Creamy Roasted Carrot Soup
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 1, 2024
Like carrots? You’re going to love this carrot soup recipe. It’s luxuriously creamy and full of incredible roasted carrot flavor.
This classic carrot soup is a wonderful soup to serve with your favorite winter salads, sandwiches, and even holiday entrées. Since carrots go well with so many other flavors, it’s a versatile soup to keep in your repertoire.
You might be pleasantly surprised to learn that this creamy soup is actually made without cream. It’s a light and healthy soup, not to mention budget-friendly, too.
I tried making the soup with sautéed carrots instead of roasted, but roasted carrots give this soup magical powers. If you’re a fan of my butternut squash soup or cauliflower soup, the method for this recipe will be familiar already.
Since I can’t help but play around with flavors, I came up with three fun and simple variations—carrot ginger soup, curried carrot soup, and Thai curried carrot soup with lime. You’ll find details in the recipe notes. It’s about time this food blog had a proper carrot soup recipe, and it’s really four in one!
How to Make the Best Carrot Soup
You’ll find the full recipe below, but here are a few key factors.
1) Roast the carrots
Roasting the carrots condenses their flavor, which brings out the carrots’ best sweet-and-savory notes. This step makes all the difference between a ho-hum carrot soup and a why-is-this-so-good carrot soup.
2) Cook some aromatics and spices
Meanwhile, we’ll sauté some chopped onion in oil until tender. Then, we’ll add some fresh garlic, plus ground coriander and cumin. The spices make the soup taste more interesting in a subtle way. (If you’re out of coriander or cumin, though, you can omit them.) Cooking the spices in oil for about 30 seconds wakes them right up, while it mellows the garlic.
3) Simmer to bring it all together
Then, we’ll add vegetable broth, water, and the roasted carrots when they are out of the oven. We’ll gently simmer them all together for 15 minutes to bring all the flavors together.
Of note: I’ve been experimenting with using water instead of vegetable broths in soups, and I rarely miss the broth. If you’re cutting costs or watching your sodium intake, water is a great option here. I’ll share my notes on this subject in greater detail soon.
4) Blend in a stand blender
Stand blenders always yield ultra creamy results. Immersion blenders don’t come close! That’s why I always recommend blending soup in a stand blender instead. I don’t like cleaning extra dishes, either, but the resulting texture is worth the effort. You can find my favorite blenders in my Amazon shop (affiliate link).
Be careful while blending. Let the soup cool for a few minutes before transferring to a blender, never fill past the maximum fill line (it could explode), and be careful near the steam escaping from the lid (it’s hot!).
5) Finish with butter and lemon
You won’t believe how much difference a tablespoon of butter makes at the end. Once blended into the rest, it makes the soup taste more luxurious without dulling the other flavors like cream does (did you know that soups could be this creamy, without cream?). Adding some lemon juice brightens up the finished product and brings it all together.
Three Delicious Carrot Soup Variations
You know me—I couldn’t help but play around with this recipe. Here are three truly delicious variations on the “basic” recipe. Actually, let’s call the “basic” version classic instead. It does not taste boring!
1) Carrot Ginger Soup
Another classic! The carrot ginger variation is especially good if you are under the weather, or trying to warm up from the inside out. Add freshly grated ginger along with the garlic (see amounts provided in the recipe notes).
2) Curried Carrot Soup
This might be my favorite option. Simply add some Indian curry powder along with the other ground spices. Carrots and warming curry spices are a perfect match. You can also add some ginger to this variation, if you’d like.
3) Thai Curried Carrot Soup
You guessed it—add some Thai red curry paste for a lively carrot soup with irresistible Thai flavors. At the end, blend in some lime juice instead of lemon. This variation is especially beautiful when garnished with chopped peanuts and fresh cilantro leaves.
Please let me know how your soup turns out in the comments! I love hearing from you.
Wondering what to pair with this carrot soup? Here are a few suggestions:
- Arugula and Wild Rice Salad with Zippy Lemon Dressing
- Farro and Kale Salad with Goat Cheese
- Green Salad with Apples, Cranberries and Pepitas
- Kale Pecan Pesto over pasta
- My Favorite Grilled Cheese Sandwich
- Mujadara (Lentils and Rice with Caramelized Onions)
Looking for more creamy, lightened-up soups? Here are a few more favorites to bookmark:
- Classic Tomato Soup (Lightened Up!)
- Creamy Roasted Cauliflower Soup
- Creamy Roasted Pumpkin Soup
- Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
Watch How to Make Carrot Soup
Creamy Roasted Carrot Soup
This homemade carrot soup recipe is ultra creamy (yet cream-less) and full of rich, roasted carrot flavor! It’s the best carrot soup you’ll ever have. Recipe yields 4 bowls or 6 cups of soup.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds carrots
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt, divided, to taste
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- 4 cups vegetable broth (or water)
- 2 cups water
- 1 to 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, to taste
- 1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup, if desired.
