Sweet Potato Soup
125 Comments
Updated Feb 15, 2022
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Sweet potato soup is the perfect fall and winter soup. It’s a rich blend of creamy sweet potatoes, carrots, fresh ginger, and a hint of spice. Top it off with a swirl of coconut cream, watercress, and crushed pistachios for a delicious and filling weeknight meal.
But if you’re looking for sides and proteins to serve with it, you can’t go wrong with my mashed cauliflower, green beans and crispy baked chicken thighs.
The Best Sweet Potato Soup Recipe
If you’ve been following me for awhile now, you’ll know that sweet potatoes are one of my favorite ingredients to cook with. From roasting to spiralizing, this vegetable never fails when it comes to giving a scrumptious, natural fall flavor.
So now that we’re knee-deep in sweet potato season, turning it into a creamy soup is a no brainer! This sweet potato soup is velvety, savory, and has a kick of spice that will keep you coming back for more.
What Type Of Sweet Potato To Use
Nowadays, it’s very common to get confused with the variety of sweet potatoes available at your local market. Some are called yams, some are called sweet potatoes, but how do we know exactly what is what? Here’s a quick breakdown of what you should look out for:
- Choose the orange and red skinned potatoes. These are known as the “moist varieties” and tend to be sweeter, creamier, and less starchy.
- Don’t be confused with yams. Sometimes the red and orange skinned potatoes can be labeled as yams. But these tend to be more starchy and dry.
- Look for smooth skins and no soft spots. Take a closer look and make sure there are no discolorations and that the potato is nice and firm.
How To Make Sweet Potato Soup
Watch the video below and follow the step-by-step directions. It comes together easily!
- Cook the diced onions and carrots in a large stock pot over medium high heat. Cook with oil and stir frequently for 6-8 minutes until the carrots begin to soften.
- Add the garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, and paprika to the pot and stir for about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the diced sweet potato and vegetable broth to the pot. Turn onto high heat, bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to low to let the soup simmer for about 15-20 minutes.
- Transfer the soup to a high powered blender and blend on high for one minute, or until it’s creamy enough.
- Garnish it with coconut cream or yogurt, chopped pistachios, red pepper flakes, cracked black pepper, and watercress – and serve!
Tips When Blending
- Make sure your sweet potatoes and carrots are fork tender. You don’t want to be blending vegetables that are still stiff. Otherwise, you will be left with a non-creamy and slightly chunky soup base.
- Leave the top portion of your blender open for steam to escape. If you keep this opening closed, pressure will build inside your blender and most likely pop the lid open. A messy kitchen is not ideal!
- Do not fill your blender past the maximum fill line. Not only will it not blend as smoothly as you want it to, but you might unexpectedly pop the lid open.
Can You Freeze Sweet Potato Soup?
The answer is yes! If you plan to freeze this soup for another rainy day, you can store in a freezer safe container like Weck Jars, or silicone soup trays such as the Souper Cubes.
If you plan to just save it for later in the week, just pour it into a pot or container and put it in the fridge. This soup will be good for up to 5 days in the fridge.
Give These Sweet Potato Recipes A Try
If you loved this sweet potato soup, I’ve got a few other delicious sweet potato recipes that will keep your belly full and happy this season.
- Sweet Potato Breakfast Hash
- Warm Sweet Potato Noodles, Cabbage, and Lentil Salad
- Baked Sweet Potatoes
- Roasted Sweet Potatoes
- BBQ Chicken Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Curly Sweet Potato Fries with Garlic Aioli
- Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole
Want more healthy soups? I’ve got you covered with several more Vitamix Soup Recipes! A new flavor for every day of the week.
Sweet Potato Soup Recipe
Description
Video
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil, or olive oil
- 3 carrots, sliced
- 1 yellow onion
- 1 1/2 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 4 cups vegetable broth, or more for thinner consistency
Garnish
- watercress
- pistachios
- coconut cream or yogurt
- red pepper flakes
- cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large stock pot on medium high heat. Add the diced onion and carrots and stir frequently for 6-8 minutes, or until the carrots have softened slightly.
- Add the garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes and paprika. Stir for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant.
- Add the diced sweet potato and vegetable broth. Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat to low, add a lid and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the sweet potato is fork tender.
