Sweet Potato and Coconut Milk Soup

Despite spring having sprung, it is still very wintry here in Ireland and I have a beautifully simple recipe for a slightly unusual soup to warm the soul.

This soup is similar in flavour to a Thai red curry and will bring to mind warmer seasons and places.

Serves: 10

Time: 50 minutes

Ingredients
4-5 Sweet Potatoes (around 1.5 kg)
3 Cloves of Garlic
5 Scallions
4 Sticks of Celery
1 Medium Leek
1 Red Chilli
1 Thumb of Ginger
2 400g Tins of Coconut Milk
2 Tablespoons of Oil

Equipment
Large Pot with Lid
Sharp Knife
Large Spoon
Hand Blender
 

1. Peel and roughly chop the garlic.

2. Slice the chilli in two, scrape out the seeds and then finely chop it.

3. Clean any dirt from leek, celery and spring onions and then roughly slice them.

4. Peel the ginger and roughly chop it. Tip: Use a teaspoon to peel the ginger.

5. In a large pot bring the oil to a medium heat. Add in all of the vegetables, except for the sweet potatoes, with the salt and stir well so that they are covered in the oil. Cover the pot and soften for 10 minutes, stirring from time to time so that they don't burn.

6. Peel and cube the sweet potatoes. The smaller the cubes, the faster they will cook through. Add them to the pot with the other vegetables and stir well.

7. Add in the two tins of coconut milk and 1 litre of boiling water. Stir well and cover. Bring to the boil and simmer for around 20 minutes.

8. The soup will be cooked when the sweet potatoes break easily against the side of the pot with a spoon. Using a hand blender, blend the soup to a nice smooth mixture.