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.
Soooooooo good, thank you! Roasting the carrots in the trick!
There’s also a similar recipe with dill in this cookbook I just found that has 108 recipes, all veggie and mostly vegan!
This soup is so delicious and perfect for a chilly fall day ;)
Thank you for your review!
I don’t usually review recipes, but I had to for this one! I’ve made it 3 or 4 times now and I love it! So delicious and easy to make! I don’t foresee myself eating or making any other kind of soup anytime soon. I like to make a big batch when I get my groceries then freeze it for later when I’m running low on fresh veggies.
In my latest batch, I added in a parsnip with the carrots, and it worked really well – I recommend it!
I make a lot of soups and this is a good one. The creamy texture is sensuous and the basic flavors are appealing. The Thai version, however, is waaaay under-spiced to merit that title. I doubled the Thai Kitchen red curry recommendation for the spicy version and it was still mild enough for the most timid eater I cook for. In my opinion, if you are not from the Midwest, you will probably want to increase the amount and have a bottle of sriracha handy to add spice at the table. The roasted peanut garnish suggested adds a nice crunch to the soup. Without Thai in the title, I would say the soup is well worth making.
What kind of Midwest hating comment is that? We love spicy food ♂️
I had tried it for the first time, I got it right! I am not a good cook, I had just started in the kitchen, and I was so amazed with the output for the first time, I did not even saw the measurements I watched the video. Now that I had seen the measurements for the ingredients and next time will make sure I follow because I don’t even remember how much I used for each.
I thank God for the trial and good output it tasted soooo good, hubby loved it. I was doing ti for him and if it pleases him am fine with that. One thing I will advise people is that LOVE is one of the best ingredient when you cook. Since I started cooking, I had always done it with love even if I tend to lack confident how it will turn out. Ohh I love cooking.
Made this for tea tonight..
It went down a storm.. so tasty and easy you make.. I definitely be trying other recipes. I would recommend everyone to try
Loved it, turned out perfect, just followed your Recipe step by step. It’s a keeper!
I will need to follow your links for another delicious surprise for the little wifey
Can you use a smoothie blender if you don’t have any other kitchen appliances?
Hi Charlie! You want to use a higher powered blender if you can. I’m not sure if the one you have will work well or not. I would be mindful of the heat and overfilling it.
I have a blendtec blender that has a soup setting I think.
Wow! It was very tasty. The best carrot soup I’ve ever had. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome, Pandie!
I had carrots that were about to go bad and this fit the bill. I added fresh ginger and curry powder—delish! This also fit my Vitamix perfectly! I added cilantro and Mexican crema when serving; ate with Trader Joe’s garlic naan.
Hooray! Thank you for sharing, Linds.
Woman you’re making me look good!
People who eat this soup grunt in pleasure – kids, friends and husbands. Topped with a little garlic croutons for crunch – it’s restaurant quality and feels great in the tummy.
two small variations:
I used 1 leek and 1 shallot instead of an onion.
I used home made stock – I am curious if it would have the same perfection with a powdered stock.
10 stars, not 5
Mine didn’t come out thick :/ I dunno what I did I dont work in cups so I am debating if I put too much stock in I put 2 litres :/
Someone help lol
2 liters = about 8.5 cups! That’s way too much liquid!
This is a lovely base recipe, I added roast red capsicum too. It’s definitely a keeper!
Thanks
This Carrot soup sounds really yummy. I love carrot soup, I have always have had it served cold. I might have missed it but I didn’t see if you serve hot or cold.
I’ve served it hot and cold. It’s delicious either way.
LOVE this receipe! I also made your cauliflower receipe and so I wanted to try this one too. I did add in triple the Thai spice only cause I felt like I couldn’t taste it. It wasn’t a curry but made for stirfrys . Made it SUPER good! I also used a low sodium vegetable broth.
Thank you so much!!
I’m happy you loved this one too and were able to change the spices some to match your tastes! I appreciate the review, Annie.
You should get a Nobel price for ‘roasting the carrots’ technique. My wife’s eyeballs popped out of her head when she tasted it. She’s lactose intolerant, I used extra virgin olive oil, YUMMY! I plan to experiment with your variants (ginger & curry).
