Sweet Potato Soup

This sweet potato soup recipe is one of my favorite healthy comfort foods. Made with veggies, coconut milk, and spices, it's rich, creamy, and delicious.

Sweet potato soup

Jack and I spent the first official week of fall eating bowl after bowl of this sweet potato soup. I don’t know what it is about creamy orange soup, but for some reason, it just seems like the perfect meal on a chilly day. Its vibrant color brightens up gray, dreary weather, and its velvety broth warms you from the inside out.

Most years, I make my butternut squash soup or pumpkin soup on repeat at the start of fall, but right now, I’m still stuck on this sweet potato soup. It has a rich, sweet, and smoky flavor, with a tangy finish from apple cider vinegar. The texture is wonderfully smooth and creamy, which makes a single bowl feel really substantial.

If you find yourself craving cozy comfort food in the next couple of weeks, this sweet potato soup recipe is exactly what you should make. It’s simple, nourishing, and deliciously unexpected. Crusty bread for serving is optional, but highly recommended.

Sweet potato soup recipe ingredients

Sweet Potato Soup Recipe Ingredients

Another thing I love about this sweet potato soup recipe? To make it, you only need a handful of ingredients:

  • Sweet potatoes, of course! They give the soup its sweet flavor, vibrant color, and luscious texture.
  • An apple – It brings out the sweetness of the sweet potatoes.
  • Onion and garlic – For savory depth of flavor.
  • Coriander and ginger – They add warm, aromatic flavor to the soup.
  • Smoked paprika – It gives the soup its delicious smokiness.
  • Extra-virgin olive oil and coconut milk – For richness.
  • Vegetable broth – Use store-bought, or make your own.
  • Apple cider vinegar – For tang.
  • And sea salt – To make all the flavors pop!

Find the complete recipe with measurements below.

Sweet potatoes and apples in Dutch oven with wooden spoon

How to Make This Sweet Potato Soup

This sweet potato soup recipe is soup-er (I had to!) simple to make. Here’s how it goes:

First, sauté the veggies. In a large pot or Dutch oven, cook the onion until it softens, for about 5 minutes. Then, add the sweet potatoes and apple and cook until they start to soften, for another 8 to 10 minutes.

Pouring coconut milk into pot with sweet potatoes, apples, and broth

Next, stir in the seasonings. Add the garlic, ginger, coriander, and smoked paprika and stir until they’re fragrant. Then, mix in the apple cider vinegar, followed by the broth and the coconut milk. (Tip: I like to reserve 1/4 cup of my coconut milk for garnish. It creates such a pretty white swirl on the orange soup!)

Then, simmer. Bring the soup to a boil, cover the pot, and simmer until the sweet potatoes are tender.

Finally, puree the soup! Allow the soup to cool slightly before transferring it to a large blender and pureeing until smooth. (Alternatively, you could use an immersion blender for this step.) If the soup is too thick, blend in a little more broth. When it reaches your desired consistency, season to taste and serve.

That’s it!

Pot of creamy sweet potato soup

Sweet Potato Soup Serving Suggestions

When you’re ready to eat, portion the creamy sweet potato soup into bowls. Garnish it with a swirl of coconut milk, fresh cilantro, Aleppo pepper or red pepper flakes, and pepitas for crunch.

I often eat the soup as a meal on its own (with a thick slice of crusty bread, of course!), but it’s also fantastic with a salad or roasted vegetables on the side. Try pairing it with any of these recipes:

Enjoy!

Sweet potato soup recipe

More Favorite Soup Recipes

If you love this sweet potato soup recipe, try one of these delicious soups next:

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Sweet Potato Soup

rate this recipe:
4.92 from 259 votes
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Serves 4
On a cold winter or fall night, warm up with this creamy sweet potato soup! It's healthy, comforting, and filled with delicious sweet and smoky flavor. Vegan and gluten-free.

Ingredients

Serving Options

  • Pepitas, for garnish
  • Fresh cilantro, for garnish
  • Aleppo pepper or red pepper flakes, for garnish
  • Crusty bread, for serving

Instructions

  • Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, salt, and several grinds of pepper and sauté until soft, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the sweet potatoes and the apple and cook until they begin to soften, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes.
  • Add the garlic, ginger, coriander, and smoked paprika and stir. Stir in the apple cider vinegar and then 3 cups of the broth and the coconut milk. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook until the potatoes are tender, 20 to 30 minutes.
  • Let cool slightly and pour the soup into a blender, working in batches if necessary, and blend until smooth. If your soup is too thick, add up to 1 cup more broth and blend. Season to taste and top with a swirl of coconut milk, pepitas, cilantro, and Aleppo pepper, if desired. Serve with crusty bread.

Notes

This soup thickens as it cools. If reheating it, stir in a little water to create a smooth, creamy consistency.

246 comments

4.92 from 259 votes (131 ratings without comment)

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Rate this recipe (after making it)




  1. Gabrielle
    12.31.2024

    5 stars
    Delicious, balanced between savory and sweet. Thanks for sharing!

