Tom Kha Gai Butternut Squash Soup

I used some leftover butternut squash and cooked it directly in the broth instead of roasting, but it turned out fabulous anyway and I added rice vermicelli to make it more filling. For mushrooms I used shiitake.

2 feet of snowfall out there so I decided it was a great day for warm, spicy and nourishing soup- my roommate is vegan so I found your recipe and followed pretty exactly. Loved the lime (really brings out other flavors) and the only things I might change are using a bigger squash and making sure I had cilantro at serving.

My family loves this. I also add shrimp to it sometimes. One of my favorite recipes!

WOW! I had never had this type of soup before, but wanted to use up some leftover butternut squash and coconut milk. This ended up being some of the most delicious soup I’ve ever had!! Definitely recommend trying this out, and it was so easy.

Loved this Thai inspired version. We cooked shrimp on the side to add. Marinated it in garlic, serrano, ginger, lemongrass paste, lime, EVOO, onion, and salt/pepper. Next time I want to add rice noodles or kelp noodles plus strain out some of the garlic/ginger/lemon grass paste so the broth is smoother (I added extra). Thank you for this great new recipe!!

I made it exactly as described in the recipe except added a full red Thai Chilli pepper. I think it could have used another pepper for an extra kick. Super tasty and a fun take on Tom Kha Gai soup.

This soup is fantastic, I have frozen cubes of lime in the freezer so it is easy to just melt one and add to reheated soup with minimal effort. I think the lime is a pretty critical ingredient. I didn’t have the chili’s but I did have a jar of fried chili’s in oil and that seemed to be a good substitution for that bit of heat. I didn’t have vegan fish sauce but I did have vegan oyster sauce so I made that substitution also. This soup is great on its own and I have also served it over rice, both equally delicious.

Flavorful! Some minor changes I made -I used full fat coconut milk, added some curry paste and like others recommended I put the entire soup in the blender (minus mushrooms). Then ran it through a mesh strainer to remove some of the gritty texture. Delicious!!

Wicked tasty! We used half a red onion instead of a shallot and added a block of silken tofu to the blender with the roasted squash with some extra veggie broth. Found the lemongrass paste far easier to work with than the stalks themselves. A fun combination!

Flavor was good but ours came out very thin, with a medium squash. Any suggestions?

Delicious and savory!!! Highly recommend especially in autumn!!!!! Loved the lemongrass paste. I also added a little goat cheese into my plate at the end. Note: wear gloves when you peel the butternut squash! It can cause your skin to feel super chalky!

Delicious!

I followed the recipe almost exactly. I left out the mushrooms and my butternut squash cooked for a good 45 minutes. I doubled the fish sauce and added no salt and used full fat coconut milk. Since I didn’t have any peppers, I added sriracha. Once I thought it was ready, I added more ginger and sriracha. I used an imersion blender to cut down on cleaning. As an additional treat, I baked the seeds in the oven (right after cooking the squash), so I have an extra treat! I think next time, I’ll use lemongrass paste, instead of actual lemongrass…oh, if you do use actual lemongrass, make sure you count how many pieces you toss in so you know how many to take out before blending!

Hi Dana, I have made this soup twice now in the last few months. First time I tried to stay true to your ingredients, though sometimes we work with what we have. Only variances we’re full fat coconut milk, an entire bunch of wheatgrass (happy accident), did not add salt or mushrooms, and used an instant pot for butternut squash (you can cook it with the 1 cup of vegetable broth and then add all to food processor). Must say that this has to be the most delectable, earthy, savory dishes I have made. Have since used paste for both ginger and wheatgrass with similar results, always boiled down to desired thickness. This is a treat. Thank you for sharing. I am spreading the word.

I really wanted to like this but I didn’t. It was overall very lacking in depth of flavour and very thin, even with butternut squash to thicken.

Delicious. Made this as is. I bought fresh lemongrass from the Asian store and trimmed it and stored in the freezer. The only change I made was added 1 cup of broccoli then puréed it with the squash and rest of soup. Used an immersion blender. Soothing and filling. Even my picky eater husband loved it.

So delicious! I usually make curry squash soup, I wanted to try something new, and I knew this website would not let me down. Can’t wait to make it again.

This was so delicious. I made a few changes…didn’t have broth so I used water and added a few seasonings. I used a lemongrass powder and I puréed the whole batch so that everything blended smoothly then I added it back to pot to simmer with mushrooms.

Excellent recipe! I used a Persian lime infused in the broth. YUM!

I normally don’t leave reviews but this soup is phenom. I didn’t have ginger or lemongrass, so I subbed a little bit of red curry paste instead. Delicious

I HIGHLY recommend pureeing the whole thing instead of just with one cup of the broth, it made a huge difference in the texture. It was a bit gritty and when I pureed the whole thing it was just super smooth and heavenly. Otherwise really amazing, the flavors are outstanding and understated in a nice way. Someone said to double the ginger/lemograss etc and add garlic and curry paste if you want something with more of a kick and I’ll probably try that next time I make this.

This is incredible. I made it, added two thai chilis for an extra punch. Ihave been dreaming if it since.

I can’t wait to make it again <3<3

Wow I want this soup on hand ALL. THE. TIME. It is so comforting and has insanely wonderful flavor. Lemongrass + lime is perfect. Thank you!

Such a delicious take on Tom Kha! The butternut squash flavor blends so nicely with the traditional ingredients in this soup. I added sliced shitake mushrooms and whole shimeji mushrooms (picked up from the farmers’ market). The lime juice really makes the flavors in this soup pop! Thank you so much for your creativity in this recipe!!