Can we please have imperial measurements?
Hi, sorry! I just use US standard size. Here is a great metrics conversion chart.
I never ever review recipes, but this soup was so good I could eat it forever! I seasoned it with cumin and paprika
Needs double cream.
hi kate! any chance you have a recipe for the vegetable broth. I am loving your recipes in Bangalore, India since the lockdown started. And we don’t get good vegetable broth here. I have been using something we call “Maggi Magic Cubes”. Would love something from you!
Thanks this is delicious
Thanks for the recipe, the soup was delicious! I’ve added a cup of aquafaba I had to use up instead of stock and the soup was super creamy. I need to trygo without the aquafaba next time to see whether it makes a difference.
I love your recipes, tried many of them and was never disappointed.
Thank you for this nice recipe for carrot soup.Roasting the carrots added a richness to the soup that boiling never has. After the carrots were blended, I thought they were slightly too savory so I added 1/2 cup of pear juice left over from a can of pears & 1/2 c of milk. It was not sweet & creamy, but mello & ever so slightly sweetened.
I don’t really like carrots, but regularly get a ton of them in my vegetable box, so I need a good recipe that uses a bunch at once. This was fantastic! I basically followed the recipe, but I roasted the onion along with the carrots and doubled the spices. I will definitely be coming back to this one! Thanks so much!
I made this soup according to the directions but did not add the butter and lemon juice at the end. The recipe was easy to follow although a bit time-consuming because of roasting the carrots. The soup was delicious and creamy even without the butter and lemon juice. My husband and I both loved it. I’ll definitely make it again.
Tried the soup and it was great! It’s amazing how good it tastes with so few ingredients. This recipe is definitely a keeper.
Excellent recipe. Added a bayleaf and substituted with red onion as that was all I had. Since I made only 500g of carrots, I divided everything but I kept the onion and garlic amt. Used mushroom stock. Made sure it was salted properly at every stage. If you only have salted butter you have to cut down on salt. The lemon juice is good to add a bit of acid. Roasted vegetables are a great idea.
Would love to have a more taste complex version (more spices or vegetables) of this soup to try.. :)
Hi Ling! Thank you for sharing. Did you see the the options to change it up in the post?
Could this soup be eaten cold. I live in a hot country. Sounds delish!!!
1/4 tsp of cumin? Why even bother with that tiny amount for so much soup?
Hi Chris, I find it is just the right amount of flavor to add. You can add more if you like.
The best carrot soup I’ve ever had! Normally they are overloaded with cumin but this was the perfect amount. The roasted carrots tasted just like sweet potato when they were done. I think I’ve found my potato substitute now! I added a blend of sweet smoked paprika, lemon peel and garlic powder to them before roasting as well. Unbelievable taste. Also, I only have an immersion (hand) blender and it did the job fine for those without a stand blender. I just can’t believe how creamy it is given there is no cream. I’ve bookmarked more of your recipes! Thank you
Great recipe , would you serve it as a cold soup on a hot summer day ?
Sure! That sounds like an interesting idea. Let me know what you think.
It is sooo delicious. It is in my favourite list now :) Thank you so much for sharing the recipe.
Hi, if I can’t use onions, what can I substitute it with?
Hi LR! Onions helps give this a lot of flavor. You could omit, but I’m not sure on the taste.
whats the song!
Hi, I was just wondering if the onions were supposed to burn in step 5? Thanks!
Hi Jessie! You definitely don’t want them to burn. You want them to be soft, and translucent.
Oh, ok. I’ll try to do that next time, thanks!
Ps. It was still delish ;)
I loooovve this recipe! We returned late from a trip away, didn’t have much food in the house save for a big bag of carrots in the fridge. We wanted comfort food and I looked up carrot soup recipes and was soooo happy this was the one I tried. It was so delicious and hit the spot. I made the ginger variation and it was perfect, I’m definitely going to make this is in bulk and freeze it!
I am completely addicted to this soup (I make the carrot-ginger variation)! I have made it 5 times already in 2 weeks — it gets consumed that quickly (and it is super-easy to make).