- Use a ladle to transfer the soup ingredients to a high-powered blender. Blend on high for one minute or until creamy. You can add more broth or water for a thinner consistency.
- To serve, pour into a bowl and garnish with coconut cream or yogurt, chopped pistachios, red pepper flakes, cracked black pepper and watercress.
Lisa's Tips
- Try not to exceed 1 1/2 pounds of sweet potato, otherwise you may exceed the maximum fill line on your blender.
- Remember that you can always add a little water or broth as necessary to achieve a thinner consistency.
Nutrition
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Could you use the ‘soup’ speed on the Vitamix blender to cook this? Or do you need to cook in the pot?
It’s best to cook in a pot first to make the sweet potato soft enough to blend.
Hi Lisa
How many sweet potatoes and carrots can I use for 6 people
How many potatoes are appr 1 and 1/2 pounds
Not sure if I should attempt 1X or 2X the ingredients
Thanks
I would double the ingredients, with some leftovers to enjoy later in the week!
Great recipe. If I freeze in portions, how long can I keep them frozen please. Thanks
They can be frozen for up to 3 months :)
Soooooo good.
Hi Liz – Happy to hear you’re loving this sweet potato soup!
Loved the velvety texture after hs blending along with the heat it brought after the first spoonful. Soooooo good!!!
Also having the simple ingredients that were already on hand make it a Perfect Soup.
Thank you for sharing.
Hi Amanda – I’m glad you loved this sweet potato soup!
It looks delicious but impossible to get to the video with all the commercials
Hi Nancy – Glad you enjoyed this soup!
I love to watch youtiytube!
Thanks Donna! Happy you enjoy my videos. :)
This soup is amazing! I think the addition of fresh chopped ginger is the secret ingredient that makes this so good, I will definitely make this again!
Thanks so much, Melissa! Happy you loved it!
Really a great soup on a chilly winter’s night. So many flavors from so few ingredients. Your instructions and recipe were very well done and easy to follow. Thanks! Also, I added a Serrano pepper to give it a bit of a zip and it was an excellent addition.
Hi Mike – I’m glad you love this sweet potato soup!
Another great soup recipe Lisa! We love it! It was super easy to prep and the taste was excellent! The ginger/garlic combo smelled heavenly as it cooked and tasted even better! I added a smidge more broth, but not much as I like it on the thicker side. I used an immersion blender instead of a blender. Thank you Lisa!!
Hi Susan – Wonderful! I’m happy to hear you loved this sweet potato soup.
This is the perfect sweet potato soup. The little kick of chilli complements the sweetness of the soup, and the texture is so velvety and comforting. Sometimes I just drink it from a mug to warm me up. I always make a double batch because it’s so easy. If I have a fresh red chilli in my fridge I use that in place of the red pepper flakes, but sometimes I even do both (I like heat!)
Thanks for leaving a review, Sarah! This sweet potato soup is such a cozy hug.
This was amazing as a thanksgiving first course. I got distracted and forgot the garnish and it was still fantastic- I’ll make this again! Super flavorful and a nice kick from the red pepper flakes.
Happy you loved it, Jennifer!
very yummy it’s the best soup ever
Happy to hear you love this sweet potato soup!
AMAZING recipe. I added nutmeg for a bit of a more warm touch and it was amazingggg, I’ll be making this again soon!💛💛💛
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed this sweet potato soup Dawning!
I was not a big fan of sweet potatoes, until I made this delicious soup. Not only was it the best soup I ever had, it was easy to make. Thank you Lisa for an amazing dish!
Thrilled to hear you’re loving this sweet potato soup!
This was sooo good! Definitely going to make it every week as part of my meal prep. Love the ginger in this too!!
Glad you’re loving this soup Patty!
This has become one of our favorite soups! The flavor of ginger takes it to the next level! With or without the garnish, it’s delicious!!!
I made this for my husband mostly to treat him, and wasn’t sure how he would like it. After a few noisy slurps, he just kept saying how much he really liked the flavors and the texture. Thanks so much! I was a little leary since I’m not a huge fan of sweet potatoes, but it was really tasty! I wonder if I could do this with pumpkin…???
The soup was outstanding. We are calorie counting..per the 254 cal count, whats the serving ?
Each serving is about 1 to 1.5 cups.