This spiced sweet potato soup is warm, nourishing, and deeply comforting. It's a beautifully simple one-pot soup that requires little more than chunks of sweet potato simmered in a flavorful, creamy coconut broth. But the layers of flavor from a gorgeous blend of spices, the bright bitterness of fresh kale, and the crunch of crispy roasted chickpeas make this soup anything but ordinary.
The two things that I love the most about this soup is the contrast in textures and the many layers of flavor.
The soup includes a rich blend of spices, but don't let that scare you off. There's no need to measure precisely and I've included a couple of pre-packaged spice blend suggestions if your spice cabinet is looking a little sparse and you don't want to add 8 new spices to your shopping list.
The combination of slightly sweet coconut milk, creamy sweet potatoes, the bitter brightness of kale, and the warm blend of spices is absolutely wonderful.
And the crispy chickpeas! I love topping soup with crispy roasted chickpeas. It's an especially great combo with simple, creamy soups like this potato and white bean soup.
The recipe calls for roasting one can of chickpeas, but they make such a delicious snack, you might want to go ahead and roast two. Your future self will thank you, trust me.
I especially love to serve this soup when we're entertaining. It's casual without being boring, can easily be prepared in advance, and pairs well with any kind of protein or salad.
But, most of the time, I make this soup on weeknights when the air is crisp and cool and I want something warm, plant-based, and nourishing. And I always want to eat it with bread, or if I have the time, homemade dinner rolls to soak up all that delicious broth.
xo
-Rebecca
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Ingredients needed to prepare this recipe
Cost of ingredients: $24 total/ $4 per serving
I purchased these ingredients at a Safeway grocery store in Colorado. The cost will vary depending on where you are and where you shop.
- One 15-ounce can of chickpeas: These crispy oven roasted chickpeas are a delicious snack, so you might want to double up and roast two cans in the hopes that you'll have some left over!
- Extra virgin olive oil: or any kind of oil. Coconut, vegetable, or canola are all great choices.
- Spices and seasoning: Salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, cardamom, cumin, coriander, cloves, ground mustard, smoked paprika, cinnamon, ginger
- A few cloves of fresh garlic
- 1 yellow onion onion
- 1 red bell pepper
- 2 pounds of sweet potatoes
- Vegetable stock, or Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Base mixed with water
- Coconut milk
- Kale
Additions and substitutions
- Instead of crispy chickpeas: If chickpeas are not your thing, top warm bowls of soup with anything that brings some crunch. Chopped roasted nuts or seeds, croutons, or even crispy fried onions!
- Add some additional veggies: This is one of those recipes to which almost any veggie will be at home. Add tender vegetables like asparagus towards the end of cooking so they don't overcook and get mushy.
- There are a lot of spices in this soup. If you don't have a well-stocked spice cabinet, you might want to go for a blend. Garam masala, Baharat seasoning or Ras el Hanout are the perfect type of spice blend for this soup.
- Want the creamy texture without using coconut milk? Substitute any kind of plant based or dairy milk for the coconut milk. If you're feeling decadent, add a little cream or half and half for soup that tastes downright luxurious.
- For a slightly meaty flavor, substitute beef stock or bone broth for the vegetable stock.
Step-by-step photos and instructions
Drain the chickpeas and spread them out on a paper towel. Dab at them with another paper towel to absorb any excess liquid. Spread them out onto a parchment lined baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt.
Roast the chickpeas in a preheated oven until they've darkened substantially in color and are crispy.
Add all the spices to a bowl. (There's no need to be super exact when measuring the spices, by the way. Eyeballing it is just fine.)
Peel the sweet potatoes and chop them into bite size chunks. The size of the chunks is up to you. Be aware that large pieces will take longer to cook than small pieces.
Peel and chop the onion and toss it into a large sauce pan along with about 2 tablespoons of oil. Set it over medium heat and cook until the onions are soft and translucent.
While the onion cooks, remove the stem and seeds from the bell peppers and chop them into small-ish bite size pieces. Peel the cloves of garlic and chop them into small pieces.
Add the chopped bell pepper, garlic, and spices to the saucepan with the onion. Cook, for a minute or two to let the flavors in the spices begin to open up.
Add the chunks of sweet potato and stir them around in all the spices for a minute or so.
