Carrot and Coriander Soup

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Total Time 25 minutes

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This Carrot and Coriander Soup recipe is so unexpectedly delicious! Sweet and savory carrots are cooked with garlic, butter, onion, coriander, cumin, cream, and more to create a hearty soup you’ll want to eat all winter long. 

For more amazing soup recipes, head on over to my popular posts for Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup, Creamy Butternut Squash Soup, Split Pea Soup, and Best Ever Broccoli Cheese Soup.

bowl of carrot soup with fresh cilantro garnish and spoon

 I know, I know, at first read you might think carrot and coriander soup? Really? Doesn’t maybe sound like something you’d typically eat in a soup. But let me tell you – it’s sooooooo sooooo very good. The carrots are cooked in butter until tender with onions and garlic in vegetable broth and then pureed with cream before being mixed together with all the amazingly yummy spices like coriander, cumin, lemon, and cilantro. This is one carrot soup you’ll be coming back to again and again. 

ladle of carrot soup above pot of more soup

Ingredients

ingredients for carrot coriander soup
  • Whole carrots – Fresh is best!
  • Yellow onion – white onion would also work here.
  • Garlic – I used minced garlic right from the jar, but you can mince your own. Any brand is fine.
  • Vegetable broth –Use vegetable broth to keep this soup vegetarian. If you don’t have vegetable broth, chicken broth works great, too. 
  • Heavy cream or fat free half and half – Use whichever you like. Heavy cream makes this carrot soup very rich. Fat free half and half is still delicious, but the soup won’t be as creamy. For an even lighter version of this soup, replace the milk with additional broth.
  • Lemon juice – Fresh squeezed lemon juice is the best and gives everything a brighter, more citrusy flavor. But if you don’t have any lemons to squeeze then lemon juice from a bottle will be good too. 
  • Fresh cilantro – Fresh cilantro is really optional. I like it for a garnish and a little extra flavor in this carrot coriander soup but if you don’t have it, no problem. 

Here’s How You Make It

four steps of preparation of carrot coriander soup
  1. First, get out a large pot, and melt the butter over medium high heat. Stir in the garlic for 2-3 minutes, just until it starts to get fragrant. Then, add the onions, then the carrots and stir(photo 1)
  2. Next, pour in the vegetable broth. Bring the carrot soup to a boil, and continue to let it boil for another 10-12 minutes, or until the carrots are very tender. (photo 2)
  3. Carefully transfer the carrot mixture to a blender and puree it til smooth (or use an immersion blender right in the pot). Transfer the carrot and coriander soup back to the pot. (photo 3)
  4. Now stir in the heavy cream or milk and the salt, pepper, ground coriander, cumin, and lemon juice. (photo 4)
  5. Now for the best part: Give the soup a taste and add more salt and pepper if you like. Stir in chopped cilantro and dive in! 

Why This Recipe Works

Whole carrots – while you can use baby carrots, whole carrots tend to have an earthier, sweeter flavor that I prefer in this carrot coriander soup. 

Simple ingredients – Most of the ingredients in this soup are probably already in your fridge and pantry, which makes this a great last-minute, no-brainer dinner recipe! 

Vegetarian – If you’re looking for a great vegetarian meal, look no further than this carrot coriander soup. To make this soup vegan, simply swap out the cream for your favorite plain milk alternative or coconut milk in a can. It won’t be as thick, but it’ll still be delicious! 

Coriander – Before this soup, I think coriander was the least-used spice in my spice rack. But boy is that about to change! Coriander is totally underrated as it adds so much depth of flavor to this carrot soup and so many other dishes. 

hands dishing into bowl of carrot coriander soup

Expert Tips 

  • Blending this soup is key to its creaminess. If you are using a blender, be sure to cover the top with a towel so that steam from the soup doesn’t cause the top to pop off or for you to get scalded. If you like a little bit of texture in your soup, you can always puree about ¾ of it and leave the rest as-is. 
  • This carrot and coriander soup will keep in the fridge for up to a week. It also freezes great, and you can keep it in the freezer in an airtight container for up to six months! 
  • While cilantro makes a great garnish and topping for this soup, there are other topping options. I also like to add chopped parsley instead of cilantro. Other great toppings include crumbled feta or goat cheese, pepitas, pine nuts, sour cream (or Greek yogurt), or diced avocado.
overhead view of two bowls and a pot of soup with cilantro garnish

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Did you make this recipe? FANTASTIC. Please rate the recipe below and be sure to tag me on social when you share a photo on social – I love seeing what you’re up to in the kitchen!

bowl of carrot soup with fresh cilantro garnish and spoon
4.97 from 32 votes

Carrot and Coriander Soup Recipe

This carrot and coriander soup recipe is so unexpectedly delicious! Sweet and savory carrots are cooked with garlic, butter, onion, coriander, cumin, cream, and more to create a hearty soup you'll want to eat all winter long. 
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
0 minutes
Total: 25 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
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Ingredients 

  • 2 pounds whole carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 6 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 cup heavy cream, or fat free half and half, see note
  • 2-3 teaspoons salt, to taste
  • cracked black pepper , to taste
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • juice of ½ lemon, about 2 tablespoons
  • large handful fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

Instructions 

  • In a large pot, melt butter. Stir in garlic for 2-3 minutes til fragrant. Stir in onions, then carrots.
  • Add vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, then continue to boil for 10-12 minutes until carrots are very tender.
  • Transfer carrot mixture to a blender and puree til smooth (or use an immersion blender). Transfer back to the pot.
  • Stir in heavy cream, salt, pepper, ground coriander, cumin, and lemon juice.
  • Give it a taste, add more salt and pepper if needed. Stir in chopped cilantro.

Notes

Heavy cream: I love the richness heavy cream gives to this soup, if you’d like you can substitute whole milk or fat free half and half – the result will be slightly less rich. 
Milk alternate: to keep this dairy free or to make this soup even lighter, skip the cream/milk altogether and add more broth. 

Nutrition

Calories: 327kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 82mg | Sodium: 2761mg | Potassium: 804mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 39533IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 135mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Tiffany of Creme de la Crumb in the kitchen

Welcome!

Hey there, I’m Tiffany – chef, photographer, mother, and avid taco eater. I am passionate about turning simple flavors and ingredients into tasty meals the whole family will love, with minimal prep and cleanup so there’s more time to spend eating and enjoying. Stay awhile, and help yourself to a taco or two!

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4.97 from 32 votes (24 ratings without comment)

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16 Comments

  1. Nigel Regan says:

    Delicious but next time I definitely won’t use so much liquid. I made the 3x recipe which called for 18 cups of stock. I used 16 and it was still quite watery.