The time has come — it’s finally soup season, and this soup is INSANE. Probably the best soup I’ve ever made, but at least the best soup I’ve made this season. This Kabocha Squash and Fennel Soup uses everything I love about fall to create a rich, filling, and good -for-you meal. It builds flavor in every step, which is what I absolutely love about cooking.
Besides the aforementioned kabocha squash and fennel (each prepared two ways, charred and sautéed), this soup has a bit of sage and rosemary for some classic Thanksgiving flavors, red pepper flakes for heat, and chickpeas and farro for some added body. A touch of heavy cream at the end give this soup its amazing texture, but you’ll just have to make it for yourself to see what all the hype is about.
Ingredients you will need for this squash and fennel soup
This Kabocha Squash and Fennel Soup is rich and hearty with lots of texture, here is everything you will need to make it:
- 1 large kabocha squash, 32 ounces
- 1 large fennel bulb, 12 ounces
- 1 large yellow onion, 7 ounces
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 4 garlic cloves
- 3 sprigs rosemary 2 tablespoons, chopped
- 12 fresh sage leaves 2 tablespoons, chopped
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 cup farro
- 7 cups water
- 2 tablespoons Better Than Bouillon vegetable base
- 1 19-ounce can of chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
What is a kabocha squash?
Kabocha squash is a kind of winter squash hailing from Japan — though it is used in traditional dishes throughout eastern Asia including South Korea and Thailand. The variety is sometimes referred to as a Japanese pumpkin because its stout, round shape is very similar to the American gourd. The squash’s outer skin is a rich green and has a bright orange flesh similar to an acorn squash.
Kabocha squash has a notably sweet flavor and tends to run a bit sweeter than a butternut squash. While the rind is edible, I prefer to peel the squash since it can take a long time to soften the skin enough to become a palatable texture.
If you can’t find any kabocha squash near you, don’t worry! Any orange squash or pumpkin will make a great substitute for the kabocha in this squash and fennel soup — just be sure to peel the gourd you’re using, then you’re good to go.
Why do we roast some of the vegetables for the soup?
While some of the veggies get cooked down in the pot for the soup, a good half of them get roasted in a 425°F oven. The squash that gets cooked in the pot softens and adds a lot of texture and body to the soup. Meanwhile, the roasted bits of squash and fennel undergo what is known as the Maillard reaction, a chemical reaction that occurs when food (be it chicken, fish, a vegetable — even sugar) starts to brown giving properly browned food its distinct, rich flavor. When you let this simmer down with the rest of the soup, the squash and fennel give the soup a lot of richness thanks to the charred vegetables.
Oven roasting not only gets the Maillard reaction going thanks to the bits of veg that are in contact with the pan, it also draws out a lot of moisture. When you’re roasting something in the oven, you’re evaporating some of the water that is naturally occurring in the ingredient. Sometimes people describe things like a drink as “water-down” or a boiled potato as “water-logged” to show that they have less flavor. This roasting process works in reverse of that idea by removing water and concentrating the flavors of the different vegetables in this soup.
Will I like this soup if I don’t like fennel?
This soup is perfectly designed for the fennel afraid and might even convert some to, at the very least, fennel curious. In its raw state, fennel has a very distinct anise-flavor that some people find off-putting. However, this soup works hard to minimize that flavor, while still reaping the benefits of the vegetable’s sweetness.
Because half of the fennel gets roasted and the other half caramelizes with onions, garlic, and lots of herbs, the strong anise flavor gets cooked out. As previously addressed, roasting the fennel helps draw out moisture and caramelize the veggies, while still maintaining some of its structural integrity. Sautéing the fennel with onions tames that black licorice-like flavor, resulting in a much sweeter end product whose texture perfectly mimics celery.
Looking for other soup recipes?
This soup is rich and comforting yet surprisingly filled with light ingredients. I call it a perfect “transition” recipe, as we ease into fall from summer.
This soup starts with a vibrant basil cilantro broth, but from there you can really add any vegetables you have in the fridge! The broth and aromatics simmer the vegetables and infuse them with flavor, making this a zippy, bright and fully plant-based dinner that’s easy to make and a great weeknight staple.