I bought carrots on a whim, and every time I buy them I never quite know what to do with them. Per family tradition, after following the recipe closely the first time (excellent), I doubled the garlic, and upped the ginger as well. Minced ginger is fine if you’re pressed for time, but grating it really releases the oils and enhances the flavor. I’m not a vegetarian, so I use chicken stock, which adds a nice richness, but is unnecessary because of the finish …
Do NOT skip the butter at the end. I knew it was a cherished chef’s secret for finishing sauces and soups, but had never tried it. It’s AMAZING.
Add a small spoonful of caramelized onions when serving for an extra flavor level.
Love this! Thank you!
I love to hear that! Thanks for your detailed comment, Emilie! I appreciate it.
Thanks for your reply Kate! I’m not a vegetarian, but for the past six months I’ve been using your recipes in whole or in part as I’ve been trying to eat healthier and cooking more at home in South Korea (I’m American).
You’re my go-to site lately when I buy fruits or vegetables. I always modify, but your “base” recipes are excellent on their own and lovely jumping off points for more experienced/experimental cooks.
Keep up the great work!
Delicious! Stirred in pesto at the end, and looking forward to other variations!
Wonderful, Wendy!
Who would have thought carrot soup could be this flavorful – I sure didn’t!
This was SO delicious. I didn’t change a thing and it was perfect. Thanks for another awesome recipe.
Thank you for the recipe.
I made a variation on this last night, but mostly followed this recipe last night. I was very pleased with the result.
Variations
Used 1 tablespoon of freshlime juice,
1/4 cup cashews suateed with the onion and garlic
100ml of cream.
Good handful or so of coarsley chopped fresh coriander added just before serving
I thought about slicing some celery sticks add adding them to the fry pan but didnt. Maybe next time.
Wonderful! I made this with half roasted carrots and half roasted butternut squash. Used an immersion blender. Delish!
I’m glad you loved it, Karen! Thank you for sharing.
So glad I found your recipe! I almost never have cream in the fridge as it’s not something I typically use, and I was looking for a soup like this without the cream. Usually carrot soup is pretty bland but this one is amazing, I made the version with ginger and a bit of my curry power mix thrown in. So delicious! Next I will be trying the Thai version. Thanks Kate! :-)
Love this soup recipe, I make the ginger version soo delicious. I have made quite a few of your recipes over the last month or so, they have been instrumental in helping me eat a more balanced diet. My partner who is a long term meat eater, loves the cauliflower tacos
The ginger variation is wonderful!
I’m glad you love it, Amy! Thank you for sharing.
I just made this soup. Followed the recipe as is and it is delightful! Love it. Thank you for sharing it.
I love carrots, but this recipe is way to sweet! I followed the original recipe and then tried to modify it with Thai spice and it still had an overbearing sweetness.
How long should I pressure can this? Anyone have an idea???
Hi Madeline, this one isn’t meant for canning.
Lovely soup .. didn’t add any butter but still creamy .. added a little bit of fresh coriander when I put ingredients in blender and also fresh chilli because we have grown lots this year … yummy
How many cups of carrots approximately equals 2 lbs?
Hi Lori! Sorry to disappoint, but I don’t have cups for this one. I found it turned out the best by weight. The grocery sells carrots by 2lb bags or a kitchen scale works well.
Creamy Roasted Carrot Soup – first class and as you describe it creamy but cream less. It’s the second time this week I’ve made it. so nice thank you.
Chris
I’m happy you enjoy it, Chris! Thank you for sharing.
Loved this recipe! Had it for lunch with a salad. Delish!
I weighed the carrots to get an approximate amount however, I would like more of the carrot flavor so I will be adding a few more carrots next time. And there will be a next time!
This looks fantastic and super comments.
Can it be batch cooked and frozen? Does it freeze well?
Hi! Yes, this would be a great one to freeze I hope you love it, Sophie.
Love this soup! Made the carrot one and it’s soooo good! Shared the recipe with family and friends.This week I had some parsnips to use up – so using the same method I did 50/50 carrots and parsnips – really tasty!