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Coconut Butter Bean Soup

Name: Coconut Butter Bean Soup
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: About 5 cups (1.2 liters)
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon neutral oil (15 ml); 1 medium onion, finely chopped (150 g); 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger (15 g); 2 teaspoons mild curry powder; 2 cans butter beans, 15 oz (425 g) each, drained and rinsed; 2 cups vegetable stock (480 ml); 1 can coconut milk, 13.5 oz (400 ml); 3 oz baby spinach (85 g); 1 tablespoon lime juice (15 ml); 1/4 teaspoon fine salt, plus more to taste

About 5 cups (1.2 liters) · Active 10 min · Total 30 min

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Butter beans have a creamy center that suits a coconut soup without needing a blender. A spoonful mashed against the pan thickens the broth while the rest remain whole. Ginger, curry powder and lime give the soup definition; the flavor comes from a short, deliberate sequence rather than a long ingredient list.

Jump to ingredients

Coconut butter bean soup with spinach in pale golden broth.

Bloom the spices gently

Cook the onion until it softens before adding ginger and curry powder. The spices need only thirty seconds in the oil to become fragrant. Scorched curry powder tastes bitter, so have the stock ready to pour. The coconut milk goes in after the pan has been loosened with stock; it then simmers gently rather than frying on the bottom.

A soup that fits a flask

Whole butter beans are larger than lentils, so check that your food flask has a wide mouth. Mash a few beans if you want a thicker spoonful, but leave enough broth for the soup to pour easily. This recipe has no raw meat and cooks quickly, yet a flask still needs food that is properly hot when filled. A cold soup cannot be brought safely to serving temperature simply by sealing it in an insulated container.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon neutral oil (15 ml)
1 medium onion, finely chopped (150 g)
1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger (15 g)
2 teaspoons mild curry powder
2 cans butter beans, 15 oz (425 g) each, drained and rinsed
2 cups vegetable stock (480 ml)
1 can coconut milk, 13.5 oz (400 ml)
3 oz baby spinach (85 g)
1 tablespoon lime juice (15 ml)
1/4 teaspoon fine salt, plus more to taste

Set out

Medium saucepan, Wooden spoon, Grater

Allergens

No major US allergen identified in the base ingredients. Check labels and substitutions.

Make it

Heat oil in the saucepan over medium heat. Cook onion for 6 minutes, stirring, until softened.
Add ginger and curry powder; stir for 30 seconds. Pour in stock, scraping the bottom, then add beans and coconut milk.
Bring to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered for 10 minutes. Mash about 1/2 cup of beans against the side with the spoon.
Add spinach and simmer for 2 minutes until wilted. Stir in lime juice and salt; taste and adjust.

Leave expansion room

For freezing, leave about 1 inch (2.5 cm) headspace in a suitable container. Thaw in the refrigerator, then stir as it reheats so the creamy broth reunites.

A useful detail

Coconut milk can separate when boiled hard. A gentle simmer gives a smoother broth.

Another way

Use cannellini beans for a smaller bean that fits narrow flasks.
Replace spinach with 1 cup (140 g) frozen peas and simmer for 3 minutes.

Keep it well

Refrigerate shallow portions within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C, at 40°F/4°C or below for up to 3 days, or freeze for 2 months. Reheat to 165°F/74°C. For a hot work meal, preheat a suitable flask according to its instructions, fill with steaming soup and keep at 140°F/60°C or above until eaten.