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.
Just made the soup. I had a bit of leftover cauliflower so I roasted that and added it to the soup. I didn’t add butter and used an immersion blender which gave it a bit of texture. Also since I was using broth I left out the salt and found it didn’t need it. The soup came out amazing.
That’s great to hear, Pam!
Wow. The carrot soup was delicious! My whole family loved it. I had all the ingredients at home and it was super simple to make. This soup will for sure become a staple in my kitchen. Thank you!
You’re welcome, Jaqueline!
This recipe is delicious and so easy! Love all the variation options.
Can you add red curry paste to this soup to give it a Thai flavor?
Creamy Thai Carrot Sweet Potato Soup
Can I add half and half or milk to this
I made the Curried-Ginger variety and it is utterly, utterly delicious. I had a soup similar to this YEARS ago & was obsessed, so so good. Tried a million different recipes trying to recreate it and none of them were comparable at all. Too flat, too sweet, too gingery, unbalanced and…boring, strange enough even with all the components to them. This is it, this is the one. Roasting the carrots I think was the key, plus all the depths of spices & splash of lemon. Perfect. It is overcast & dreary here today and this was the perfect, warming comfort soup to snuggle up with. Thank you so much, you scratched a long nagging itch for me & will be saving this recipe forever.
This recipe was a fail for me. The coriander ruined it in my opinion. It was too much and all we could taste. The carrot flavor was lost. I used the 2x feature to make a big pot for my family. No one ate it. So disappointed, it was a big waste of time and groceries.
I’m sorry to hear that, Margaret. I appreciate your feedback.
Mmmm so good. Though I think I used the recipe as more of a guideline it is a great guideline. I did the seasoning with my heart instead of the measurements. Did it just plain ginger and some lemon pepper for the slight zing. Roasted yellow pepper with my carrots and caramelized my onions and garlic with a teaspoon of brown sugar and a wee bit of celery. Fantastic. I really think the butter is what topped it off perfectly. I also used just water and no broth (hence the extra veggies for more flavor).
Just remember that it didn’t cost much to try it, and you can make the necessary changes based on your flavour preferences the next time.
Soup was Delicious! I did the ginger version.
One mistake I made was when simering the carrots and the broth, I left the lid off the pot. I think I reduced it too much as the soup was pretty thick. But it turned out great!
That’s great to hear, Lee! I appreciate your comment and review.
This soup is sooo good. I had Pho broth available so used that instead of vegetable broth. It was already seasoned with anise and ginger, so I omitted the coriander. It was also seasoned with cinnamon and cloves (already in the broth). The result was amazing and bursting with flavour. Will definitely be making different versions of this again.
Thank you for sharing, Erma! I appreciate your review.
You need to get yourself an immersion blender, girl!!!
Made your Thai Curried Carrot Soup .. it was absolutely delicious!!! I made it again today (have lots of carrots from my garden) and added a bit more garlic and a bit more curry paste. Awesome soup!
I loved this. I made the Indian Curry variation. I’m looking forward to trying the Red Curry variety. I used vegetable stock but I’ll try it without next time to see if I can tell a difference.
Wow I made this today with some huge carrots from a friends garden. First time I ever had carrot soup and it’s fabulous! I love trying your recipes, every one has been a winner. Thank you.
Mmmmmmm! Delicious!
I’d purchased 2# bag of carrots and put them in our fridge on the garage. The garage isn’t heated and the carrots got frosted but still okay. I knew I had to use them soon so searching found your carrot soup recipe. I tried your variation using curry and ginger. Yummy delicious!!
This soup is delicious and well balanced! Made it today with my garden carrots; I used vegan butter and it was great.
is the carrot soup served cold or hot? I made it early and chilled it. I can warm it for dinner.
I made a batch of soup and froze some. I thawed it a couple of weeks later and took it to a family potluck. It was still chilled when served and tasted fantastic!
Kate! Thank you for the roasted carrot soup recipe! I’m a soup fanatic in the winter and it’s been chilly down here in the deep south so this carrot soup is on my list to make. Thank you!
Dear Kate
This is indeed a sublime recipe. I have tried all variations – curry is my favourite – but they are all most excellent.
If you’re sitting on the fence waiting to try it – hesitate no more! I have used it often and shared it widely.
Thanks so much :-)
You’re welcome, Lex!
Can I use chicken broth in place of the veggie broth?
I made this soup and it was delicious! I did tweak it a bit by baking the garlic and onions with the carrots. Yum!
Delicious ,I added sautéd red onions , coconut milk, black garlic paste and blend with a stick mixer. I serve in a bowl drizzled with black salt and olive oil from Spain. Can top with organic fried shallots. Yummy …
Made the “classic” version as written except used vegan butter, in thankfulness for the first cold evening here in south Texas since last February. Perfect! And the curried version definitely has my name on it . Thank you again for a keeper recipe!
I added 1/2 tsp Turmeric in lieu of Coriander, and also added a yellow bell pepper the last 1/2 hr of roasting the carrots. WOW!
This creamy carrot soup was amazing!
If ever intimidated with carrot soup no more-definite winner and very inexpensive to make.
Great to hear! Thank you for your review.
I was given a bag of Misfit carrots and found your recipe which I made today and it turned out great. I used pure Canola Oil and left out the salt and pepper. Pureed it in the multi purpose blender and is now in 4 boxes in the freezer,
Good basic recipe. I would make it again using less broth or water–4 cups rather than 6. You need to add cream to make it “creamy.” But you can freeze it as it is and add cream when you serve it. I tried using an immersion blender and a blender–no difference to me, but I don’t have a $700 blender. I suspect readers do not as well.
Yum. Right up my alley. My new favorite winter soup. Thank you.
