Pumpkin Soup in the Slow Cooker

Name: Slow Cooker Pumpkin Soup
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 300 min
Total time: 305 min
Ingredients: 1 cup onion (finely chopped); 4 tablespoons butter or coconut oil (dairy free); 4 cups chicken broth; 16 ounces can pumpkin puree; 1 bay leaf; ½ teaspoon fresh thyme; ½ teaspoon ground ginger (or, 2-3 teaspoons fresh ginger, finely chopped); ½ teaspoon curry powder; ½ teaspoon kosher salt; ¼ teaspoon pepper; ¼ teaspoon dried turmeric (or, 1 teaspoon fresh turmeric, finely chopped); ½ cup canned coconut milk

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This pumpkin soup in the slow cooker is a tasty bowl of comfort and savory goodness with pumpkin, onions, coconut milk, turmeric, curry, ginger, and thyme. Super easy to make AND healthy - dairy-free, gluten-free, low carb, and keto.

Why This Recipe Works

"This pumpkin soup slow cooker recipe is "souper" easy to make and you'll love the Asian twist with ginger, turmeric, garlic, and coconut milk. Did I mention this is a healthy soup? Enjoy!" 🙂 -Kori

Easiest Pumpkin Soup

I'm going to go out on a limb to say that this is the easiest pumpkin soup recipe - just dump everything into the slow cooker and cook until the onions are tender then add the coconut milk. That's it.

If you serve pumpkin soup for Thanksgiving or a Fall meal then I know you will appreciate that you can prep this recipe in advance and cook it the day you plan to serve it. It's totally hands-off.

So Much Flavor

When September and October roll around I'm ready to get this soup going. It's warm and cozy and there's a lot of flavor packed into this scrumptious recipe.

My favorite part? It has a subtle Asian influence with ginger, turmeric, garlic, and coconut milk.

Healthy

This creamy pumpkin soup is a healthy recipe that is dairy-free, gluten-free, low carb, keto, and has no added sugar.

It's dairy free and creamy - without using any cream. Use coconut oil instead of butter.
Gluten free. There are no glutens added to this recipe.
With only 6.3 grams of net carbs, 12.7 grams fat, and 3.7 grams of protein this soup is both low carb and keto.
Pumpkin naturally has some sugar content, but no sugar of any kind is added to this soup. 🙂

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients you'll need to make slow cooker pumpkin soup:

Please see the recipe card for exact quantities.

Pumpkin Puree - only use unsweetend pumpkin puree. It can be canned pumpkin puree, or fresh pumpkin.
Vegetable or Chicken Broth
Onion - use yellow or even a sweet onion
Salted Butter or Coconut Oil - Use coconut oil for dairy free.
Thyme - I used fresh, but dried thyme will also work.
Curry Powder - use as much or as little as you want.
Turmeric Powder
Bay Leaf
Ginger Powder - to keep this recipe simple I used ginger powder, but my favorite way is to use ginger paste or fresh finely diced ginger. The recipe calls for a couple of teaspoons but add it to your taste.
Kosher Salt or Sea Salt and Ground Black Pepper
Coconut Milk - for best flavor use the canned coconut milk, full fat.

Variations

If you don't like coconut milk you can add heavy cream.
Try using coconut oil in place of the butter.
Play around with fresh herbs such as parsley, marjoram, rosemary, chives, basil, or cilantro. You could add a single herb or a combination.
Substitute butternut squash for the pumpkin.
Use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth if desired.
Is the soup too thick? Add more chicken or vegetable broth.
You can leave the diced onion as is after cooking, puree the soup using an immersion blender or blender. Be careful the soup is hot! Don't overfill the blender.

Instructions

Here's how to slow cook pumpkin soup:

For complete instructions, please see the printable recipe card below.

Adding all pumpkin soup ingredients to a large white oval crockpot.

Step 1: Add the onion, pumpkin puree, chicken broth, coconut oil (or butter), thyme, curry, turmeric, ginger, bay leaf, salt, and pepper.

Adding coconut milk to the fully cooked pumpkin soup in a slow cooker.

Step 2: Slow cook pumpkin soup on low for 4 to 6 hours or until the onions are tender. Stir in coconut milk. Season to taste.

How To Serve

Pumpkin soup is a classic starter or side dish to many Fall and Thanksgiving meals, but here are just a few more ideas on how you can serve:

Toppings. I love to serve my pumpkin soup with a drizzle of coconut milk and chives.
Full meal idea! Try adding diced cooked bacon after cooking, or half a pound of diced boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs in when you add all the soup ingredients (cook it in the pumpkin soup).
Serve as a side to any roasted, grilled, or baked chicken, beef, poultry. It also goes well with cordon blue stuffed pork loin or slow cooker turkey breast.
Like it spicy? Add fresh ginger, red pepper flakes, or hot sauce.

Top Tips

Use only 100% pumpkin puree.
Cook on low until the onions are tender.
You can easily double and triple this recipe is serving a crowd.
Prepare the recipe up to 3 days ahead of time then slow cook the day you plan to serve it.

FAQs

Can I make pumpkin soup in an Instant Pot?

Follow the instructions above, but saute onion in your Instant Pot with a tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes first. Then, add all remaining ingredients, secure lid, and pressure cook on high for 4 minutes. Allow a natural release for 15 minutes, then follow up with a quick release.

How can I lower the fat in this recipe?

Reduce the amount of butter or coconut oil used by half and use a lower fat coconut milk.

Can you make ahead of time?

You can prepare this soup ahead of time. Either cook it and store it in the refrigerator in an air-tight container, warming it when you are ready. Or, prep the soup for cooking and keep it in your fridge until you are ready to slow cook.

How long will this soup keep?

Pumpkin soup will keep up to 3 days if stored in an airtight container in your refrigerator.

Can you freeze this soup?

Yes, you can freeze this soup - the cooled soups can go into a freezer-proof airtight container. Thaw in the refrigerator and then reheat slowly on your stove, in a microwave, or back in your slow cooker until hot.

Can I ask you a favor?

If you tried this recipe, let me know! I'd love for you to come back and give the recipe a 5 star rating and leave a review in the comments! 🙂 Let's stay connected, so please follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest! Subscribe to my newsletter to get healthy fresh recipe ideas every week!

Pumpkin Soup in the Slow Cooker