- To prepare your carrots, peel them and then cut them on the diagonal so each piece is about ½″ thick at the widest part (see photos).
- Place the carrots on the baking sheet. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and ½ teaspoon of the salt. Toss until the carrots are lightly coated in oil and seasonings. Arrange them in a single layer.
- Roast the carrots until they’re caramelized on the edges and easily pierced through by a fork, 25 to 40 minutes, tossing halfway. (Heirloom carrot varieties will roast in as little as 25 minutes, but regular carrots are more dense and typically require 35 to 40 minutes.)
- Once the carrots are almost done roasting, in a Dutch oven or soup pot, warm the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened and turning translucent, 5 to 7 minutes.
- Add the garlic, coriander and cumin (if following a variation, see recipe notes for additions). Cook until fragrant while stirring constantly, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Pour in the vegetable broth and water, while scraping up any browned bits on the bottom with a wooden spoon or sturdy silicone spatula.
- Add the roasted carrots to the pot when they are out of the oven. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook for 15 minutes, to give the flavors time to meld.
- Once the soup is done cooking, remove the pot from the heat and let it cool for a few minutes. Then, carefully transfer the hot soup to a blender, working in batches if necessary. (Do not fill past the maximum fill line or the soup could overflow!)
- Add the butter, lemon juice (or lime, if following the Thai variation), and several twists of black pepper. Blend until completely smooth. Add additional salt and pepper if necessary, to taste. Add another tablespoon of butter if you’d like more richness, or a little more lemon juice if it needs more zing. Blend again, and serve.
- This soup keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for about four days, or for several months in the freezer.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my creamy roasted cauliflower soup and roasted carrots recipe.
Carrot ginger soup variation: Add freshly grated ginger with the garlic and ground spices. Use 1 teaspoon for subtle ginger flavor, 2 teaspoons for more prominent flavor, or 1 tablespoon for relatively spicy carrot-ginger flavor.
Curried carrot soup variation: Add some curry powder with the garlic and ground spices. Use 1 teaspoon (mild) or up to 2 teaspoons (somewhat spicy), depending on your preferences. For curried ginger soup, also add 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger at this time.
Thai curried carrot soup variation: Add Thai red curry paste with the garlic and ground spices (be sure to choose a vegan/vegetarian option if you’re avoiding fish produces, such as Thai Kitchen). Use 1 ½ teaspoons (mild) or up to 1 tablespoon (relatively spicy), depending on your preferences. Substitute lime juice for the lemon. You might like to garnish your bowls of soup with some chopped roasted peanuts and fresh cilantro leaves.
Make it dairy free/vegan: A few options. One, if you enjoy the flavor of the blended soup without butter, you can skip it altogether. For more richness, you could blend in a tablespoon of good olive oil or use cashews instead of butter. Soak ¼ cup cashews for 4 hours, then drain and rinse them (if you have a high-powered blender like a Vitamix or Blendtec, you can skip this). Add the cashews when you would add the butter.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Hah! I thought the recipe read tossing half away. What the ? Tossing halfway is how it is written. Can’t wait to make this.
You want to toss the carrots halfway into the roasting section of the recipe. Does that help?
Is there an Instant Pot/ pressure cooker variation?
I don’t have one, sorry!
I have made this soup before and really like it. I am not a fan of cumin or coriander so I left it out. I need something to give it a boost. could I add some white wine?
Kate, this was amazing! Can’t thank you enough, huge hit with the family!!!
That’s great to hear, Gaylen! I appreciate your review.
Delicious. I made the curry ginger variation. I had less carrots than needed so a little thinner but it was still good!
Since it was my first-time making carrot soup, I used the basic recipe, which came out good. Next time, I am going to steam the carrots until they are tender/soft (not mush) then cut them in 1″ pieces and roast them using less oil by using a spray bottle. When I want to be a bit decadent, I add some light brown sugar.
I’m glad I found your site. Looking forward to trying more healthy recipes.
Thank you! This recipe is going in my favorite file.
That’s great to hear, Trish! Thank you for your review.
I’m not a huge fan of cooked carrots, so I was a bit skeptical. That being said, this was delicious. For some reason we had two big bags of carrots in the crisper and we were trying to figure out a plan for them. I did a couple of the mods with a bit of curry powder and fresh ginger and subbed ground cardamon for the coriander. I also used 3-4 TBS of butter, just because…
I used basil in lieu of the cumin and coriander. Roasting the carrots made a glorious flavor to the soup. I have this bookmarked and it will be my goto carrot soup recipe!
Hello, I’m writing from Canada, smallest province on the East Coast,
Prince Edward Island. (December 2023)
Wondering how to receive diabetic friendly recipes from you. Love the idea of creamed soup in a blender.
