Its definitely soup weather in this part of the world and nothing says ‘winter’ and ‘soups’ to me more than pumpkin soup. I love it plain, with basic curry powder, Thai style, Moroccan style, with any sort of pulses like lentils or chickpeas. Its just such a lovely vegetable to make a soup with. I don’t know why I hadn’t done it before but I love a pumpkin curry so I thought I combine the two with this Indian style pumpkin soup with tamarind.

The tamarind tree produces a pod-like fruit, grown around the world and used in many cuisines to add a sour flavour to a dish. You can buy it from specialty Asian stores in a pulp or dried form and dilute with water or buy it already made into a paste, which is what I have. For about $4.00 you can keep it in the fridge and use it when you need. It keeps forever because you only need a bit. Its perfect to use in Indian, Thai, Mexican, African, West Indian, Middle Eastern and other Asian cuisines. These are the types of ingredients I like to pick up occasionally to broaden my cooking repertoire. If you’re unsure of what else to cook with tamarind, just Google it. Alternatively, you can substitute tamarind with lime or lemon juice or a little vinegar sweetened with a bit of sugar.

I was running out of time but I usually

prefer to roast pumpkin before making it into soup as it adds a lovely flavour. I had this soup on the table in about 20 minutes flat. I had bought some of those prepackaged garlic naan breads, just to try and they weren’t bad. I think I’d prefer to make them and have them in the freezer ready to pull out as needed. They aren’t too difficult to make but at about $3 for two large ones, they’re good to have as a treat.

Indian style Pumpkin Soup with Tamarind

• 1/4 piece of large or 1/2 of small pumpkin, peeled and chopped
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp turmeric
• pinch garam masala
• 1 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 2 whole dried chillies (kept whole or use less or more chilli to taste)
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped or crushed
• 2 tbs oil
• 2 tsp tamarind paste
• enough chicken or vegetable stock to cover pumpkin
• salt
• 1 tbs brown sugar
• yoghurt and naan bread (or bread rolls) to serve

(* if you don’t have these spices in your pantry, use an Indian style curry powder or paste)

1. In a pot, heat oil and add cumin, paprika, turmeric, garam masala, mustard seeds, garlic and dried whole chillies and stir over heat until aromatic. 
2. Add chopped pumpkin and cover with enough vegetable or chicken stock.
3. Add tamarind paste, salt and brown sugar.
4. Cook until pumpkin is soft.
5. Mash or blend with a stick blender until smooth.
6. Serve with a dollop of plain yoghurt and naan bread or bread rolls.