Add enough broth to almost but not quite cover the sweet potatoes. Turn up the heat and bring the liquid to a boil. Cover the pan partially (leave the pan's lid slightly askew), turn the heat down to medium-low, and let the potatoes simmer until they are very soft. Taste the broth and add some salt and pepper if needed.
When the sweet potatoes are soft, add the coconut milk and kale to the pot (you might need to add the kale in batches, letting it cook down before adding more). Cook, stirring from time to time, until the kale is wilted. Taste and add more salt and pepper if you like.
Serve hot bowls of spiced sweet potato soup topped with a handful of crispy chickpeas.
Serving suggestions: What to pair with sweet potato soup
I feel all soup should be served with bread, tortillas, or biscuits for dipping in all that rich, flavorful broth. A crusty loaf of anything from your local bakery will do well here, but if you're a baker, consider some homemade rolls or flaky buttermilk biscuits.
If you'd like to add some additional protein, serve sweet potato soup with simple grilled chicken, or any kind of roasted or pan-fried fish.
Or, go the soup and salad route and serve sweet potato soup with one of these delicious salads.
If you give this recipe a try, let me know! Scroll down to leave a comment and rate it!
📖 Recipe
Spiced Sweet Potato Soup with Coconut, Chickpeas, and Kale
This spiced sweet potato soup is warm, nourishing, and deeply comforting. It’s a beautifully simple one-pot soup that requires little more than chunks of sweet potato simmered in a flavorful, creamy coconut broth. But the layers of flavor from a gorgeous blend of spices, the bright bitterness of fresh kale, and the crunch of crispy roasted chickpeas make this soup anything but ordinary.
Ingredients
- One 15-ounce can of chickpeas
- 3 tablespoons oil: extra virgin olive oil, coconut, vegetable, or canola oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon cardamom
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- ¼ teaspoon cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 3-5 cloves of garlic
- 1 medium yellow onion onion
- 1 red bell peppers
- 2 pounds of sweet potatoes
- 3-5 cups vegetable stock (or Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Base mixed with water)
- 12-14 ounces of coconut milk
- about ¾ of a pound of kale
Instructions
- Roast the chickpeas: Heat the oven to 425°F (218°C). Drain the chickpeas and spread them out on a paper towel. Dab at them with another paper towel to absorb any excess liquid. Spread them out onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil over the chickpeas, sprinkle them with some salt and toss them around to mix. Pop them in the oven to crisp while you make the stew. It will take 35 - 55 minutes to get truly crispy chickpeas - the time can vary substantially, so if yours are taking a while to crisp, don’t worry. It’s important to leave them in the oven until they are a dark golden brown and crispy.
- Add all the spices to a bowl and stir to mix. (There’s no need to be super exact when measuring the spices. If you're comfortable doing so, eyeballing it is fine.)
- Peel the sweet potatoes and chop them into bite size chunks.
- Peel and chop the onion and toss it into a large saucepan along with about 2 tablespoons of oil. Stir the onions around in the oil and set the pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring from time to time, until the onion is soft and translucent.
- While the onion cooks, remove the stem and seeds from the bell pepper and chop it into small-ish bite size pieces. Peel and chop the garlic cloves into small pieces. When the onion is soft and translucent add the chopped bell pepper and garlic, along with the bowl of spices. Cook, stirring, for a minute or two to let the flavors in the spices begin to open up.
- Add the chunks of sweet potato and stir them around in all the spices for a minute or so.
- Add enough broth (or Better than Bouillon Base mixed with water) to almost but not quite cover the sweet potatoes. Turn up the heat and bring the liquid to a boil. Cover the pan partially (leave the pan's lid slightly askew), turn the heat down to medium-low, and let the potatoes simmer until they are very soft. Taste the broth and add some salt and pepper if needed.
- Check on the chickpeas - they need to cook until they are crispy. Pull one out of the oven from time to time and taste it to see how close to crispy they are. They will get very dark brown but watch them closely at the end so they don't burn.
- When the sweet potatoes are soft, add the coconut milk and kale to the pot (you might need to add the kale in batches, letting it cook down before adding more). Cook, stirring from time to time, until the kale is wilted. Taste and add more salt and pepper if you like.
- Serve bowls of sweet potato stew topped with crispy chickpeas.
Notes
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 326Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 12gUnsaturated Fat: 8gSodium: 621mgCarbohydrates: 36gFiber: 5gSugar: 12gProtein: 5g
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