  2. Esther Laf
    12.29.2024

    5 stars
    The sweet potato soup is delicious and easy to make! Thank you for the great recipe 😊 Esther

  3. Kerry
    12.28.2024

    5 stars
    We just made this tonight and it turned out great.

    We doubled the recipe, subbed what we had on-hand including red onion instead of yellow and only used 1/2 of the coconut milk called for our batch size.

    This is the 2nd soup we’ve tried from your list of 35 best. It’s been a lot of delicious fun, thank you!

  4. SusanC
    12.21.2024

    5 stars
    I made this and it is wonderful. During tasting it seemed a little bland on the savory side at first, but I added about a cup of apple sauce (easier than additional apples) and a bit of cayenne, and it pulled everything into line. Now it is just amazing.

    You really may need to adjust the flavors, since you are using all natural ingredients. Taste and adjust. Warmth… sweetness… heat.

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      12.23.2024

      Hi Susan, I’m glad you enjoyed it.

  5. Cathy Stanley
    12.19.2024

    5 stars
    I am a cook at a retirement home. I am tasked with making a different soup of the day; everyday. I had some leftover sweet potatoes so I thought I would try something different. I’m glad I did!! I have one resident who is never pleased with anything!! She has lived there 5 years and has been through her fair share of new cooks. Well, she said that my sweet potato soup was one of the best soups she has had since she’s lived there!! Thanks for the Win!! Definitely keeping this recipe and will be making it often!

  6. Leslie
    12.16.2024

    I wanted to love this soup but I found it to be just awful!
    The flavors did not compliment each other at all and it was really terrible tasting in my opinion. I will not make again ever. There are better recipes out there for sure.

  7. Lisa Smith
    12.13.2024

    5 stars
    Made this tonight absolutely lovely thanks so much!

  8. Beth
    12.07.2024

    5 stars
    Love this soup! Going to make it today but I don’t have any coconut milk this time, so I will try mixing milk and heavy cream to add to it at the end,

  9. Mike
    12.03.2024

    5 stars
    Absolutely delicious. I did ‘modify’ the recipe order by adding the vegetable broth & coconut milk before the garlic, ginger, smoke paprika and apple cider vinegar. I felt the spices would ‘infuse’ better that way

    I also added an extra 1/2 apple and 1/4 tsp of fresh ground nutmeg instead of the coriander

  10. Sarit
    11.25.2024

    5 stars
    Absolutely LOVE this recipe. Had about 3 bowls! I used about 2/3 of the coconut cream to reduce the fat and it was still incredible.

  11. Eileen Cowling
    11.23.2024

    5 stars
    Great recipe, easy to make and great to eat.

  12. Sharon
    11.22.2024

    What can be substituted for coconut milk

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      11.22.2024

      Hi Sharon, you could use another non-dairy milk, regular milk, or half-and-half.

  13. Shannon
    11.22.2024

    5 stars
    I doubled the recipe but used two pots instead of one. I also added roasted cashews and shredded parmesean cheese as a topping and it was delicious.

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      11.22.2024

      Hi Shannon, I’m so glad you enjoyed the soup!

  14. Marnie
    11.19.2024

    Can this soup recipe be doubled?

  15. Jennifer
    11.17.2024

    5 stars
    The absolute perfect soup for a cold November day 😍

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      11.18.2024

      I’m so glad it hit the spot!

  16. Shannon
    11.17.2024

    1 star
    I have made this twice. The first time it was bad…so salty. Just gave it a second chance. Used all fresh ingredients. It’s bad. Tastes almost sour and even has a bad smell. No idea what I’m doing wrong since everyone else seems to like it so much.

    • Jennifer
      11.17.2024

      5 stars
      Must have been something in your recipe, maybe the potatoes were bad. I just made it and it was perfection 😻

  17. Mary E. Money-Waldman
    11.14.2024

    5 stars
    Best sweet potato soup I have ever made!

  18. Ad.
    11.06.2024

    5 stars
    Can I bake the sweet potatoes before hand
    and then add to soup liquids? or does it need to be
    boiled within the liquids ?

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      11.09.2024

      Hi, you could use baked, peeled sweet potatoes here!

  19. Donna
    11.06.2024

    5 stars
    Easy to make and very flavorful! Freezes well, too.

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      11.09.2024

      So glad you enjoyed it, Donna!

  20. Isaac
    10.28.2024

    Why not write in the portions within the instructions? Thankful for sharing this, just a PITA to scroll between instructions and measurements… and that the measurements are not in any particular order.

    • Isaac
      10.28.2024

      I take that back the ingredients are in order

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      11.01.2024

      Hi Isaac, thanks for your feedback!

      • HB
        11.25.2024

        1 star
        I was hopeful based on the reviews but like someone else mentioned, this smelt extremely sour and tasted the same – almost like it was off. Unfortunately inedible.

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Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.