Yum
Made this carrot and ginger soup today. Easy to make with all ingredients usually found in your kitchen. It says to use a food processor to purée but after I roasted the carrots I mashed them on the sheet. Then used my hand blender. It worked Perfectly. It’s a Delicious soup. I will Definitely will make this again
Thank you for sharing this recipe
I was so pleasantly surprised when I tasted this soup. Amazing flavor!
Like to make it for Christmas so the carrots are different than in the summer. What do you think? Will it still be as perfect?
Thank you,
Annetta
I made this soup today as appetizer for Christmas dinner, it was everything I had hoped for in reading the ingredients. Absolutely delicious, thank you!
Made this yesterday as bought far too many carrots for Christmas!
Have made carrot soup before but not by roasting the carrots first. It’s absolutely delicious and very creamy (without any actual cream)
Looks and tastes perfect- I made the curry version. Thank you for the excellent recipe.
Fabulous soup! Used low sodium chicken broth, 2 cups water and 1 Tablespoon Better than Bouillon. 1 Tsp ginger (dried, reconstituted) and 1 tsp Sesame Ginger crunch ( Club House) Maybe the best soup I ever made.
Can I sauté carrots instead of roasting?
I LOVE this soup. However, is there a way to add protein into this? I saw other recipes blending in cottage cheese or chickpeas but wasn’t sure if you agreed or have tried that before.
Have made the variation with Ginger and it’s been a big hit with my non-vegan family & friends. (Of course, soup is one thing that is easily adapted to veganism). I am going to try the Thai version next.
Excellent recipe — thank you!!
Love, love, love this recipe. Followed it almost to a T (sadly couldn’t find my coriander). Absolutely delicious, who knew carrot soup could taste so good. New staple for sure.
This is OUTSTANDING soup! I used a can of coconut milk to make up the liquid. Very tasty :)
This was a great starter recipe for me. I roasted the carrots and made the base of sauteed onions/garlic. I added orange juice instead of lemon juice, and a few tablespoons of maple syrup to add a touch of sweetness. I loaded up with powdered ginger, cumin and some Masala spice blend (which is what I had on hand). Finished everything with a little butter while pureeing, and voila! Thanks for the inspiration!
I didn’t have a blender but I cooked the carrots longer and added white beans. I was still wanting more spice to it but it was really quite good
I’m in heaven. I had carrot soup for the first time in a restaurant recently. I found this recipe and I think it’s even better. I did omit the coriander though. I didn’t have it in the house. Heavenly!!!!!!
This was excellent! I broiled carrots in oven on high to reduce cooking time and added in a little ginger, everything else followed recipe. Soo yummy
Yum! I love the curry ginger carrot soup! This combination of flavors is incredible! Thank you
Absolutely fantastic! And so easy to make. I subbed in chicken broth for veggie broth and used 2 cups of water. I agree Variation 2 is my favorite. This and your roasted cauliflower soup are on rotation, as well as your Caesar dressing and croutons.
Absolutely fantastic. I subbed in chicken broth for veggie broth and used 2 cups of water. I agree variation #2 is my favorite. I have the roasted cauliflower soup and this one on rotation — it’s a hit with the whole family.
I have made the butternut squash soup you posted and it is delish and easy . So I’m excited to try this carrot one , I know will have same Delish results. Thank you for posting these and your other recipes . Your a trusted source ❤️
Love love this carrot soup. I have made it a few times after my sister share hers. I just came back from a cruise, got sick for a week and was craving this soup. Today I am well enough to cook and this soup is the first thing that I made. I am yet to make the other variation. Thank you Kate for the recipe.
I made this using the ginger and lemon juice. It’s very good. My husband loved it so I’ll be adding it to my recipe file. Thank you so much for a great tasting soup!
Great! I did the curry version. Also added Greek yogurt for extra cream and protein. And pumpkin seeds on top? I’m gonna add a roasted apple next time too.
Yum!
This soup was FANTASTIC! This is my new favorite recipe for carrot soup! I omitted the cumin and coriander- didn’t have them because I’m not a fan of either. I also used chicken broth and about 6-7 garlic cloves (I was sick and needed some lol). I kept everything else the same and it was delicious and creamy! The lemon at the end really gives it a zing that keeps you coming back for more! Thank you!
This soup was a hit with my husband and me! I made it today for lunch, and it was the perfect meal for the cold and dreary weather outside. The recipe is excellent as written. Thank you for sharing!
Had extra carrots, so I found this to make. My wife loves cooked carrots, I do not. I really didn’t think I would like it. I was wrong, it’s delicious.
Followed the directions carefully. i hadnt ever roasted carrots before adding them to soup before.
i really wanted to be blown away, but i just wasn’t. It’s not horrible by any means, but it’s not the best i’ve ever had. Will i spend half an hour roasting carrots again— no way.
Oh my gosh, this was amazing! This is probably my favorite roasted vegetable soup I’ve made. I will say I freestyled the seasoning measurements since I under-bought carrots and had to guesstimate, and I forgot the lemon juice at the end but I’m still amazed! 11/10, would make it again and maybe try a variation!
Soooo delicious, so easy, thank u so much, chef, for sharing recipe w us!
I thought my man was a wonderful soup maker. When I asked for his recipe, he told me he boiled potatoes and then added canned soup. That inspired me to look for recipes online to gain more control over what we are eating.
(Dreamy) Creamy Roasted Carrot Soup is my favorite go to recipe. The roasting of the carrots brings out their sweetness and magnifies the flavours. Sometimes I roast the garlic and roast a few peppers as well. I have hidden other vegetables in the soup as well when I am cleaning out the fridge.
No matter what I include, it all comes together in the blender. It is so worth the extra dishes to put it through the blender. Thank you soooo much for sharing such an versatile and flavourful soup.