

📖 Recipe

StepAwayFromTheCarbs.com

Keto Coconut Curry Soup

4.80 from 5 votes

This creamy keto coconut curry soup is thickened with cauliflower and ready in about 15 minutes. It's vegetarian (and vegan) as written, with about 8g net carbs per ¾-cup serving.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Makes: 4 servings

Net Carbs: 8

Calories: 207

Ingredients Equipment Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

• 1 cup full fat unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 cup vegetable broth or chicken broth if you don't need it vegetarian
• 2 tbs curry powder
• 1 tbs garlic paste
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 12 oz cooked cauliflower from a 12 oz steam-in bag, or fresh florets (see notes)
• salt and pepper to taste
• pinch cayenne pepper optional
• 2 tbs pepitas shelled pumpkin seeds, to garnish

Equipment

• Thai Kitchen Organic Unsweetened Coconut Milk, 13.66 fl oz
• McCormick Curry Powder, 1.75 oz
• KitchenAid 3-Speed Hand Blender

Step-by-Step Instructions

 

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1. Start cooking the cauliflower first: microwave the steam-in bag according to the package directions (or see the notes for fresh cauliflower).
2. In a large, deep pot, combine the coconut milk, vegetable broth, curry powder, garlic paste and ground cumin. Whisk together and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring now and then.
3. Turn off the heat and add the cooked cauliflower. Blend with an immersion blender until completely smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. (Or carefully blend in a jug blender, filling it no more than halfway and venting the lid.)
4. Taste and season generously with salt and pepper, plus a pinch of cayenne if you like a little heat. Add a splash of broth or water if you'd like it thinner.
5. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds).

Nutrition

Calories: 207kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 5gFat: 18gSaturated Fat: 13gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 273mgPotassium: 523mgFiber: 4gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 162IUVitamin C: 44mgCalcium: 56mgIron: 3mgNet Carbs: 8g

Notes

To make this as quick as possible, I use a 12 oz bag of steam-in-the-microwave cauliflower and start it cooking before anything else. If you're using fresh cauliflower, add the florets to the pot with the coconut milk and broth and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, until completely fork-tender, before blending.

Nutrition is per starter-size serving of about ¾ cup. Two lunch-size bowls (about 1 ½ cups each) are roughly 15g net carbs each.

To keep it vegetarian, use vegetable broth, and if you swap the curry powder for curry paste, choose one without shrimp paste or fish sauce.

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Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is my best approximation. Net carbs are calculated as the total grams carbs minus the total grams of fiber.