Curried Carrot Soup

This is the fan-favorite soup at Dad’s. Sweet, savory, a little salty, a little sour, with a host of beautiful aromatics, it has a lot going on. But it’s one of those recipes where I don’t do everything from scratch. I make my own coconut milk for desserts, but not for soups, where it gets loose and watery. Canned coconut milk typically has guar gum in it, which holds it together when hot. As for the Madras curry powder, my favorite is from Sun Brand. Established in 1876, they’ve had time to dial in their spice blend. I could be brash and say I’ll make curry powder myself, but I’m certainly not going to do it as well. Some things you leave to other professionals.

Time: 1 hour
Yield: 4 or 5 servings

Ingredients:

Coastal: 130 Recipes from a California Road Trip Scott Clark with Betsy Andrews

• 2 large leeks

• 4 Tbsp [60 ml] unrefined, virgin coconut oil

• 1 Tbsp Madras curry powder

• Pinch of kosher salt

• 2 lb [910 g] carrots, peeled and cut into ¼ in [6 mm] thick slices, about 6 cups

• 7 oz [200 g] ginger, unpeeled and cut into ¼ in [6 mm] thick slices, about 1½ cups

• 5 lemongrass stalks, cut into ¼ in [6 mm] thick slices

• ½ white onion, coarsely chopped

• 1 cup [145 g] garlic cloves

• 2 jalapeños, split vertically down the middle but with the stem end still intact

• Two 14 oz [415 ml] cans unsweetened Thai coconut milk

• 3 Tbsp white soy sauce, plus more as needed

• 4½ tsp dark brown sugar

• Yogurt, preferably homemade, for garnish

• Lime zest, for garnish

• Fresh lime juice, for garnish

• Toasted pumpkin seeds, for garnish
  

Instructions:

Trim off and discard the dark green and root ends of the leeks. Peel and discard the first two layers, then rinse the leeks well. Cut them into ¼ in [6 mm] thick slices, then drop them into a bowl of cold water, separating them into rings and agitating them to clean them thoroughly. Drain the sliced leeks in a colander. You should have about 2 cups [200 g].

In a medium Dutch oven over medium-high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of the coconut oil until it’s just beginning to smoke. Add the leeks, curry powder, and salt and cook, stirring, until the leeks are just beginning to caramelize, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the carrots, mix well, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes more. The carrots should still be crunchy. Kill the heat.

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of coconut oil until it’s just beginning to smoke. Add the ginger, lemongrass, onion, garlic, and jalapeños and cook them, tossing occasionally, until they are fragrant and caramelized, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the coconut milk and bring it to a boil, then knock the heat down to a simmer. Add the white soy sauce and cook for 10 minutes more.

Strain the broth through a chinois into the carrot mixture, pressing on the solids. Bring the soup back up to a boil, then knock the heat down to a simmer and stir in the brown sugar. Add more white soy sauce, 1 teaspoon at a time, as needed and cook until the carrots are crunchy-tender but not soft, 10 to 15 minutes.

To serve, divide the soup among bowls and garnish each bowl with a dollop of yogurt, some lime zest, a squeeze of lime juice, and a handful of pumpkin seeds. If you have leftover soup, treat it like a stew the next day: Poach shrimp, fish, or tofu in it, and serve it over rice. 

Excerpted from Coastal: 130 Recipes from a California Road Trip by Scott Clark with Betsy Andrews, © 2025. Published by Chronicle Books. Photographs © Cheyenne Ellis.

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