I made this and served at a dinner party. It was a big hit! I followed the recipe pretty closely and it was very easy to make. I had a jalapeño on hand so I used a few slices of that and it added a really nice amount of heat. I also did go ahead and use the fish sauce. I felt like the flavors really developed more as it simmered and I think adding the cilantro and squeeze of lime before serving really made it. Thank you for the recipe! I will definitely make this one again.

I have a question. Your photo looks so thick. When I make this soup, it is SO delicious but it is not thick at all. What am I doing wrong?

I just made this today, (feeling under the weather and it sounded perfect.) Well it is DELISH! I did not have a serrano pepper so I used some crushed red pepper instead, (about 1/8 tsp.) Also, did not have fish sauce so I subbed soy sauce. Health and tasty! Highly recommend!

Another delightful recipe, glad I don’t have to share it (the soup that is)! Yummy!

Loved this soup! I used shitake mushrooms (yummy!) and I did make a few substitutions based on what I had in the cupboard (regular coconut milk, jalapeno, and small white onion instead of low fat, serrano, and shallot) and it was still great. Definitely don’t skip the lime – it adds complexity and brightness. Both of us loved it, and it reheated well for lunch the next day.

Wow. This soup is just delightful and we are adding it to our family recipe book. I used carrots in place of the butternut squash because that is what I had, and it was as soothing and flavorful as could be. Both my husband and my 9 month old loved it! :) Thank you!

Addictive!

Fast and simple! With 2 of us this came together in no time, served over leftover cous cous with lots of lime, cilantro and basil. We added chicken from last nights Sunday roast ?? Sooo comforting and delicious, perfect cold weather soup ?

Thank goodness this soup was absolutely delicious as I had to triple the recipe! I had already cut up and roasted 2 large squash (2.25 kg) for another recipe before changing my mind about it (I became suspicious of the coconut milk to water ratio…. no broth? hmmmm…). After a quick search, I found this ingredient list and it felt exactly right. I figured my 2 big squash were equivalent to 3 small ones. Based on the colour of my soup, it was probably a little lean on the squash, but it was so good I would do it again that way. My lemon grass was skinny so I used 4 stalks (x3 = 12) and regular-sodium veggie broth. Lemongrass balance was perfect and it was by no means too salty. I did not have mushrooms (sniff-sniff) but they can be added later. I saw some other comments about it not turning out very thick, but you actually want a Thai soup on the runnier side. Shouldn’t be like a traditional pureed North American root vegetable soup. I read the instructions too quickly so I added the fish sauce before boiling/simmering, but nothing bad happened! Also, I didn’t realize there was no blending of the entire batch, so I grated my ginger very coarsely to save time – I don’t mind, but some guests might, so I blended it; however I have now lost the nice shallot slices. My chile was Sambal oelek paste: I recommend it as its very easy to control the heat. It would be nice to have an explanation about how to get the Gai (chicken) into the soup if we don’t want a full veggie version. Thank you for the good memories of Thai restaurants with a nice North American (squash) twist!

Absolutely FABULOUS! I used a jalapeño…seeds and all and it was spicy (to my liking). No mushrooms on hand, but did not miss them. I was also out of veggie broth, so used chicken broth. A repeater for sure!

I absolutely loved this soup and I don’t usually even like soup! I replaced the shallot with a small white onion (because that’s all I had), doubled the ginger, left out the lemongrass (didn’t have any) and used the whole Thai chili. I added the cilantro into the soup as well as on top when serving. I added a lot of fresh squeezed lemon juice as well.

I made this night night minus the fish sauce or lemongrass and subbed a scallion for a shallot (only because it’s what I did and didn’t have on hand) and it was delish! The aromas in my house were wonderfully Thai. I threw together a quick asparagus, onion, and shredded cabbage stirfry and dinner was all set in less than 30 minutes.
I look forward to experimenting with the recipe further based on the comments above. Thanks Dana, love your recipes!

I often skim your website by searching what I have to cook with and then seeing what minimalist baker might add to my ideas. (today I roasted a butternut squash and was debating if I should make cupcakes or soup with it) I saw this and thought brilliant! Using what I had on-hand, I made the closest version of it. I squeezed tons of lime to make up for no lemongrass and used 3/4 of my squash since my soups are always too thick for me. I’m eating it right now and it’s delicious! I threw in turmeric to oomph the color (it is Halloween today lol) and will use the leftover butternut for that hummus-hybrid recipe you made. Just wanted to reach out and say thank you for always sharing your creations – I’m not a baker (I don’t even have cupcake pans or any flour at all to make the cupcakes I’m craving) BUT! I do love to cook and you’re one of the only sites I actually use for referencing as I cook.

Me and my husband love this soup, it provides an incredibly satisfying combination of flavours. We both feel that the lime added just before you eat it is vital to get just the right taste. Without the lime it isn’t nearly as good.

Just made this. So delicious! Love your site! It’s fall in Colorado and this soup is perfect!

We loved this soup! I added a bunch of chopped up kale since I was out of mushrooms and threw in some crispy tofu. It worked perfectly. In place of the fish sauce I used a little tamari (tip from previous comment, thanks!) The soup was not very thick so I added a 1/4 cup multi purpose flour and that thickened it up. Served it over jasmine rice and made it a meal. Next time I’ll add mushrooms and red bell pepper along with the kale and tofu. YUMMY!!