This easy Vegan Cauliflower Curry Soup is so full of flavor, spices, hearty texture and is oil-free and comforting. This is the perfect soup to warm you up all season!
This Vegan Cauliflower Curry Soup is the best soup, as it is super filling, yet light and wonderfully healthy. It’s not super heavy or rich like my curry soups that use a lot of coconut milk. I absolutely love those, but this one is lighter, with less milk, yet enough to still give it a creamy texture.
Y’all know I whip out some awesome recipes when I’m feeling lazy or winging a meal on the fly. Like, this Lazy Red Lentil Curry Soup. I winged that one evening for dinner and it’s become one of my most popular soups of all time.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN CAULIFLOWER SOUP
You’ll need just 8 easy ingredients for this vegan cauliflower curry soup (+salt and water):
- cauliflower florets
- spinach
- curry powder
- tomato paste
- coconut milk
- fresh ginger
- fresh garlic
- red onion
- garam masala (optional, but recommended)
First, you will cook the onion, ginger and garlic in some water until tender, about 5-8 minutes.
Add the curry powder and garam masala and cook about 30 seconds until fragrant and they absorb the moisture.
Add the tomato paste, water and coconut milk and then the cauliflower. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the cauliflower is tender.
Add the spinach and cook another 3-5 minutes and let the soup sit for about 10 minutes. The soup is piping hot, so letting it sit this time allows it to cool a bit and also thickens up. Then this vegan cauliflower soup is perfect for serving.
This vegan cauliflower soup is oil-free, richly spiced and has a fabulous texture thanks to big chunks of tender cauliflower throughout and some wonderful spinach for extra nutrition. It has a nice spicy kick to it too, but is balanced out by the tomato paste which gives it a bit of acidity and mild sweetness.
I love that this Vegan Cauliflower Curry Soup is comfort in a bowl! For this recipe, I used my homemade Homemade Curry Spice Blend. It is fantastic, but you can totally use store-bought too, that is fine.
MORE VEGAN CURRY RECIPES
- Vegan Thai Green Curry Sweet Potato Soup
- Easy Vegan Quick Curry
- Sweet Potato, Chickpea and Spinach Coconut Curry
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Vegan Cauliflower Curry Soup
Ingredients
- 1 packed cup (160g) finely diced red onion
- 1 1/2 inch knob peeled and minced fresh ginger (12g) (this adds lots of flavor, so don't be shy)
- 5 large cloves garlic, minced (15g)
- 1 tablespoon yellow curry powder (I used my homemade blend)
- 1/2 teaspoon garam masala (optional)
- 1/4 cup (60g) tomato paste
- 2 cups (480g) water
- 1 1/4 cups (250g) canned "lite" coconut milk, shaken well (SEE NOTES BELOW FOR SUB)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon (20g) pure maple syrup
- 1 pound bag frozen cauliflower florets (454g or 16oz)
- 3 huge handfuls (100g) fresh spinach
- toasted slivered almonds & lemon juice for serving (optional)
- I use this food scale.
Instructions
- Have all your veggies chopped and ingredients ready to go. The first few steps are quick.
- Add the onion and ginger to a medium pot with 1/4 cup (60g) water over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook 5-8 minutes until tender, stirring often. Add tiny bits of water as needed to prevent burning.
- Add the garlic and cook another couple of minutes.
- Add the curry powder and garam masala (if using) and cook about 30 seconds, stirring constantly, until fragrant and they absorb the moisture.
- Add the tomato paste and stir for 30 seconds.
- Add the 2 cups (480g) water, coconut milk and salt and stir well until all the paste is evenly dissolved. Loosen any hard bits at the bottom of the pan.
- Stir in the cauliflower and syrup.
- Bring to a high boil, cover and reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the cauliflower is tender.
- Add the spinach and cook another 3-5 minutes, stirring until wilted.
- Now let the soup sit for about 10 minutes. The soup is piping hot, so letting it sit this time allows it to cool a bit and also it will thickens up more as it sits to the perfect consistency.
- Taste and add any salt if needed or a squeeze of lemon, if desired. Garnish with toasted almonds, if desired. This soup is of course delicious immediately, but is even more amazing the next day as the flavors marry really well overnight.
Notes
Nutrition
This looks beautiful girl! I love how easy it sounds and how healthy. I am baby steps on the curry, you know me. Hahaha!!
Thank you so much girl! Haha!