I am Lactose Free, unfortunately, and cannot put butter in my recipes, what can I substitute without breaking a budget. Recipes are for me only.
Thanks for listening.
P.S. I am afraid to subscribe as I will fall prey to cooking all your yumminess, and my health is in the warning stages of doing that. Is there any way I could subscribe to vegetarian dishes only therefore opting out of temptation?
Signing out as: Trying to live healthy.
Hi Laurette, I try to provide substitutions when I can. Unfortunately I can’t provide for all needs. The nutritional information is provided as well as dairy alternatives when I can.
Made it using chicken broth and cashews and it tastes AMAZING. I think next time I’d add a few more cashews for creaminess.
Thoroughly enjoyed this lovely soup – wonderful taste, magical colour, and smooth texture! A true winter warmer of all senses. Thank you for this easy to make recipe!
That’s great, Piros! I appreciate your review.
This soup is delicious and easy to make. I highly recommend this recipe!
That’s great to hear, Linda! I appreciate your review.
One of the best soups I have had. I did change it by using chicken stock instead of a vegetable stock but everything else was perfect. In fact I took a chance that it would be as good as it is and doubled the recipe at the beginning. I have now frozen 2 cup blocks of the soup and have already shared it with guests. This is definitely a keeper!
Thank you for sharing, Joyce!
Best carrot soup I’ve ever had. Perfect balance between sweet, tart (from the lemon), spicy. Nothing overwhelmed, everything melded. Guest-worthy.
I followed the recipe exactly and it was delicious! I left out the coriander because I didn’t have any and I’m not a fan. It was still delicious and didn’t think anything was missing. I ended up adding 2 tbsp of butter and 3 tsps of lemon! I also roasted the carrots with Santa Maria seasoning blend which already has peppercorns and salt. I did add more salt, but just 2 pinches of maldon flaky salt! This is such a great way to use a full bag of carrots and a full carton of chicken broth. I will make this again. Thank you!!!!!
I made this and as always make modification to make it easier. And spicier. I roasted the onion and garlic with the carrots. Increased garlic to 4 cloves, doubled the amount of coriander and cumin. Added some red pepper flakes in addition to the black pepper. Super good and a little spicier which is how I like my dishes.
That’s great to hear, Diane!
I made the ginger variation and was disappointed there wasn’t more dimension to the flavors. I thought the roasted carrots would add so much but it just wasn’t there for me. Doubled the cumin, ginger, and lemon juice but it still seemed flat. I was taking it to a staff lunch the following day and wanted to amp up the flavor with something. In my fridge I spied a jar of Thai Red Curry Paste, so on a whim I added a tablespoon. Aha! That made a lovely difference. Allowing it to sit overnight in the fridge allowed flavors to blend and heighten even more. Then I decided that since I was going the Thai red curry route, to set out a bowl of minced cilantro and one of chopped peanuts for toppers as you suggested. The garnishes really took the soup to a whole new level by adding an elevated flavor profile, texture, and appearance. I’m super happy with the end result, and the Thai Red Curry variation will be a keeper! (Rating based on the Thai Red Curry version.)
This was delicious!!!
I made the following modifications only because I was out of the recipe ingredients. The flavor was still amazing:
Didn’t have any liquid broth but I had beef boullion – used that with water.
Didn’t have butter. Put olive oil in as recommended.
Otherwise, followed every direction. Will be adding this to my rotation! Wonderful!
Made this soup last night. Used vegetable broth. I used 2 tablespoons of butter. They only thing I didn’t add was the lemon juice. I had to use my handheld blender because my regular blender broke.
It is really delicious.
A fabulous soup! I prefer my soups thicker so i reduced the liquids. No butter but the lemon created a nice lift. And I used thyme for my herb. The flavor was stupendous. And so simple to make! Thanks, Kate and Cookie. ♥
Thank you for your feedback, Rebecca! I appreciate your review.
Yummy! Even my vegetable phobic husband asked for a bowl for lunch the next day. I made the ginger variety, and it was delicious. Only had low-sodium chicken broth on hand, so used that. I’ve already been asked to make the curry variety, so a total triumph.
This printed out with 4 lbs of carrots and 2 lbs of carrots — everything else was the same. I made 6 lbs of carrots (Increasing other ingredient). It was delicious but I got tired of peeling and chopping the carrots. I took your recommendation and prepared the curry version.
Thank you for sharing, Sharon!
This was the perfect soup! Made this for my husband who is coming down with a cold. At 11pm I’m making this soup. He fell asleep and I’m now truly enjoying a delicious cup of this superb soup. Don’t forget the lemon and butter. This makes it perfect. Thank you Kate! And goodnight. :)
I made this today during a snowstorm. I didn’t have all the ingredients but used leeks, instead of onion and ginger extract instead of coriander. Also, didn’t have veggie broth so used a low sodium chicken broth. It is sooo good still and would love to make it with all the listed ingredients next time!
