Roasting vegetables to blend into soup is a wonderfully simple, time-saving way to make a really flavourful soup that doesn’t need a lot of standing around time. I say time-saving because it’s a real mix it and forget about it kind of thing. Instead of stirring at the stove top, the oven does all the work for you. This roasted sweet potato and red pepper soup is no exception – it’s a rich, smooth soup that makes good use of the slight sweetness that comes from the vegetables and the cooking method.
Unlike my roasted red pepper soup, this recipe doesn’t include lentils, so it needs no additional cooking time after roasting. You could blend in some cooked beans (see more on this below) or serve as a side dish as is. Simply roast, blend, and serve. An immersion blender is handy here if you have one.
For some more recipes with red peppers, try this summer Greek chickpea salad, spicy mushroom fajitas, or a simple roasted summer vegetable pasta.
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Red peppers: depending on where you live, these might be called bell peppers, sweet peppers, or capsicums. It’s best to use the ripe version (red) for this recipe and not sub orange, yellow, and definitely not green.
- Sweet potato: make sure this is a sweet potato and not a yam. It should have smooth, orange or reddish skin and not sort of a bark-like appearance.
- Spices: these are pretty minimal but you can adjust the hot pepper amount to suit your preference.
- Broth: use homemade vegetable broth or a good store-bought version. I don’t recommend subbing water for the broth in this recipe as it has minimal ingredients and really relies on high-quality ingredients to add the best flavour. Half of the broth can be replaced with some kind of cooking cream if you’d like a very rich, creamy soup.
- Topping: I serve this swirled with a bit of oat cream and some fresh herbs on top. Croutons would be good.
Step by Step
Step 1: mix the vegetables with oil and spices on a large baking sheet.
Step 2: roast until cooked through and some edges of the vegetables are darkening.
Step 3: transfer to a pot or heat-safe blender and add the broth.
Step 4: blend until very smooth, reheat if needed, and serve.
Recipe Notes
If you don’t have a heat-safe blender, you’ll have to let the vegetables cool before blending. Cold broth can help to speed this up a bit. Reheat the soup gently in a pot on the stove before serving.
For a higher protein option if you’d like more of a meal soup, you can blend in about 300 grams of cooked or canned (drained and rinsed) white beans or chickpeas. Cooked red lentils are good too.
Don’t worry if your vegetables are a bit past perfect for this recipe – it’s a great way to use a wrinkly pepper or slightly pithy sweet potatoes. If you can get some sale produce to use, that’s great. I wrote above that quality ingredients are necessary for this to be the best soup, and that certainly extends to the veg, but some soft spots that can be cut out doesn’t mean the vegetable is no longer tasty or worth using.
How to Store
Storage: keep the soup in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Reheat as usual before serving.
Freezing: blended vegan soups like this freeze wonderfully. Transfer the fully cooled soup to an airtight container (or smaller containers for individual servings). Freeze for up to three months and thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating as usual.
Expert Tips
- Use an immersion blender: I can’t recommend it enough. A good immersion blender is so much more useful than a standing blender, it takes up much less space, and it’s cheaper. You can use them for blending hot soups, making smoothies, pesto, and more. It’s such a useful all-around kitchen tool. (I took these photos while staying at a place without one.)
- No need to peel: I very rarely peel vegetables and never sweet potatoes. Since you’re blending it smooth, and sweet potatoes have thin skin in the first place, there’s truly no reason to peel and create unnecessary food waste.
- Season to taste: consider the amount of salt called for in the recipe card to be a starting point. Once the soup is blended, taste it again and add more salt if needed. The amount will vary depending on whether the broth is quite salty or not.
If you make this Sweet Potato Red Pepper Soup or any other vegetarian soup recipes on Occasionally Eggs, please take a moment to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. It’s such a help to others who want to try the recipe. For more OE, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest, purchase the Occasionally Eggs cookbook, or subscribe for new posts via email.
Sweet Potato and Red Pepper Soup
Description
Ingredients
- 1 medium sweet potato about 500 grams
- 2 large red peppers seeds and stem removed
- 1 medium onion peeled
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt to taste
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon hot pepper flakes optional, to taste
- ¼ teaspoon cumin seeds or ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 400-500 ml (1 ⅔ – 2 cups) vegetable broth adjust for consistency
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F) and line a large baking sheet or casserole dish with parchment paper (paper is optional but prevents sticking).
- Roughly chop the sweet potato, peppers, and onion. Add to the baking sheet with the olive oil, salt, pepper, hot pepper, cumin, and paprika. Use your hands to mix until the vegetables are evenly coated.1 medium sweet potato, 2 large red peppers, 1 medium onion, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon sea salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper, ½ teaspoon hot pepper flakes, ¼ teaspoon cumin seeds, ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- Roast for 30-40 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked through and the edges start to darken. The time needed will depend on how crowded the baking sheet is.
- Once the vegetables are done, place in a pot (if using an immersion blender) or heat-safe* blender. Add the vegetable broth and blend until very smooth, a couple of minutes.400-500 ml (1 ⅔ – 2 cups) vegetable broth
- Serve hot, topped with optional cream or yogurt and fresh herbs. This can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three days and freezes well.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate. If this information is important to you, please have it verified independently.