Is there a way to add a bit more protein to this without taking away from dish? Maybe chickpeas?
Sure you can add Chickpeas about 5 minutes or so before the end of cooking. It already does have about 7 g of protein per serving, but I wouldn’t add more than about a cup since the soup does get nice and thick as it is. Enjoy!
I like to sprinkle roasted pumpkin seeds or cashews on top of curry soups ☺️
This recipe is SO easy and SO delicious! Perfect seasoning and wonderful complexity of textures and flavors! Thank you, Brandi!
Thank you so much Michele for leaving the wonderful feedback, so glad you enjoyed it!
What would be the cooking time difference if I use fresh cauliflower instead of frozen?
I am such a huge fan of your recipes !
This one however to be honest came out very watery.
I might use full fat coconut milk next time.
Could have been from the frozen produce, not sure.
Hi Jessica, It shouldn’t be watery at all! Honestly, I cannot stand watery soups. It should look just like the photos. I’ve seen many remakes on IG and they all look nice and hearty just like mine. As you can see in my pics, it’s not watery at all and I photographed it right after making it. I also used frozen veggies, as noted, so that isn’t it. What brand of milk did you use and are you sure you added a whole pound of cauliflower and the right amount of spinach? There are many different brands of coconut milk and some of them are VERY watery and not creamy at all. You also have to make sure to shake the can really well so you aren’t pouring in mostly water from the can. Did you also let it sit the 10 minutes? This is where it really thickens up, too. Mine thickens up perfectly. I mean, it’s a soup, so it’s not supposed to be super thick like a stew, but definitely not watery. The liquid should be nicely filled with all of the veggies. Sounds like it didn’t cook long enough to thicken or maybe too much water was added or it was the brand of milk? Hoping this helps some!
Most delicious. I added a diced Yukon because it was starting to sprout and a drained can of garbanzo beans just because but it didn’t need either. The flavors were really good. My whole family devoured it. Thanks!
I’m so glad you loved it Elyse! The fact your whole family devoured it is awesome!
I’m fairly new to vegan cooking, so being able to use frozen veggies to cut down on prep time was a nice surprise. This was SO much easier to make than the recipes in other high profile vegan cookbooks I’ve tried. My spouse is an omnivore, but open-minded, and he loved the taste of this broth. Five stars!
Oh yay, that’s a huge compliment that your hubby loved it too! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review!
Wow, this is sooo delicious❣️ My eldest and my husband went crazy for it. It is definitely going in my keep file. I made a double batch in my Instantpot, and used fresh veggies. It turned out perfectly! Thank you very much. Yum! This may just be my Christmas dish! This is also an excellent recipe for me personally because I do not consume any sugar/sweetener or any type of flour. It is full of protein and I feel really good after having a bowl. My eldest (11) even requested it for breakfast. I may use this at my next potluck invite!
So so happy to hear this Dawn, what a wonderful review!!
While visiting my brother in Palm Springs each March, we visit a local Indian restaurant three or four times a week. When I return home to Wisconsin, I continually try unsuccessfully to re-create those delicious Indian dishes. I was absolutely amazed when I made your cauliflower curry soup recipe! I felt I was transported back to our favorite Indian restaurant in Palm Springs! Thank you again, Brandi, for creating and sharing this delicious recipe!!
Thank you so much Donna for taking the time to leave the review and email me today! I’m so very happy you loved this soup so much!!
This was so good! Easy to make. Good depth of flavors. Loved that it wasn’t just cauliflower, but also spinach. And—it was a learning experience—taught me not to be a snob about frozen veggies. I’ve always insisted that I had to use fresh for everything, but for a soup like this it was so convenient and no waste, so it opened my mind a little.
And I’ve been meaning to tell you—we made your espresso no bake chocolate fudge cake for New Yera’s Eve. It was truly amazing. I’ve not had a dessert like that for years, ever since I became WFPB/vegan. It is truly sensational.
I’m so happy you loved this soup Ellen and even moreso how much you loved the cake from my book! Such a lovely review! Thank you!
This soup is sooooo delicious!!! I made Brandi’s DIY Curry powder and it was perfect. I did add a can of chickpeas to the soup as well. I think it may have tasted better on day 2, if that’s possible.
I actually used the curry DIY powder in another non-vegan curry dish I made and it was my favourite version yet.
Wonderful to hear that Charlene, thank you for making the soup! So glad you love my DIY curry powder, too, yay!