Can you make this with chicken broth? Would it still taste good?
Sure, I believe others have and didn’t mind the results.
This is fantastic! I added ginger, curry and lime juice. The flavors are bright and bold and warming. I’ll keep this in the rotation during winter months. Thank you!
You’re welcome, Kirsten! I appreciate your review.
So good!!! I made the curry version. The only thing I did different was to use red onions, and I roasted them along with the carrots. Even my carrot-hating husband conceded that it was okay (lol…high praise in this instance).
I’m still making this soup frequently! I love it so much! I’m sure it’s the best soup recipe out there! And that’s coming from a person who doesn’t like most pureed soups!
Delicious! I followed the carrot ginger version, I left out the butter only because I forgot it! I will make this again and again! Thank you!
You’re welcome, Kate! Thank you for your review.
Best soup I have ever had! Thank you!
Creamy and full of flavor! I cooked baby-cut carrots in the air fryer for 25 minutes and it was perfectly roasted. I used white onion and followed the basic recipe with spices & lemon. I used chicken bouillon it’s all I had but with the added lemon it wasn’t as noticeable! This is perfect as I have been needing to add more vegetables into my diet. Had with a slice of toasted whole grain bread. So good! Great recipe!
I had some old carrots and decided to make carrot soup. I was hesitant when I saw cumin and cardamom, not my favorite spices. But I gave it a try and boy were you right, it adds something different to the palate and I loved it! You certainly have a way of convincing a very picky eater. Thank you so much, one of my favorite soups now and I didn’t have to change a thing.
Love to hear that, Ashley!
I made this recipe and it turned out deliciously. My “spin” on this recipe was using about a 1/4-1/2 cup of sun dried tomatoes. I loved the added flavor.
My family loved this. I added and sautéed shallots, fresh parsley and red onion to the liquid base, and 2 large tomatoes, a zucchini, some mini sweet peppers, a white onion and several garlicclives to roast with the carrots n the overn. Then added a can of coconut cream and extra curry powder and lemon juice to the pan before using my immersion blender. It was fire!!
Great to hear, Nicole!
So I was surprised by how good this was. It’s excellent! I did find that it needed a touch more salt and pepper at the end, but the flavors were wonderful. It’s a keeper! Thanks so much.
Great to hear, Jenny!
Made as directed but with 1.5 pounds carrots and omitting the water. It was wonderful! Making again tonight.
Made as directed but with 1.5 pounds carrots and omitting the extra water (4 cups broth only). It was wonderful! Making again tonight.
Great to hear, Katherine! I appreciate your review.
10/10, no notes.
I made the ginger version and was skeptical this would be good without some cheese or cream or something, but hot dang I was pleasantly surprised. Absolute perfection as is. I wish I could come up with a way to incorporate some protein, but I don’t want to ruin the perfection with an addition :)
Thank you for your review!
Made this today on our snow day in NJ. Unbelievable! Thank you for the detailed recipe and I loved the variations!
You’re welcome, Jennifer!
I just made this recipe, and added curry powder along with the coriander and cumin. Used carrots harvested late last fall from daughter’s farm. This is a keeper-absolutely delicious! So sweet and velvety, and a great mixture of spices.
Great to hear, Sharon! I appreciate your review.
I made this soup exactly as recipe suggested adding 2 tsps curry powder and the butter and lemon. Outstanding!
Great to hear, Rolene!
We made using Better than Bouillon Vegetable Broth base, two teaspoons minced fresh ginger and no lemon juice. Best carrot soup ever.
Great to hear, Janet!
Made this excellent soup! The only difference I made was to deep fry the carrot skins and added them to the top of the soup when serving it. Also added a punch of ghost pepper powder to give it some heat.
Thesis for this recipe, love it.
Great to hear, Bill!
Im excited to give this recipe a try. However, can’t find the nutritional facts so my T1 Diabetic grandchild can have some
Hi Granny, the nutritional information is below the notes section of the recipe. You need to click to expand.
Soup is delicious, family favorite for sure. Can it be frozen??
Sure! I’m happy you enjoy it, Betsy.
I made this soup today and its really tasty, I’m amazed as I used only plain water instead of the broth and it still turned out fabulous excellent recipe! I added some fresh chopped coriander also when it was all blended and back in the pot.
Thank you for sharing, Kelly! I’m glad you loved it.
Dear Kate, thanks for sharing this recipe, it’s quite good! I added a tiny bit more salt, cumin and pepper than your recipe called for. Plus some red pepper flakes, and ginger for kick. And a small dollop of crème fraiche instead of butter, for a personal touch.