This soup is all about the charred daikon radishes. They caramelize at the beginning of the recipe, then simmer down in this rich, umami, somewhat spicy vegetable-packed soup. It’s a plant-based dream and a full meal, thanks to all to tofu. And it’s a great way to use all the daikon radishes that I find this season!
This high-protein, plant-based soup is modeled after ‘nduja, but don’t worry, you won’t find any pork here. What you WILL find is a comforting, slightly spicy soup that is packed with umami flavor and bursting with notes of tomato. The flavors build as the soup simmers, so don’t skip that step, and the bold notes of the soup will prove why.
And that’s it for this Kabocha Squash and Fennel Soup!
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Kabocha Squash and Fennel Soup
This soup is packed with flavor, and probably one of the best soups I’ve had this year. And I am not exaggerating. And that’s because this soup uses technique to build flavor, from char-roasting the fennel and half of the squash to gather all their caramelized flavor, to toasting the farro before letting it boil into the soup, to finishing with heavy cream for the perfect texture. This soup uses everything I love about fall to create a rich, filling, and good -for-you meal.
Ingredients
- 1 large kabocha squash 32 ounces
- 1 large fennel bulb 12 ounces
- 1 large yellow onion 7 ounces
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 4 garlic cloves
- 3 sprigs rosemary 2 tablespoons, chopped
- 12 fresh sage leaves 2 tablespoons, chopped
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 cup farro
- 7 cups water
- 2 tablespoons Better Than Bouillon vegetable base
- 1 19-ounce can of chickpeas rinsed and drained, see Note
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
Instructions
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Place two racks near the bottom of the oven and preheat to 425°F.
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Halve and deseed the kabocha squash. Cube the squash into 1-inch square pieces. Add half of the squash to a sheetpan, set the other half aside.
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Remove the stalks from the fennel bulb and remove the fronds. Thinly slice the stalks the same way you would celery and set aside. Slice the bulb into bite-sized chunks, add only the chunks of the bulb to a separate sheet pan.
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Halve the onion. Cut one half into chunks the same size as the fennel bulb and add it to the sheet pan with the fennel. Thinly slice the other half and set aside.
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Drizzle both sheet pans with olive oil and season the squash, fennel and onion with a pinch of salt. Mix to coat, and add the two sheet pans to the oven to roast for 25-35 minutes, or until charred on the bottoms.
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While those vegetables are roasting, grate the four garlic cloves, finely chop the three sprigs of rosemary and the twelve sage leaves and set aside.
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Set a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add 1/4 cup of olive oil and two tablespoons of salted butter. Once the butter has fully melted, add the garlic, sage, rosemary, fennel seeds and red pepper flakes. Let these sizzle for 1-2 minutes, stirring often.
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Add in the thinly sliced fennel stalks and the thinly sliced onion to the pot, stir to coat in the oil and season with a few large pinches of salt. Cook for 4-5 minutes, or until the onion is beginning to soften.
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Add the farro and stir to combine. Toast the farro with the other ingredients for 3-4 minutes, or until darkened by one shade.
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Add the remaining half of kabocha squash to the pot. Stir to coat it in the other ingredients. From here, cover the pot and stir every 4-5 minutes. Do this for 15-20 minutes or until the squash is softened. When the squash is soft, begin to mash it up with your spoon. The more mashed, the better the texture of the soup.
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Whisk together the Better than Bouillon and 7 cups of water. Add the chickpeas and this water mixture to the pot and bring it to a simmer.
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By now, the roasted vegetables should be out of the oven. Transfer them directly into the soup and stir to combine.
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Bring the pot to a low simmer, cover and let cook for 20-35 minutes. The longer it simmers, the more flavor you will build from the charred vegetables.
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When the soup is thick and looking dark and delicious, pour in the heavy cream.
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Taste and season as preferred, then enjoy!
Notes
If you don’t have a 19-ounce can in your stores, you can either decrease to 1 14-ounce can, or up the protein with 2 14-ounce cans.