Brandi! I’ve made curry 3 times this week with your DIY curry powder. Each a little variation and the flavour has been amazing. My partner who isn’t always a fan of curry loved every meal!! Thank you!!!
Yay, love hearing that Charlene!
Well I’ve never been a fan of anything curry but my friend who introduced me to your blog HIGHLY recommended it so I made it today. First off, like I said, not a fan of curry but wow, my house smells amazing! My husband and I ate it, with the exception of needing a tad more salt because we are sodium freaks (which is something I’m trying to change), it was actually really good! The heat level was PERFECT! So easy to make too! I’ll definitely make this again because I love low carb, low calories soups that are yummy!! Thanks Brandi!
That is just wonderful to hear Samantha, thank you so much for trying it! So glad you and your hubby enjoyed it!
This soup is extraordinary! Have made it twice so far. It is hearty and satisfying. I have one suggestion. I feel there is not enough broth. I would like to see 1-1/2- times the broth that is in the recipe now. If I try to tinker with it, it will dilute the flavor, which is perfect now. So I don’t dare. Thanks for this wonderful new soup!
Hi Angela! I’m so happy you love this!! Hmm, that’s odd, I find it to the be absolute perfect amount of broth as in the photos, a soup consistency, not too thick and not too runny. I think any more broth would make it too watery. I’ve even had a couple of people with it has LESS broth, lol, so I’m surprised to hear you mention that. But if you want it more liquidy, without messing with the flavor, I would just simply decrease the amount of cauliflower. Are you adding extra veggies or something?…it’s definitely brothy for me everytime I make it, just like in the photos.
You are probably correct; I have been using a whole cauliflower, so it’s been more like a stew. I’ll only use half and smaller size pieces.
I just love this soup, I make it al least once a week. It’s simple, so much flavor an veggies. Absolutely one of my favorites!!
So very happy to hear that Suleika!!
Does anyone have a recommendation for getting freezer burn off of frozen vegetables without getting them soggy by rinsing them in water? I’ve yet to find a bag of frozen vegetables that aren’t frost bitten. Thanks!
Hi there! You don’t need to thaw the veggies first or rinse them, just add them straight to the pot. I do this all the time for my soups and it works just fine.
Oh. My. God. This is one of the best meals I’ve eaten! And I’m quite particular about the meals I make. Even if it’s vegan, I want every meal to be absolutely scrumptious… and this one is a clear WINNER!! Thank you so much for this!! 😄
Yay!! Thrilled to read this Angela! We love this soup so much, too, so I’m very happy to hear how much you enjoyed it!
Add it to the soup rotation! We also made the curry powder off your website 🙂 the house smells great, added bonus!
So happy to hear that Shelley!!
Made this for dinner tonight and we so enjoyed it. Thick, creamy and satisfying.
This will be a go to this winter. Thanks for the yummy recipe
Diane
Yay, thank you Diane!!
Brandi, I suggest you to watch pai’s Kitchen videos.
She’s thai and she knows how to work coconut milk
You should stir fry coconut milk
(Get the one from paper carton)
Until the oil gets separated from the cream
Then cook the onion garlic and ginger in that oil
Not water.
It’s a life changing experience. Trust me.
Thanks for sharing! When I created this recipe, I wasn’t following any type/style or tradition of food or a recipe, it is just simply my own soup creation combining ingredients I love. My recipes I create to be very simple, but flavorful, which is my style, so that process, while is lovely I’m sure, isn’t my style of cooking. The end result is still delicious and full of flavor.
Can I use fresh cauliflower instead of frozen?
Yes!
I can’t wait to make this soup. I can already taste it!!!
I’m going to wait till the L.A. heat goes down.
103 degrees today!!
Unbelievably delicious!!!
Yay Marie!!
This soup was delicious and so easy to make. I had frozen cauliflower in my freezer–something new to me since I rarely purchase frozen vegetables and have no idea how to use them. I was very happy to find that the big bag had little 1 lb bags inside! When I pulled out the 1 lb bag I thought, “This will never be enough for an entire batch of soup.” It was perfect. The soup was thick, plentiful and so flavorful. I served it inside bread bowls. Yum! This recipe is a keeper.
So happy it turned out perfect for you! Thank you so much for making it Roxanne!
I have made this soup several times, it is so full of flavor. I use fresh cauliflower and it comes out perfect every time. This is one of my go to recipes for a quick hearty dinner.